Another dangerous drug for those with type 2 diabetes hits the market

[Warning] Will that new diabetes drug give you thyroid cancer?

I know…I’m starting to sound like a broken record. But surprisingly, I’m not just repeating over and over how risky a new diabetes drug is.

Because it seems like the FDA is out to set a record for approving more (and more dangerous) diabetes drugs this year than ever before.

Including at the end of September when it approved another drug for type 2 diabetics.

This new once-a-week injectable from Eli Lilly is called “Trulicity.”

My guess is that Lilly picked that name to try to get our subconscious to think “truth” and “simplicity.”

But really, there’s nothing either true or simple about this drug at all.

It’s another member of that GLP-1 gang, known to cause cancer, including a rare kind of thyroid cancer, and pancreatitis, which can be deadly. These drugs aren’t insulin, but “work” by mimicking natural hormones in your body that control your blood sugar.

The list of GLP-1 diabetes drugs includes Victoza and another newbie, Tanzeum.

Now, if you took the labels for Victoza, Tanzeum and now Trulicity, and put them side by side, you might be confused as to which is which.

That’s because they all have the same big black-box warning for thyroid c-cell tumors.

Now we don’t know yet exactly how severe the risk is, No, we’ll have to wait a while to see how many get these deadly thyroid tumors from this new drug.

Because Lilly has 15 years to report the numbers of thyroid cancers Trulicity might cause.

You read that right: we’ll know around 2029 just how dangerous this drug really is!

Of course, here in the U.S. we’re the lucky Guinea pigs who get to try it out first. That’s because our FDA beat every other country in the world in approving it!

All of which has “delighted” Lilly. When it announced the approval of Trulicity, the company noted that it now has pills, insulin, and Trulicity, its new GLP-1 drug, to offer diabetics.

But that’s not all they’re excited about…

The most ridiculous “perk” you’ll hear about this new med is how it can “help” you to lose weight.
That may be because its most common side effect is nausea.
One expert, a pharmacist and pharmacy educator, actually called the nausea a “plus” if you’re trying to drop some pounds.

Give me a break! We all know that one of the most important things any diabetic can do is to eat better and do more exercise. Certainly if you’re nauseated all the time from taking this drug, you won’t be eating well — if you can eat at all.

The only good thing about Trulicity is its cost, around $500 per month. That might mean higher co-pays and special “approvals” to get it covered.

And that could be the one saving grace that will keep most people from ending up on the Trulicity cancer “registry.” The one we’ll first be hearing about in 2029.

Sources:
“FDA approves once-weekly dulaglutide for type 2 diabetes” Miriam E. Tucker, September 18, 2014, Medscape, Medscape.com