From CNN: Avandia and diabetes: Was revolution worth the risks?
"A decade after critics first accused the Food and Drug Administration of downplaying side effects from Avandia, the agency says it will reveal on Friday the data it is reviewing ahead of an advisory panel meeting about the safety of the popular diabetes drug.
The meeting, scheduled for July 13 and 14, comes on the heels of two new studies suggesting that Avandia may cause serious or even life-threatening heart problems -- and a third study that seems to show just the opposite.
When the gavel comes down at the end, it could bring down the curtain on the troubled 11-year run of one of the pharmaceutical industry's biggest hits. Along the way, Avandia has left a trail of admirers who see it as revolutionizing diabetes care, along with critics who say the company oversold benefits while misleading patients and doctors about serious side effects."
Dr. Whitaker's Take
Dr. Whitaker has railed against Avandia in no less than nine different Health & Healing newsletter articles, dating as far back as March 2007. In fact, in May 2008, he wrote, "Another class of diabetes drugs, and the second-most widely used type of medication by ACCORD participants, was thiazolidinediones, the most notorious of which is Avandia. If you want to increase your risk of heart attack by 40 percent, heart failure by 60 percent, and death by more than 30 percent, Avandia is the drug for you."
His take on the recent news?
"We’ve known for years that this drug is killing people. Label warnings are not enough. The FDA should take Avandia off the market."
"A decade after critics first accused the Food and Drug Administration of downplaying side effects from Avandia, the agency says it will reveal on Friday the data it is reviewing ahead of an advisory panel meeting about the safety of the popular diabetes drug.
The meeting, scheduled for July 13 and 14, comes on the heels of two new studies suggesting that Avandia may cause serious or even life-threatening heart problems -- and a third study that seems to show just the opposite.
When the gavel comes down at the end, it could bring down the curtain on the troubled 11-year run of one of the pharmaceutical industry's biggest hits. Along the way, Avandia has left a trail of admirers who see it as revolutionizing diabetes care, along with critics who say the company oversold benefits while misleading patients and doctors about serious side effects."
Dr. Whitaker's Take
Dr. Whitaker has railed against Avandia in no less than nine different Health & Healing newsletter articles, dating as far back as March 2007. In fact, in May 2008, he wrote, "Another class of diabetes drugs, and the second-most widely used type of medication by ACCORD participants, was thiazolidinediones, the most notorious of which is Avandia. If you want to increase your risk of heart attack by 40 percent, heart failure by 60 percent, and death by more than 30 percent, Avandia is the drug for you."
His take on the recent news?
"We’ve known for years that this drug is killing people. Label warnings are not enough. The FDA should take Avandia off the market."
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