Our lawyers were investigating potential lawsuits throughout claims on behalf of victims who took the drugs and have suffered from pancreatic cancer. These lawsuits alleged product liability, negligence, and failure to warn claims against Merck & Co., Inc., the manufacturer.
In 2023, our law firm is no longer handling these lawsuits. Why? Because most of these lawsuits were dismissed in 2021 by a federal court judge who did not believe there was a proven link between pancreatic cancer and these diabetes drugs.
Is the judge correct? No one knows. His ruling is based on the fact that the science did not currently support the claims and that might be true. But that does not mean there is not an association between diabetes drugs and pancreatic cancer. It means the plaintiffs’ lawyers were unable to prove that connection.
New Januvia Concern in 2023
In August 2022, a new concern was raised when Merck’s Januvia was found to be contaminated with a potential carcinogen called nitrosamine or NDMA. The FDA is allowing the drug to remain on the market, at least for now, fearing shortages.
It is always a concern when you have potential carcinogens in a drug that you already fear could cause cancer. But our lawyers do not anticipate new NDMA Januvia litigation as we have seen with Zantac and Valsartan.
- Viberzi and pancreatitis
- Saxenda pancreatic cancer (another piece of litigation we are no longer handling)
What Are Januvia and Janumet?
These drugs are used to treat specific types of diabetes. Januvia is a prescribed pill taken once daily to help manage blood sugar in adults with type-2 diabetes. Janumet is a prescription used to manage blood sugar in adults with type-2 diabetes mellitus.
What Is Type-2 Diabetes?
Type-2 diabetes (also known as adult-onset diabetes and non-insulin-dependent diabetes) affects the body’s metabolization of sugar. With type-2 diabetes, the body is either resistant to the effects of insulin or does not manufacture enough insulin. The effect is that the body cannot maintain a normal glucose level.
How Do Januvia and Janumet Work?
Januvia and Janumet are new classes of drugs known as sitagliptin which are dipeptidyl peptidase-4 (DPP-4) inhibitors or blockers. These DPP-4 blockers help the body to manage blood sugar levels. They increase the amount of insulin manufactured by the pancreas when blood sugars are their highest (usually after eating). They also lower the amount of sugar manufactured by the liver after eating, when the body does not need it.
What Are the Warning Signs and Dangers of Januvia and Janumet?
On September 25, 2009, the FDA issued a warning to healthcare professionals that the drugs have been associated with 88 cases of acute pancreatitis (including hemorrhagic and necrotizing pancreatitis) by patients using sitagliptin. These 88 cases were found using the FDA’s post-market surveillance and occurred between October 2006 and February 2009.
Acute pancreatitis is the sudden inflammation of the pancreas. It is very dangerous and can be life-threatening. The warning signs of pancreatitis are:
- Upper abdominal pain that may radiate to the back
- Abdominal pain that feels worse after eating
- Nausea
- Vomiting
- Tenderness of the abdomen
Januvia and Pancreatic Cancer
Incredibly, there is a bigger problem with Januvia: pancreatic cancer. There was a study that showed a 2.7-fold increase in pancreatic cancers for those using Januvia and Byetta. What does this mean? It means if you are taking these drugs and you develop pancreatic cancer, it is more likely than not that you got it as a result of using these diabetes drugs. (Update commentary: this study was not replicated.)
What is the expected settlement amount or trial value of a Januvia or Byetta pancreatic cancer case? Well, these cases have not started settling in massive numbers. But, we try to estimate the value of Byetta and Januvia claims to try to give some idea of the potential settlement and trial value of these cases. (2021 Update: this paragraph did not age well. Januvia lawsuit settlements have fallen apart for most victims.)
Why Is the FDA Worried about Januvia and Janumet?
The FDA is concerned about Januvia and Janumet because they have received numerous reports that patients using the drug have developed acute pancreatitis. Sixty-six percent of those patients required hospitalization, and four of the patients were transferred to the intensive care unit.
Many of these Januvia and Janumet patients developed acute pancreatitis shortly after starting the drugs or changing the dosage. Over half of the cases were resolved after Januvia and Janumet were discontinued.
Acute pancreatitis can be fatal. The FDA is warning patients and their healthcare providers to watch for the warning signs listed above, and to closely monitor patient health immediately after starting the drug or changing the dose. They are working to update Januvia and Janumet’s warning labels to reflect these new dangers.
*Note: some of the content on his page is outdated even though it was updated in part in January 2023