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Re: Dont mean to scare anyone.... (long reply)
From: anonymous (anonymous@obgyn.net)
Mon, 28 Oct 2002 10:10:48 -0600 (CST)
Renee....very well said. My compliments to you.
At Mon, 28 Oct 2002, Renee wrote:
>
>Delwicky,
>
>First, there is not such thing as "a little bit of sugar." It's like being
>pregnant: you either are diabetic or your're not. My suspicion is that either
>she didn't accept the fact that she was diabetic (I see this all the time in
>my patients), the doctor did a poor job educating her, or it was pretty well
>controlled so that her blood sugars weren't very high, though she was still diabetic.
>
>What is the evidence you say they have? I have never heard of this being an effect.
>
>I went to the prescribing information about the drug. In this, they discuss
>all the testing they've done, precautions, contraindications, drug
>interactions, birth defect info, and most other things you want to know. They
>are also up to date, as the FDA requires changes in labeling when new info
>comes in.
>
>Under the cancer section, they report mouse studies. Yes, I know people are
>different, but you can't stuff a person full of drugs and see if they develop
>cancer. Under very high doses (4 times the max human dose, per weight), no
>cancer or mutation occured. There was also no indication of cancer in their
>adverse reaction section.
>
>I did a web search, since that is where most of the fear literature and
>misinformation is. I couldn't find anything there linking metformin and liver
>cancer. If there was any suspicion at all, valid or not, it would be there.
>
>I searched the FDA, looking for safety reports (people can report any adverse
>reactions that occur from meds). There was nothing there.
>
>I did a literature search of medical journals. Here's the only one I found:
>
>Diabetes mellitus and cancer. Czyzyk A, Szczepanik Z. Eur J Intern Med 2000
>Oct;11(5):245-252. He points out that there is an increased risk of cancer,
>most commonly liver cancer, for people who are diabetics. He states that the
>hypothesis is impaired glucose tolerance, and the risk may be decreased by
>treating it, including the use of glucophage.
>
>There is a risk of liver dysfunction from met. That's why liver function
>tests are recommended, but that's different from liver cancer. Perhaps the
>person who make the connection got mixed up?
>
>In conclusion, there are several causes of liver cancer, even in those people
>who don't drink or smoke. There seems to be no evidence that it could be
>that. It was almost certainly due to something else. If hers if from
>glucophage, she'd be the first one. So, don't be afraid of it for that
>reason, and get the help you need. If you really are afraid of the drug, then
>you may try to control your insulin through exercising and a very low-carb
>diet. But, I really don't think that cancer risk is a reason to stay off the
>medication, since there seems to be no risk, except the potential to lower risk.
>
>Renee
>
>anonymous@obgyn.net wrote:
>>
>> Hello there. I am hoping that someone can give me some insight. I have been
>> diagnosed with PCOS almost a month ago, but its very obvious now that I have
>> been suffering from this syndrome probably for 11 or 12 years. I am in the
>> process of going to an enodcrynologist for all of the blood work I hear
>> about on here to pinpoint the problem. My mother keeps telling me that if my
>> sugar is playing a part in all of this that I may need to be put on
>> Glucophage to help in weight loss and controlling the wrong signals I am
>> receiving for sugar due to this illness. I am very scared now to learn that
>> this medication is one of the main ways to control this illness because my
>> step mother told me NOT to go on the medication...that it is very dangerous.
>> Her mother is dying of a very rare form of cancer right now, dead center of
>> her liver. She has never been a drinker or smoker, is a small woman with !
>> just a little bit of sugar, but never a full blown diabetic. They had her on
>> this medication two different times in her life, for long stretches, and now
>> they believe (with some evidence of course) that the glucophage is
>> responsible for this horrible cancer. Has anyone else heard of this? I am so
>> scared now to be treated for the PCOS with the medication that I don't even
>> want to persue medical attention that I so desperately need right now. I
>> can't just let the PCOS have its way with my body, I have been going through
>> too much to allow that to happen, but at the same time, I am so scared to
>> seek treatment that will put me on this medicine...any thoughts ladies???
>> Delwicky@aol.com
>
>--
>--------------
>Renee Cordrey, MSPT, MPH, CWS
>
>---
>Dwell in Possibility.
>--Emily Dickenson
>
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