Los Angeles, CA (PRWEB) May 10, 2013 The diabetes drug safety advocates at DrugRisk.com are announcing new information on the site for those taking the medications Januvia or Janumet. The maker of the drugs has agreed to move a growing number of injury claims to a special federal court in California*. DrugRisk was created to improve patient safety by providing the latest warnings, recalls, studies and legal news to those taking popular prescription drugs. Visitors can see if others are experiencing similar side effects and decide if they need legal advice. The resource center contains information on Januvia and Janumet, which are pill-form diabetes medications sold by Merck to help those with type-2 diabetes control blood sugar. Last year, they were two of the best-selling drugs for the company, with sales of over $5 billion**. DrugRisk also contains research suggesting the drugs may be linked to cancer. A 2011 study from UCLA indicated the drug could increase the risk of pancreatic cancer by 172% and thyroid cancer by 48%***. The Journal for the American Medical Association also recently warned Januvia could double the risk of pancreatitis, a major risk factor for pancreatic cancer****. Due to the rising number of patients … Continue reading →

Public release date: 10-May-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ] Contact: La Monica Everett-Haynes leverett@email.arizona.edu 520-626-4405 University of Arizona The U.S. Food and Drug Administration and physicians continue to document that some patients experience fuzzy thinking and memory loss while taking statins, a class of global top-selling cholesterol-lowering drugs. A University of Arizona research team has made a novel discovery in brain cells being treated with statin drugs: unusual swellings within neurons, which the team has termed the "beads-on-a-string" effect. The team is not entirely sure why the beads form, said UA neuroscientist Linda L. Restifo, who leads the investigation. However, the team believes that further investigation of the beads will help inform why some people experience cognitive declines while taking statins. "What we think we've found is a laboratory demonstration of a problem in the neuron that is a more severe version for what is happening in some peoples' brains when they take statins," said Restifo, a UA professor of neuroscience, neurology and cellular and molecular medicine, and principal investigator on the project. Restifo and her team's co-authored study and findings recently were published in Disease Models & Mechanisms, a peer-reviewed journal. Robert Kraft, a former research associate in … Continue reading →

May 10, 2013 The U.S. Food and Drug Administration and physicians continue to document that some patients experience fuzzy thinking and memory loss while taking statins, a class of global top-selling cholesterol-lowering drugs. A University of Arizona research team has made a novel discovery in brain cells being treated with statin drugs: unusual swellings within neurons, which the team has termed the "beads-on-a-string" effect. The team is not entirely sure why the beads form, said UA neuroscientist Linda L. Restifo, who leads the investigation. However, the team believes that further investigation of the beads will help inform why some people experience cognitive declines while taking statins. "What we think we've found is a laboratory demonstration of a problem in the neuron that is a more severe version for what is happening in some peoples' brains when they take statins," said Restifo, a UA professor of neuroscience, neurology and cellular and molecular medicine, and principal investigator on the project. Restifo and her team's co-authored study and findings recently were published in Disease Models & Mechanisms, a peer-reviewed journal. Robert Kraft, a former research associate in the department of neuroscience, is lead author on the article. Restifo and Kraft cite clinical reports … Continue reading →