The type 2 diabetes drugs Onglyza® (saxagliptin) and Kombiglyze™ XR (saxagliptin + metformin extended-release), have been linked to serious health problems, including an increased risk of pancreatic cancer.
Both Onglyza and Kombiglyze XR are known as dipeptidyl peptidase (DPP-4) inhibitors. They also belong to a larger class of diabetes drugs called incretin mimetics. According to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), these drugs work to lower blood sugar in adults with type 2 diabetes by mimicking the incretin hormones that the body usually produces naturally to increase the amount of insulin produced by the body after meals, when blood sugar is high.
Several drugs in the incretin class, including Januvia®, Janumet®, Byetta® and Victoza®, are already the subject of hundreds of lawsuits pending in federal court, alleging that use of the drugs caused plaintiffs to develop pancreatic cancer and/or thyroid cancer.
