Onglyza (saxagliptin) is an oral medication used to treat type-2 diabetes in patients with high blood sugar levels.

Along with diet and exercise, Onglyza has provided blood-sugar stabilizing benefits to many patients who had tried to unsuccessfully manage their condition in the past.

In addition to having a positive track record of being a useful diabetes treatment, Onglyza is also praised for not causing weight gain like some of the other oral diabetes medications and for not causing hypoglycemia in patients like rival drugs do.

With all the positive press surrounding Onglyza, are there any drawbacks to the diabetes medication? What Onglyza side effects have been linked with its use?

Onglyza Side Effects

Like any pharmaceutical drug, Onglyza may induce side effects in patients using the drug. Side effects commonly seen with Onglyza use include:

• Upper respiratory infections
• Sore throat
• Headache
• Nausea/vomiting
• Mild skin rash and itching
• Cough
• Abdominal pain/diarrhea
• Fluid retention

Despite the mostly innocuous side effects, many physicians feel that patients will benefit from the drug more than they will suffer the risks of most of the side effects.

However, beyond the common side effects lie more severe conditions, including the potential increased risk of pancreatic or thyroid cancer, that may make patients think twice about taking Onglyza.

Onglyza and Cancer

The way Onglyza works is by stimulating the pancreas to alter the amount of insulin secreted, the pancreas is an organ directly affected by the medication. While no official FDA warnings have been issued, patients and physicians have reported that pancreatitis, or inflammation of the pancreas, and pancreatic cancer may be linked to Onglyza use.

In fact, animal studies have showed that rats exposed to saxagliptin had changes occur in their pancreas. The FDA and European Medicines Agency both reviewed data on the link of DPP-4 inhibitors, the class of drugs to which Onglyza belongs, and pancreatic cancer.

The agencies did not reach a definitive link to pancreatic cancer but did suggest there was a link to pancreatitis and Onglyza. However, sometimes pancreatitis can be a precursor to pancreatic cancer.

In addition to its link to pancreatic cancer, Onglyza may also be linked to thyroid cancer. Two chemically similar drugs, Victoza and Byetta, have a more established potential link, and it is assumed since Onglyza has a similar chemical structure, patients taking Onglyza may have also have an increased risk for developing thyroid cancer.

Other Onglyza Side Effects

In 2015, the FDA met to discuss safety concerns of Onglyza use following numerous adverse event reports. The agency reviewed reports of heart failure and hospitalization due to heart failure.

At that time, the FDA decided that a revision to the label was necessary to include updated information about the risk of heart failure from the drug.

Onglyza Lawsuit Information

If you or a loved one has been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, thyroid cancer, or other serious Onglyza side effect since beginning treatment with the diabetes medication, you may be entitled to legal compensation.

An experienced Onglyza attorney is available to review your case for free and can help you explore the legal options that are available to you.