lucylocket61
Expert
my request for links and substantiated information related to posters saying that metformin is being pulled due to a cancer risk. I should have been clearer.
my request for links and substantiated information related to posters saying that metformin is being pulled due to a cancer risk. I should have been clearer.@lucylocket61 Why not check on MIMS.co.uk They first brought this to our attention a week or two ago. MIMS are the foremost pharmaceutical, preceding BNF. The are heavily into education. Of course, you may run into problems with access unless you create an account.
MIMS.co.uk
Late edit: MIMS drug shortage tracker shows conclusively there is a shortage at Rosemont. I hope this de-escalates any anxiety felt by posters who've been led to believe otherwise.
Sorry lucylocket61, I did read your reply, but forgot by the time I came to reply to it. Since I originally wrote the post there has been a Government recall of the oral solution, so it is not available to anyone at the moment.As i said, my GP wont prescribe it to me as its too expensive, apparently. Nothing to do with shortages.
Thanks for replying Nicknackwack. I have now seen the government recall notice, but, unfortunately, do not know how to post this.I had a consultation this morning and was informed that the liquid form had been pulled because of suspect cancer inducing risk ! The tablet form is under review in the U.K.
Mbaker, it really makes you wonder how tablets get onto the market at all sometimes. My son and I have had problems with thyroid medication as well.What if this hadn't been found for another 10 years or so, scary.
Thanks for posting this Struma. Pleased to hear that MIMS are still around as I was led to believe otherwise. I shall now try to create an account and spread the word.@lucylocket61 Why not check on MIMS.co.uk They first brought this to our attention a week or two ago. MIMS are the foremost pharmaceutical, preceding BNF. The are heavily into education. Of course, you may run into problems with access unless you create an account.
MIMS.co.uk
Late edit: MIMS drug shortage tracker shows conclusively there is a shortage at Rosemont. I hope this de-escalates any anxiety felt by posters who've been led to believe otherwise.
Thank you for posting this Fruitella.It seems just one batch has been recalled: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/...-recalled-by-mhra-due-to-nitrosamine-impurity
It seems just one batch has been recalled: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/...-recalled-by-mhra-due-to-nitrosamine-impurity
It seems just one batch has been recalled: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/...-recalled-by-mhra-due-to-nitrosamine-impurity
Thank you LittleGreyCat for this further information. I am keeping abreast of any new information.This article implies that the medication should still be available, as only the one batch has been recalled.
However it also seems to say that everything is on hold while they investigate how a batch which was initially fine had unsafe levels 9 months later, so this may have a longer term impact for other batches.
Main message is that although the liquid Metformin batch no longer meets standards, there is little or no perceived risk in taking medication from that batch in the short term while they sort this out.
Thanks for clarifying lucylocket61.my request for links and substantiated information related to posters saying that metformin is being pulled due to a cancer risk. I should have been clearer.
I think medical science is owed a debt by humanity for some of the life saving interventions.Mbaker, it really makes you wonder how tablets get onto the market at all sometimes. My son and I have had problems with thyroid medication as well.
That was one batch, which had over the limit NDMA levels. In general its fine.I have been informed by a member of a Thyroid group that the Oral Solution has had a Class 2 Medicines Recall issued on 25 August 2021. Thank you for your confirmation of this X-entricity.
Late update: Both of my local chemists are stating they cannot get supplies of Liquid Metformin which I have been prescribed.
As of this am, my GP knows nothing about this. It may be a glitch due to the current logictics issues. Luckily I have a month in hand I can eek out until things get back to normal.
For those who need to know. Non Prolonged release tablets may be split or crushed and ground down between two spoons to a powder and mixed with water or fruit juice as an alternative. A pill splitter / grinder is really good for that. The formulation of the PR versions contain a scummy residue that makes it gloop together when mixed with water so it a) defeates the purpose of the PR and b) really sucks when you try and drink it
For those of you who get really bad diarehoa with Metformin tablets (as did I); convince your GP to get you on liquid version for a while as a tral, I did and never looked back. And, here's the interesting part: for the record Liquid Metformin is no more expensive that the tablet formulations (according to my practice nurse) for the NHS to pay for.
I found out that the tablet forms have 50% of thier inactive ingredients that either promote or accelerate loose bowels (realy what a surprise). For those who want to do thier own research, go here: https://www.medicines.org.uk/emc/search?q=metformin and look at the one they get prescribed, list the Excipients (section 6.1) (these are inactive ingrendients) and then research those on the web to see the side effects. Its not a good read. One even has a component of anti freeze in it.
That was one batch, which had over the limit NDMA levels. In general its fine.
Thank you for the information for medicines.org site. Most useful. My son has since been prescribed Teva Metformin which has quite a lot of excipients in it. Is there one with less, do you know? The Teva one he could manage to swallow with no problems, but I know that Teva Thyroxine is terrible because of the Mannitol in it. I note that teva is not on the list of medicines.org. In the new dossette box that has just arrived for him, there is a round tablet of Metformin, which I tracked down to one on this list being from Sigma Pharma.
The context and problems with innactive ingredients is entirely personal. My problem was probably caused by months of ingestion of Macrogol 6000 used in the brand of tablets I was prescribed. That is a known and powerful laxative - no suprise there then - but my GP completely overlooked the possibility of it being an innactive ingredient being the problem. It's taken me years for the penny to drop and to track it down myself. I have more incentive to be frank. GP's mostly do overlook things like that, they just go to the next on a list and hope it works out but never find out why. TBH its a crack in the pavement of end-to-end healthcare between GP and Pharmacist. I would approach your pharmascist first and explain the situation and suggest it may not be your medication per se which is the problem merely the formulation (brand) presented to you and parehaps use thier experience to get the right brand of med for you without the problem ingrendients - whatever they may be. To get some idea of what that might be...
In the past, my journey was by luck inspired guesswork, persistence and eventually threatening legal action and lastly finally - an indulgent GP.
My recent analysis of ingredients went like this. Identify the brand and drug, Get the list of ingredients from the internet, put them in a list - google sheets - then look them all up on google, focussing on the side effects. RAG them (Red Amber Green) as potential problem for your case.
To take it further RAG another brand, and repeat, until you find one without the things YOU think are a problem.
Then take that to your Pharmacist/GP and present your evidence and analysis. See what they think.
Last thing: Dont give up even if they do.
Thank you for all the information you have given SlyFox. My son and I have suffered from something that I am sure went wrong with Acacia Powder in Thyroxine in 2010 and are still suffering the same problem. I have to make sure that this excipient and, it appears Microcrystalline Cellulose now, are not in any of the medication we take as it causes sticky spots on our skin and an awful taste. I have taken this problem to The Health Ombudsman, but to no avail, so just have to be careful of what these excipients are in now. I always do, more or less, what you say if we have to have any other medications.
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