Pioglitazone

Hi there just noticed your post. I was on pioglitazone or Actos for five or six months with the only side effect being the 14 lb weight gain! I read all the stories from America law suits etc and it didn't really phase me as I was on the lowest dose and felt perfectly fine with it. I was on a diet and eventually weighed myself only to find it wasn't working! If it wasn't for the weight gain I'd still be on this drug but now on Januvia which seems ok for the moment so hope this helps you.

I loathed those pills and their side effects :crazy:

Only took them for a matter of weeks.

Hi my doc had me on pioglitazone as a replacement for a glicazide which was giving me hypos. My sugars were still high after a few months and i was also put on sitagliptin. I was actively trying to lose weight but would lose a few pounds and they it would come back on. I read all the info about the bladder cancer risks but, to be honest, what stopped me taking these was the info that it made you gain/keep weight on. I came off it a few months ago and have lost about 24lbs. My blood sugar has also come down, mainly due to the weight loss.

If you do not have an issue with weight, these pills are ok - I didn't suffer with any side effects and the potential side effects from alternatives such as sitagliptin are comparatively much worse.

You don't say why your doc wants to increase your meds - is your sugar going up? I would try and avoid increasing your meds if you can as docs do seem to treat it as a given that you will progress through meds (see above!).

My doc tried to get me to go back on the pioglitazone even tho weight and sugar had gone down. Go figure.

Good luck!

I started taking Pioglitizone (or Actos as its commonly known) a few years ago and it made a remarkable improvement to my BG levels. In 2007 I was diagnosed with Bladder Cancer and following surgery in Jan 2008 to remove my bladder they subsequently found I had Prostate Cancer as well. Fortunately I didnt need any further surgery or other treatment and I carried on Actos until I read a headline in a newspaper in June of last year which stated "Safety alert over diabetes drug linked to bladder cancer after it is suspended in France and Germany" so I copied it and sent it to my Urology consultant asking what he knew about it and what should I do. In August 2011,I got an answer which advised me that he was not aware of any link between this tablet and Bladder Cancer but to consult my GP with a view to finding an alternate medication. This I did and all that happened was I was taken off Actos but was told there was not another suitable alternate tablet he was prepared to prescribe me. Later that year a CT scan threw up that I had significant calcification in a coronary artery. So off I went to a cardiologist who put me on the treadmill and from the results increased some of my medication but he went on to say and I quote:

He is also on various other medications for his diabetes. We tend to shy away from the Pioglitizones in cardiology due to the problems with Rosiglitazone and would recommend that the Pioglitizone is replaced with a gliptin which is Saxagliptin. The rest of his medication can be continued as usual.

I started taking Saxagliptin as was recommended at that time, but it really made no difference whatsoever to my BG levels in fact my HbA1C levels got worse, I went from 8.2 in Sept 2011 to 10.2 in May 2012. I've just gone over to insulin control and hope things will improve.

All I will say is that as far as I was concerned taking Actos was the best thing that could have happened for me. Ok I was unlucky and developed cancer but I don't believe that had anything to do with taking Pioglitizone. If I had been given the choice I would have stayed on it.

Best wishes

i would always rather manipulate my diet than take extra pills.
I managed to get OFF Gliclazide, to be on 2 x 500mg Metformin only, by this method.
I am veruy suspicious of drugf interaction possibilities.
Hana

Nannymau said:

I am type 2 and have been on three metformin tablets 750mg. For some time. Now my doctor wants me to take Pioglitazone. Has any one got any advice about these tablets please.

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Hi Nannymau,

Welcome to the forum.

Have you been given any dietary advice from your Health Care Team?
Many of us have been able to cut back on meds by watching what we eat. Also, do your have a blood testing meter to see what is happening to your bloods after meals?