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Victoza ? byetta ? help

B

bessboo06

Newbie
Messages
1
Type of diabetes
Treatment type
Tablets (oral)
Hi , type 2 diabetic currently on metformin but considering a change to victoza. I am very overweight and so hoping this med may help ? I have sone some research and the thing that concerns me is the thyroid cancer subject .Can anyone tell me if this has been linked or just a maybe ? and anyone with experiences with tumors from victoza ?
Also would daily blood sugar testing be necessary wile taking this med .
Any help much appreciated
 
Hi bessboo06

Welcome to the forum. I hope that we can be of help to you.

Most medications will have some risk of side effects - either of a minor or major type. As far as I can tell, thyroid cancer has only been found in rodents and not people at high doses of liraglutide (victoza). This might give you more information: http://care.diabetesjournals.org/content/36/Supplement_2/S245.full

There are two new drugs that work in different ways to the victoza type and they are dapagliflozin and canagliflozin. They work by removing some of the glucose from your blood in the kidneys and then the glucose and it's calories are peed out. This will help reduce your blood sugar levels as well as helping you to lose weight.

Hope this helps.

Doug
 
I was recently at the docs and we discussed victoza and baretta. If you go on these drugs you have to inform the dvla that you are taking these drugs. It can affect your driving licence. As I am a taxi driver this wasn't acceptable to me I might have had restrictions on my licence. I was on januvia before and I lost weight with this drug. There was a program on about diabetes and drugs and the 3 above drugs where associated with pancreatic cancer. Januvia is supposedly going to be marketed as a weight loss drug. I have been put on metformin and also a pill to help me lose weight( sorry I can't remember the name). I am out at work but when I get home I will repost the name. I have already lost 10lbs in 4 weeks so I am happy. They suppress your appetite.


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As far as I am aware, byetta does not cause hypos and neither does metformin. If, of course, byetta is used with a drug like gliclazide it could cause hypos. Please see: http://www.diabetes.co.uk/forum/threads/byetta-driving.7519/ The only medication prescribable for weight-loss alone is Orlistat. Other diabetes medications have weight-loss as a secondary adjunct to glucose reduction, for example dapagliflozin.

Regards

Doug
 
Happy to help, Eileen and welcome to the Forum. I hope you find it a helpful place.

Regards

Doug
 
AFAIK you do NOT have to inform DVLA if you are taking Victoza or Byetta, nor do you have to tell them if you are taking these drugs alongside Gliclazide and/or Metformin. You must tell them if you are on Insulin, and also if (on whatever medication you are) you suffer hypos that require you to receive help from a third party. You can get full details of all this from the DVLA website.
I am on Byetta, and the information sheet mentions pancreatitis as a possible (but rare) side effect. There is no mention of pancreatic or kidney cancer. Before you would be prescribed Byetta (or Victoza) you will need blood tests to ensure your liver and kidney functions are good enough to enable your body to metabolise the drug, and if not you will not be given it as this would increase the risk of pancreatitis etc.. I was hoping to be given Victoza (single daily injection) but my kidney function was not good enough for this, so I am on Byetta (two injections daily) instead.

Neither Victoza nor Byetta cause hypos in themselves, only in combination with other drugs such a gliclazide and insulin, when hypos "can occur very commonly" in the words of the Byetta leaflet. If you have good hypo awareness there is no need for DVLA to be informed if you are on Byetta with Gliclazide and/or Metformin. You do, however, need to inform your insurance company if you are diabetic, but they should NOT increaseyour premium as a result.
Hope this makes the situation clearer.
 
Marvin

Thanks for your posting. On the Byetta front, it does come as a weekly injection called Bydureon.

Take care

Doug
 
Just passing on what I was told when I asked the question! I suggest you look on the DVLA website and/or do a search on DUK site or similar and then make your own interpretation of the information you glean. At the end of the day you can always tell DVLA anyway to be on the safe side, and then hope for the best....
 
@Marvin bayetta and Victoza are both hypo causing drugs the same as gliclizide, there is no legal requirement to inform DVLA with a group 1 licence, however it strongly recommends you test your blood before driving and carry your testing kit


Type 2 diagnosed 24/01/2013.
Novomix 30, Victoza, metformin 2000mg sr (but not taking them as they play havoc with my insides,
 
Crimsonclient

Where did you get your information from regarding Byetta? It has a totally different mode of action to gliclazide. Information that I have seen indicates that hypoglycaemia is a side effect only when Byetta or Bydureon are used with other medications.

Regards

Doug
 
I'm sure I have seen it on the DVLA website


Type 2 diagnosed 24/01/2013.
Novomix 30, Victoza, metformin 2000mg sr (but not taking them as they play havoc with my insides,
 
From the official Government website: https://www.gov.uk/diabetes-driving

As far as I can tell, there is no mention of Byetta or Victoza causing hypoglycaemia. The above page does, however, spell out the circumstances under which DVLA need to be informed of diabetes and its treatment.

I hope that this is helpful.

Regards

Doug
 
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