Byetta far from "Miracle Drug"

Lake Worth, FLJoseph says his meds for type 2 Diabetes were causing him to eat too much and consequently he gained weight. He saw an endocrinologist who said there was a new drug called Byetta that works miracles—it would control his sugar level, decrease his appetite and he could shed the unwanted pounds. The specialist neglected to tell Joseph about the link between Byetta and acute pancreatitis

"It was my wife who suggested I see an endocrinologist—the specialist told me that I was on the wrong medications and prescribed Byetta," says Joseph. "I injected 5mcg of Byetta into my stomach, twice a day. Right after the first injection I had no appetite; was this psychosomatic or did I really lose my appetite?

After about 3 or 4 months it wasn't working anymore-- I was getting hungry all the time-- so the doctor doubled my dose. My sugar levels never dropped but I went from 285 lbs to 224 lbs. Then I read negative reports about Byetta and how it caused pancreatitis so I thought about stopping, but I didn't want to gain weight…

About 2 months ago, my wife noticed the left side of my face at the bottom of my throat was swollen. I went to a specialist and he ordered a CAT Scan. They found my salivary gland had a stone in it: At that point I stopped injecting Byetta. They also found nodules on my thyroid and this is not common in men so I went for a biopsy yesterday and now I'm waiting for the results—to find out if I have cancer.

The funny thing is that when I stopped the Byettta, I got really bad pains in the middle of my stomach, like hunger pains. This went on for about 3 weeks and I thought I had an ulcer: Apparently not because my doctor told me it is a side effect, a withdrawal symptom of Byetta. But was it the beginning of pancreatitis?

Since I stopped taking Byetta, this salivary gland got smaller but I am still scared to death of this drug and the damage it may have done. I was happy about losing weight but at what cost? Now I am so afraid of the outcome, so afraid of having cancer. I'm just staying home right now, waiting for biopsy results; I can't even work because I am so upset. Ironically my job is in sales: I talk to clients every day about cancer and chronic illness and here I am, facing it right now…"

The FDA's website instructs patients taking Byetta to seek prompt medical care if they experience unexplained persistent severe abdominal pain which may or may not be accompanied by vomiting. If pancreatitis is suspected, Byetta should be discontinued. If pancreatitis is confirmed, Byetta should not be restarted unless an alternative etiology is identified.

Amylin Pharmaceuticals, Inc., the manufacturer of Byetta, has agreed to include information about acute pancreatitis in the PRECAUTIONS section of the product label.