Victoza

[Jon T]

Hello All. I had a question about this. Is it considered insulin? A friend of mine is taking it and told me that the weight is dripping off of him. Granted, he is a bit overweight, but regardless he is losing weight very easily. I know nothing about insulin and how it works with weight loss. If anyone can provide me with some info it would be greatly appreciated.

[Spartans09]

Victoza® (liraglutide [rDNA origin] injection) is an injectable prescription medicine that may improve blood sugar (glucose) in adults with type 2 diabetes when used along with diet and exercise.

Victoza® is not recommended as the first medication to treat diabetes. Victoza® is not a substitute for insulin and has not been studied in combination with prandial (meal-time) insulin. Victoza® is not for people with type 1 diabetes or people with diabetic ketoacidosis. It is not known if Victoza® is safe and effective in children. Victoza® is not recommended for use in children.

Important Safety Information

In animal studies, Victoza® caused thyroid tumors—including thyroid cancer—in some rats and mice. It is not known whether Victoza® causes thyroid tumors or a type of thyroid cancer called medullary thyroid cancer (MTC) in people, which may be fatal if not detected and treated early. Do not use Victoza® if you or any of your family members have a history of MTC or if you have Multiple Endocrine Neoplasia syndrome type 2 (MEN 2). While taking Victoza®, tell your doctor if you get a lump or swelling in your neck, hoarseness, trouble swallowing, or shortness of breath. These may be symptoms of thyroid cancer.

Do not use Victoza® if you are allergic to liraglutide or any of the ingredients in Victoza®. Serious allergic reactions can happen with Victoza®. If symptoms of serious allergic reactions occur, stop taking Victoza® and seek medical attention. Inflammation of the pancreas (pancreatitis) may be severe and lead to death. Before taking Victoza®, tell your doctor if you have had pancreatitis, gallstones, a history of alcoholism, or high blood triglyceride levels since these medical conditions make you more likely to get pancreatitis.

Stop taking Victoza® and call your doctor right away if you have pain in your stomach area that is severe and will not go away, occurs with or without vomiting, or is felt going from your stomach area through to your back. These may be symptoms of pancreatitis.

Before using Victoza®, tell your doctor about all the medicines you take, especially sulfonylurea medicines or insulin, as taking them with Victoza® may affect how each medicine works. If you use Victoza® with insulin, you may give both injections in the same body area (for example, your stomach area), but not right next to each other.

Also tell your doctor if you have severe stomach problems such as slowed emptying of your stomach (gastroparesis) or problems with digesting food; have or have had kidney or liver problems; have any other medical conditions; or are pregnant or plan to become pregnant. Tell your doctor if you are breastfeeding or plan to breastfeed. It is unknown if Victoza® will harm your unborn baby or if Victoza® passes into your breast milk.

Your risk for getting hypoglycemia, or low blood sugar, is higher if you take Victoza® with another medicine that can cause low blood sugar, such as a sulfonylurea or insulin. The dose of your sulfonylurea medicine or insulin may need to be lowered while taking Victoza®.

Victoza® may cause nausea, vomiting, or diarrhea leading to dehydration, which may cause kidney failure. This can happen in people who have never had kidney problems before. Drinking plenty of fluids may reduce your chance of dehydration.

The most common side effects with Victoza® include headache, nausea, and diarrhea. Nausea is most common when first starting Victoza®, but decreases over time in most people. Immune system related reactions, including hives, were more common in people treated with Victoza® compared to people treated with other diabetes drugs in medical studies.

Please click here for Prescribing Information and Medication Guide.

Novo Nordisk provides patient assistance for those who qualify.
Please call 1-866-310-7549 to learn more about Novo Nordisk assistance programs.

[Spartans09]

There are some concerns related to cancer.

Health professionals reportedly are receiving letters this week alerting them to an FDA warning just issued about risks of thyroid cancer and pancreatitis associated with the popular type 2 diabetes drug liraglutide (Victoza). Yikes!

According to MSM reports, the evidence was found in mice, and it’s unclear if the serious risks translate to humans — but there was enough concern to issue the follow warning:

“Clinical trials have shown more cases of pancreatitis with liraglutide than with other diabetes drugs, so the FDA recommended patient monitoring after starting liraglutide or raising the dosage, for symptoms such as persistent severe abdominal pain. This pain can sometimes radiate to the back and is accompanied by vomiting.

Liraglutide should be immediately stopped if pancreatitis is suspected and not restarted if the disease is confirmed.

The FDA urged a cautious approach in patients with a history of pancreatitis. The agency also highlighted the contraindication for liraglutide in patients with a personal or family history of medullary thyroid cancer or a personal history of multiple endocrine neoplasia syndrome type 2.”

Seeing as how the ‘Mine has become home to the unofficial leading chat forum for Victoza users, we thought you all might like to know! We’ll be posting an alert there as well, of course.

[Jon T]

Thanks Spartan. I actually did see that article. It states in your first post that it "is not a substitute for insulin" but does it work the same as insulin? I always thought a side effect of insulin resistance (high level of insulin in the bloodstream) is weight gain. This seems to work the opposite because he is losing weight.

[Spartans09]

I'm not sure. I remember taking a look at it a year ago and these were a couple of the articles I came across back then. The carcinogenic unknown scared me away. I'd be interested to hear what anyone else's experience might be as well.