Weight loss and diabetes jabs taken by more than a million people in the UK have been linked to a potential serious side effect, with some deaths, according to data from the UK medicines regulator.
New figures from the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) show the group of drugs that includes Mounjaro, Wegovy, and Ozempic may be associated with inflammation of the pancreas.
According to the MHRA, there have been 181 reported cases of acute or chronic pancreatitis linked to Mounjaro, with five deaths.
Wegovy and Ozempic have been linked with 113 reports of pancreatitis and one death.
Other, less widely used versions of so-called GLP-1 drugs have also been linked to cases and deaths.
There is no evidence that the drugs directly caused the deaths. And the evidence isn’t strong enough for the MHRA to restrict access.
That’s because pancreatitis also occurs in people who aren’t taking the GLP-1 drugs, with about 560 cases for every one million people in the general population. Gallstones and alcohol are the biggest causes.
But the MHRA and Genomics England are launching a new study to see whether some people have genes that put them at higher risk of developing pancreatitis if they take GLP-1 drugs.
People reported through the MHRA’s ‘yellow card’ alert system to have pancreatitis while using the jabs will be asked to provide a saliva sample and their genes tested.
Professor Matt Brown, chief scientific officer of Genomics England, said: “GLP-1 medicines like Ozempic and Wegovy have been making headlines, but like all medicines, there can be a risk of serious side effects.
“We believe…
