Tuesday, June 28, 2011

SEROQUEL maker AstraZeneca sponsors (nongovernment) study: SHIELD -understanding diabetes mellitus! oh the irony!

The antipsychotic Seroquel has a black box warning for diabetes. How ironic that AstraZeneca has sponsored the largest nongovernment study of the risks of type 2 diabetes.

If one was to speculate on the inner-goings-on behind the scenes in boardroom meetings, one would question whether or not this was in fact a strategic plan, to counter the negative outcome of the diabetes side effect in AstraZeneca's blockbuster Seroquel. What better plan could there be to creating lifetime customers?

If you can't beat them join them? smack the injured parties in the face?

Just this week AstraZeneca and Bristol-Myers Squibb announced their new diabetes drug dapagliflozin being developed has shown increased bladder and breast cancers in patients using the drug.

The development of a diabetes pill by 2 antipsychotic makers with drugs that have black box warnings for diabetes as a side effect is ironic enough, now we have AstraZeneca sponsoring a study on diabetes management.

This is a corporation, this is business, not philanthropy, not a feel good mission on behalf of AstraZeneca, this is a direct target into a market they essentially created with their drug: Seroquel induced diabetes.

There were 26,000 people who filed cases to sue AstraZeneca for taking Seroquel and becoming diabetic, that is 26,000 people who are possible candidates for their new pill, and the future market after the damage of Seroquel has been done.

Question for Seroquel victims: would you use this pill? would you participate in a study sponsored by the pharmaceutical company that sold the pill that gave you diabetes? would you have participated in SHIELD?

AZ Connections blog:

"The SHIELD study (The Study to Help Improve Early evaluation and management of risk factors Leading to Diabetes) showed that patients with risk factors related to their age, family history, and obesity significantly increase their risk of transition to type 2 diabetes by as much as 300 to 500 percent. Doctors who understand pre-diabetes risk factors and ask the right questions of their patients can quickly identify at-risk patients before they develop the disease, the study suggests."

Did AstraZeneca include a question of whether or not the person became diabetic as a result of ingesting quetiapine,Seroquel? The stats are skewed in percentages of adults and kids with diabetes in ALL surveys if that is not included. Considering the antipsychotic Seroquel is being dosed out for insomnia and anxiety, the possibilities are HUGE--that people are diabetic as a result of taking that pill. Those factors should be addressed.

Graph from the AZ Connections blog

"The SHIELD study is the largest nongovernmental study of its kind and was sponsored by AstraZeneca. SHIELD was a population-based survey conducted from 2004 to 2009 to better understand the risk for the development of diabetes mellitus, as well as disease burden.

“This collection of patient self-reported data has given us valuable real-world evidence of how doctors can help patients manage their risks of developing type 2 diabetes,” said Susan Grandy, PhD, Value Demonstration Leader and SHIELD Study Director, Health Economics & Outcomes Research at AstraZeneca."



ASKING THE RIGHT QUESTIONS MAY LEAD TO EARLIER INTERVENTION IN PRE-DIABETES

From the AstraZeneca website:

June 28, 2011

"Asking the right questions may lead to earlier intervention in pre-diabetes

Could reduce rate of transition to type 2 diabetes, according to SHIELD study

June 28, 2011 – San Diego, CA – Predictors for type 2 diabetes are easily identifiable, according to a large community study undertaken to understand diabetes and the disease burden, and may lead to earlier intervention for people at risk. The findings were presented today at the American Diabetes Association’s 71st Annual Scientific Sessions.

SHIELD (The Study to Help Improve Early evaluation and management of risk factors Leading to Diabetes) is the largest non-governmental study of its kind.1 AstraZeneca (NYSE: AZN) sponsored the study.

SHIELD data demonstrated that simple, easily available information, e.g., age, family history, obesity - characteristics adults can self-identify - are strong predictors for developing type 2 diabetes. The presence of these factors significantly boosts risk of transition, by as much as 300%-500%. Furthermore, clinicians may not need any other patient-reported symptom besides excessive thirst to further screen for type 2 diabetes. Active understanding of these pre-diabetes risk factors and early intervention may reduce transition to type 2 diabetes.

“We need to slow down the rate of transition to type 2 diabetes, said Helena W. Rodbard, MD, Endocrine and Metabolic Consultants in Rockville, MD and SHIELD study investigator. “SHIELD data can, ideally, be used to simplify the process by which clinicians identify and screen patients at risk of progressing, and help those in need get required support earlier.”

About SHIELD
SHIELD (The Study to Help Improve Early Evaluation and management of risk factors Leading to Diabetes) was a 5-year longitudinal population-based survey conducted from 2004 to 2009 to better understand the risk for the development of diabetes mellitus, as well as disease burden. The objectives of SHIELD have been to assess:

•Prevalence and incidence of diabetes mellitus and cardiovascular disease (CVD)
•Disease burden
•Disease progression and transition from pre-disease to diagnosed disease
•Risk predictors of transitioning from pre-disease to diagnosed disease
•Knowledge, attitudes and behaviors regarding health

Of the 200,000 households that received the screening questionnaire in 2004, 127,420 households (containing a total of 211,097 adults) returned completed questionnaires.1 The follow-up baseline survey was mailed to 22,001 respondents to be followed over the subsequent five years with annual surveys.


The evaluation of transition to type 2 diabetes was analyzed from 11,238 respondents who had no diagnosis of diabetes at baseline and completed at least one or more follow-up surveys."
-----


HOW ABOUT EARLY PREVENTION BEING DON'T TAKE SEROQUEL OR YOU MIGHT BECOME DIABETIC?

THE 26,000 SEROQUEL LAWSUIT CASES WERE PREVENTABLE. AstraZeneca knew the drug could cause diabetes which is documented in internal papers and emails. The company buried the data and sold the drug anyway.

If you were injured with  lifetime diabetes as a result of taking Seroquel, find a lawyer if you can find one willing to get your case to trial, with a jury, because a grave injustice has been done to you, in fact it's a corporate crime that the company has not admitted guilt for committing.

You deserve better than that, and AstraZeneca wants to create a diabetes pill for you as a consolation gift. $$$$$$$$$$$$$$




*Editor of AZ Health Connections is Tony Jewell the PR spokesman typically quoted in articles when litigation or DoJ fines are reported, he usually 'denies guilt' as a representative of AstraZeneca. This could deem him 'the voice of evil'....at least to innocent victims of  the Seroquel scandal resulting in diabetes due to skewed and buried data, but we'll leave the description at Editor of AZ Health Connections for now.

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