The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is alerting health care professionals and patients of a recall of several drugs that contain the ingredient valsartan.
Valsartan is used to treat high blood pressure and heart failure, according to the FDA. There has been an impurity found in valsartan called N-nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA).
NDMA is classified as a probable human carcinogen based on lab tests.
The FDA believes this sudden presence of NDMA is because of the way the substance was manufactured.
After hearing about the recall, Denise Meade was in shock. The main reason she was concerned is because she currently has kidney cancer and she's been taking this type of medication for 15 years. Also, the FDA said there is a link between valsartan and cancer.
"It seemed awful strange that I had kidney cancer. It just makes me wonder if there's a link," Meade said.
This is the list of medications recalled by the FDA.
| Medicine | Company |
|---|---|
| Valsartan | Major Pharmaceuticals |
| Valsartan | Solco Healthcare |
| Valsartan | Teva Pharmaceuticals Industries Ltd. |
| Valsartan/Hydrochlorothiazide (HCTZ) | Solco Healthcare |
| Valsartan/Hydrochlorothiazide (HCTZ) | Teva Pharmaceuticals Industries Ltd |
The medication containing valsartan that Denise Meade is currently has is not on this list, but she is still concerned she may have taken one of the recalled brands in the past.
"I'm scared because you never know if it caused this of if there another cancer that will pop up," she said.
Meade said right now she feels confused, upset and angry.
"I'm mad at the pharmaceutical companies that they didn't try harder to make this not happen," she said.
Now, she said all she can do is wait to find out if she has taken any of the recalled medications in the past.
This is the response by the FDA:
“We have carefully assessed the valsartan-containing medications sold in the United States, and we’ve found that the valsartan sold by these specific companies does not meet our safety standards. This is why we’ve asked these companies to take immediate action to protect patients,” said Janet Woodcock, M.D., director of the FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research.
The FDA said because valsartan is used in medicines to treat serious medical conditions, patients taking the recalled medicine should continue taking it until they have a replacement.
If you don't know where you medication came from in the past, your pharmacy should have that information.