Fears over weight-loss jabs linked to ten deaths and hundreds of cases of life-threatening illness
A study has been launched into the side effects of weight-loss jabs after ten people have died and hundreds contracted life-threatening illnesses after taking the drugs.
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Ten patients have died in the UK after contracting pancreatitis as a side-effect of weight loss jabs.
Hundreds more have reported inflammation of their pancreas related to the drugs, prompting the medicines watchdog to launch a probe into the side-effects of the drugs.
Recent estimates suggest that about 1.5 million people in the UK are taking weight loss jabs, including those linked to the pancreas issues: Ozempic, Wegovy and Mounjaro.
The Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) detailed 560 cases of patients that reported inflammation of the pancreas after taking the popular jabs, which are known as GLP-1 agonists.
It added that 10 of these patients died.
The medicines work by mimicking the function of GLP-1, a natural hormone in the body which promotes feelings of fullness. The class of medicines are most commonly used to treat type 2 diabetes, but are now increasingly being used to aid weight loss and counter obesity.
The MHRA is calling for people who are taking the jabs and have been admitted to hospital due to acute pancreatitis to submit a report to its Yellow Card scheme.
Patients who submit these reports - or healthcare workers who do so on behalf of patients - will then be asked to take part in the study, which will try to find out if genetic factors play a role in the function of the drugs.
The study, launched by the MHRA and Genomics England, will ask patients to submit more information and a saliva sample, which will be assessed to explore whether some people are at a higher risk of acute pancreatitis when taking these medicines due to their genes.
Researchers are hoping that, in the future, doctors will be able to conduct rapid genetic screenings before prescribing the drugs to prevent people suffering unwanted - and potentially dangerous - side effects.
Health officials have suggested that the jabs can help to turn the tide on obesity, but have stressed they are not a silver bullet and do come with side effects, which usually include gastrointestinal including nausea, constipation and diarrhoea.
Those taking the jabs should immediately seek medical assistance if they contract pancreatitis - Its main symptom is a severe and prolonged pain in the stomach and back.
Dr Alison Cave, MHRA's chief safety officer, said: "Evidence shows that almost a third of side effects to medicines could be prevented with the introduction of genetic testing, it is predicted that adverse drug reactions could cost the NHS more than £2.2 billion a year in hospital stays alone.
"Information from the Yellow Card Biobank will help us to better predict those most at risk of adverse reactions - enabling patients across the UK to receive the safest medicine for them, based on their genetic makeup.”
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 there is real potential to minimise these with many adverse reactions having a genetic cause.
"This next step in our partnership with the MHRA will generate data and evidence for safer and more effective treatment through more personalised approaches to prescription, supporting a shift towards an increasingly prevention-focused healthcare system."