Prognosis
Popular Diabetes Drug Found to Contain Potential Carcinogen
- Impurity was detected in Merck’s sitagliptin-containing drugs
- The FDA said it is working to avoid shortages of the drug
Photographer: Daniel Acker/Bloomberg
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Merck & Co.’s Januvia, a popular diabetes drug, was found to be contaminated with a potential carcinogen.
An impurity called a nitrosamine was found in some samples of the drug, which has the chemical name of sitagliptin, the US Food and Drug Administration said Tuesday. The agency said it was permitting Merck to continue to sell drugs containing sitagliptin with higher-than-allowed levels of nitrosamine in order to avoid shortages.