Top News: May 21-25

This week's Top News concerns a warning from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration about the Type 2 diabetes drug Avandia.

The story began this week when the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a safety alert for Avandia. The FDA cited a study that the Type 2 diabetes medicine increases users' risk for heart attack by 43 percent. But, the FDA stressed, patients taking Avandia should not stop taking the medication but should discuss the cardiovascular risks with their doctor.

Today, new information surfaced that the FDA was first warned about Avandia's risks in 2000. According to MSNBC:

"John Buse, president-elect of the American Diabetes Association and faculty member at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill, cited 'a worrisome trend in cardiovascular deaths and severe adverse events' among patients using the drug in a letter to the agency in March 2000."

The FDA responded in July 2001 by sending a letter to the drug's maker, GlaxoSmithKline Plc, asking that the company inform doctors about Avandia's risks. These letters were sent in September 2001, though Glaxo has continued to disagree with the results of the study that first found the increased cardiovascular risks.

You'll probably be hearing a lot about this story in the coming weeks. Remember that both the FDA and medical experts say that if you're taking Avandia, you should not stop taking the medication without first talking to your doctor and discussing the risks.