GnRH side effects

GnRH side effects

Some side effects of GnRH are usual menopause symptoms such as hot flushes, mood changes, anxiety, vaginal dryness, headaches, dizziness, nervousness, irritability and sleeplessness, depression and other mood disorders. Other side effects are more severe such as pain & fibromyalgia, musculoskeletal & articular disorders, memory and psychotic disorders, autoimmune thyroiditis, blood sugar rise, difficulty breathing, chest pain, liver function abnormality, vision abnormality and others.

Drugs such as Zoladex, Lupron, Diphereline, were originally developed for prostate cancer patients and at the moment are used to treat patients with endometriosis and fibroids. In an expert report prepared by Dr Redwine in a Lupron liability lawsuit, he noted that the state of menopause with Lupron is unnatural due to the artificial menopause induced by the drug and levels of FSH which are not elevated as they are in normal menopause.

In 1999, the FDA received adverse drug reports about Lupron from 4,228 women and 2,943 men, 325 of women required hospitalisation and 25 of them died. The original manufacturer, Takeda-Abbott Pharmaceuticals (TAP), had stated that the side effects are temporary and should stop six months after stopping the medication. Currently, there are tens of thousands of severe side effects reports and thousands of deaths.

A survey done by the Endometriosis Research Centre on patients who took Lupron showed that the side effects lasted longer than five years in some cases. The TAP researchers have submitted a report to the FDA about a third of the patients who were yet to show reversibility in bone mass, six months after stopping the drug.

A significant number of patients have suffered irreversible and permanent side effects and/or permanent severely disabling health problems. Lupron has substantial safety concerns as an antineoplastic agent, is harmful to both cancerous and non-cancerous cells. An expert report by Dr Gueriguan, a former medical officer for the FDA in a case of Lupron liability lawsuit, shows that cancer drugs such as Lupron can be highly toxic and stays in the bloodstream for a prolonged period of time.

TAP did not perform enough long-term studies to detect potential long-term and irreversible side effects of Lupron, and once the treatment is finished, endometriosis symptoms will come back. The administration instructions state that Lupron has no hazardous components; however, the National Institutes of Health and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration categorise Lupron as a “hazardous drug” and that healthcare workers should only handle Lupron when wearing protective gowns and gloves.

Resources

1. National Women Health Network, Lupron-What Does It Do To Women’s Health? 2008;
2. Lupron Victims Hub, All About Lupron;
3. Hormones matter/lupron;
4. FDable.com/lupron;