Address the Metformin concern!

Health authorities in Singapore, and Food and Drugs Administration (FDA) in the United States of America raised the alert that Metformin, a common diabetic drug, could be contaminated with N-Nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA), a chemical linked to cancer. Metformin has been used as a first-line medication for the treatment of type-2 diabetes and it was used by the National Health Services (NHS) in the United Kingdom to treat polycystic ovary syndrome as well.

As a result of discovering the contamination, Singapore health officials recalled three out of 46 versions of the drug from the market after finding “above acceptable levels” of NDMA. The Consumers’ Association of Penang (CAP) urges the Malaysian Ministry of Health (MoH) to investigate and come up with a decision on the matter as it concerns more than 90% of the 3.6 million diabetics in the country who have Type-2 diabetes.

There are about 20 known and available brands of Metformin which was first launched in 2015 in Malaysia.

We want MoH to urgently address this concern of NDMA contamination as many of the Type-2 diabetics, totaling about 3.2 million, would be on this drug.

Press Statement, 11 December 2019