FDA Approves Absurd Pill to Delay Diabetes

A monoclonal antibody injection has been approved for Type 1 diabetes. It only costs about $200K and comes with a risk of serious side effects.

STORY AT-A-GLANCE

• The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved Tzield (teplizumab-mzwv), made by drugmakers Sanofi and Provention Bio, for use in adults and children 8 years and older who have stage 2, Type 1 diabetes
• Tzield is a monoclonal antibody injection that neither treats nor prevents Type 1 diabetes
• The treatment is intended to delay the onset of stage 3, Type 1 diabetes by only about 25 months
• The drug’s wholesale cost is $193,900 for a 14-day supply, and it comes with a risk of unknown side effects
• Tzield may cause cytokine release syndrome (CRS), an acute systemic inflammatory syndrome that includes fever and multiple organ dysfunction
• Lymphopenia, a reduced level of white blood cells, occurred in 78% of patients treated with Tzield

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved the first drug that delays onset of Type 1 diabetes.¹U.S. FDA November 17, 2022 The American Diabetes Association called the approval a “historic moment”²NBC News November 18, 2022 for those living with the condition. I call it absurdity on steroids, as this drug does not treat or prevent Type 1 diabetes. It only delays its onset for about two years.

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• 1
  U.S. FDA November 17, 2022
• 2
  NBC News November 18, 2022