Actos cuts Type 2 diabetes risk among majority of patients, study finds

SAN ANTONIO — A drug for Type 2 diabetes made by Takeda Pharmaceutical taken in the morning prevented the disease from developing in nearly three-quarters of patients who were at risk, according to a new study in the New England Journal of Medicine.

Researchers enrolled 602 patients through the University of Texas Health Science Center San Antonio and seven other centers and administered Actos (pioglitazone) to them, finding that it prevented Type 2 diabetes in 72% of those whose obesity, ethnicity and other factors put them at risk for the disease.

“It’s a blockbuster study,” lead author and UT School of Medicine professor Ralph DeFronzo said. “The 72% reduction is the largest decrease in the conversion rate of prediabetes to diabetes that has ever been demonstrated by any intervention, be it diet, exercise or medication.”