A new study has revealed that a diabetes drug may increase the bladder cancer risk. The possibility of bladder cancer increases with the dose and usage duration of the drug.

One of the thiazolidinediones class of drugs, Pioglitazone helps in controlling blood sugar in type 2 diabetes patients. But a trial that was conducted in 2005, unexpectedly showed imbalance in number of cases of bladder cancer with the usage of pioglitazone, compared to placebo, said the researchers. From then, the link between pioglitazone usage and bladder cancer has become controversy.

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The McGill University researchers have conducted a study to determine the pioglitazone use and its association with increased bladder cancer risk in type 2 diabetes patients, compared to other anti-diabetic drugs.

 A total of 1,45,806 patients belonging to the UK Clinical Practice Research Database (CPRD) were the part of the study, which analyzed the data. All the patients were treated newly with the diabetes drugs from 2000 and 2013. Potential influential factors that were considered are smoking status, sex, age, diabetic period and alcohol-related disorders.

Pioglitazone usage was linked to overall 63% increase in bladder cancer risk, compared to thiazolidinedione use. The researchers said that the risk increased with the period of duration and dose.

The study findings were published in the BMJ.

- Sumana