The pharmaceutical giant ‘Pfizer’ is voluntarily recalling some of the lots of its blood pressure pill ‘Accuretic’ that is having the elevated levels of the nitrosamine, which is an impurity that can possibly increase the risk of cancer.
In a statement, the company said that, it is now recalling around six lots of the Accuretic tablets with the levels of nitrosamine above the approved daily consumption, along with several lots of the generic versions of the blood pressure drug.
Pfizer said that, these impurities in the blood pressure drug might be increasing the risk of cancer if the people are exposed to the impurities above the acceptable levels over the long period of time. The studies have also linked the nitrosamines to the increased rate of deaths by certain cancers, which is including the malignancies of the oesophagus, pharynx and also oral cavity.
Pfizer said, the company is not aware if any of the diverse events that are associated with the nitrosamine impurities in the lots of the recalled Accuretic tablets, and there is no immediate risk to the patients that are taking the drug, and the patients that are currently taking the blood pressure drug should consult with their respective doctors about the some alternative options for the treatment.
According to the US FDA, there are many reasons for why, the nitrosamines might be found in the prescription medicines and sometimes these nitrosamine impurities are present in the medicines because of the chemical structure of the drug.
