Another Study of Pioglitazone Use and Risk for Bladder Cancer

Evidence is mixed on whether pioglitazone (Actos), an oral thiazolidinedione drug used for managing type 2 diabetes, is associated with excess risk for bladder cancer. In this retrospective cohort study from four European countries, researchers assessed risk for bladder cancer in 56,000 patients (age, >40) with type 2 diabetes who started treatment with pioglitazone. Participants were matched (based on treatment history and propensity scores for factors related to pioglitazone use) with two separate cohorts of type 2 diabetic patients who were treated with glucose-lowering drugs other than pioglitazone.

During mean follow-up of roughly 3 years, risk for bladder cancer in the pioglitazone group was no different than that in either of the unex…