Dave is newly diagnosed with acromegaly
Dave is 36 and living in Atlanta.* He is a financial advisor, travels a bit, and plays golf. For two years, joint pain, headache, and fatigue interfered with Dave's work and lifestyle.
Diagnosis
Dave was diagnosed with acromegaly in May 2007 after being referred to a neurologist for severe migraines. The neurologist suspected acromegaly after hearing that Dave also had joint pain and fatigue. His insulin-like growth factor level was 750 ng/mL, well above the normal range. When Dave took an oral glucose tolerance test, it failed to push his growth hormone levels below 1.0 ng/mL. An MRI confirmed the diagnosis of acromegaly.
Treatment history
On the MRI, Dave's pituitary tumor was large (>10 mm). He had surgery in August 2007. That reduced the size of the tumor, but did not normalize levels of growth hormone and growth factors. Dave's endocrinologist recommended medical therapy with a somatostatin analog.
Considering Dave's diagnosis and lifestyle, he may be a candidate for Somatuline® Depot (lanreotide) Injection (lanreotide) Injection treatment.
Do any of your patients resemble Dave?
Last year Somatuline® Depot (lanreotide) Injection helped over 6000 patients with acromegaly,2 including three fictional, but typical, patients named Dave (above), Mark, and Karen (below). See if your patients are like:
* Dave is not an actual patient. His profile is based on published data from clinical studies and review articles.
Indication and Important Safety Information
Somatuline® Depot (lanreotide) Injection is a somatostatin analog indicated for the long-term treatment of patients with acromegaly who have had an inadequate response to or cannot be treated with surgery and/or radiotherapy.
Lanreotide may reduce gallbladder motility and lead to gallstone formation. Periodic monitoring may be needed. Patients treated with Somatuline Depot may experience hypoglycemia or hyperglycemia. Glucose level monitoring is recommended and antidiabetic treatment adjusted accordingly. Lanreotide may lead to a decrease in heart rate. Use with caution in at-risk patients.
Patients with moderate and severe renal impairment or moderate and severe hepatic impairment should begin treatment with Somatuline Depot 60 mg.
There are no adequate and well-controlled studies in pregnant women. Because animal reproduction studies are not always predictive of human responses, Somatuline Depot should be used during pregnancy only if the potential benefit justifies risk to the fetus.
A decision should be made whether to discontinue nursing or discontinue the drug taking into account the importance of the drug to the mother.
Somatuline Depot may decrease the bioavailability of cyclosporine. Cyclosporine dose may need to be adjusted to maintain levels.
Patients receiving beta-blockers, calcium channel blockers, or other drugs that affect heart rate may need dose adjustments. Somatuline Depot may reduce the intestinal absorption of coadministered drugs. Caution should be used.
The most common adverse reactions (incidence >5%) are diarrhea (37%), cholelithiasis (20%), abdominal pain (19%), nausea (11%), injection-site reaction (9%), flatulence (7%), arthralgia (7%), and loose stools (6%).
For Full Prescribing Information, click here.
