According to a news article that appeared on the New York Times, it has been found that type 2 diabetes medications of the incretin mimetic type such as the Byetta were strongly linked to complications involving the pancreas such as pancreatitis and the very fatal cancer of the pancreas.

This was the result of the study conducted by Dr. Peter Butler, chief of the endocrinology division of the University of California Los Angeles after analyzing the organs of 34 deceased donors with type 2 diabetes. Patients who had been treated with Byetta and similar drugs were found to have 40 percent more cell mass in their pancreas compared to those using other medications.

These findings have generated negative reactions from different sectors including doctors associated with the American Diabetes Association and drug companies, particularly from Bristol-Myers Squibb, the maker and distributor of Byetta injectables.

Dr. Butler has pointed out that previous studies made by drug companies used animals that were healthy and were not expected to develop signs of pancreatic cancer. On the other, this study focused on human beings who died of different causes but regularly used the Byetta drug and other brands of the same class.

Read More: New York Times Warns of Possible Byetta Pancreatic Cancer Risk