Are Sartan antihypertensive drugs carcinogenic? Pharmacists tell you the truth

Several friends asked Huazi if they could still take sartan antihypertensive drugs. They heard that these drugs are carcinogenic. Is that true? Huazi looked up relevant information and found that sartan drugs have been recalled many times in recent years because of excessive impurities and potential carcinogenic risks. The most recent recall occurred in Canada, the United Kingdom and South Korea because the content of azido impurities in several batches of sartan drugs exceeded the standard.

1. What are azide impurities? Azide compounds are commonly used chemical raw materials in the pharmaceutical industry. For example, losartan, irbesartan, valsartan and other sartan drugs have tetrazole rings in their structures and need to be synthesized with tributyltin azide or sodium azide. This type of azide compound is toxic and can inhibit cytochrome oxidase, greatly reduce vascular tension, and affect the metabolism of organisms. Even at low concentrations, it may cause DNA damage and induce cancer.

Each link in drug production requires precise design. Problems in any link may cause an increase in the residual impurities of azide compounds in the drug. There is no direct risk in taking sartan drugs with excessive azide impurities, but long-term exposure to azide impurities will increase the potential risk of cancer.

2. Not all sartans are affected. Relevant investigations in Canada show that not all sartan drugs produced by pharmaceutical companies are affected by azido impurities. Exceeding the limit of azido impurities in sartan drugs is a small probability event in individual batches. For drugs not involved in the recall, they can still be taken with confidence.

China also has a similar drug recall mechanism. If a drug is found to have quality problems or other safety hazards, corresponding measures will be taken to suspend its use or recall the drug. However, so far, there have been no related reports on sartan drugs marketed in China. Therefore, patients using sartan drugs in China can rest assured that they can still use them normally.

3. Should I use alternative drugs? The pharmacological action of sartan drugs is to prevent angiotensin 2 from binding to receptors in blood vessels and inhibit the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system (RAAS) from exerting a hypotensive effect. Prils can reduce the synthesis of angiotensin 2 and inhibit the RAAS system. Prils have similar hypotensive effects to sartan drugs and can replace sartan drugs. However, when taking them, dry cough may occur as a side effect.

In the classification of sartan drugs, telmisartan and eprosartan do not contain tetrazole ring structure, which can avoid the influence of azide impurities. However, if you want to change the drug, you need to do it under the guidance of a doctor.

The benefits of maintaining stable blood pressure far outweigh the potential risks of drug impurities. Any drug may have quality problems, but they are all low-probability events, so don't just believe everything you hear. It is not recommended to change medications blindly before discovering a problem.

The increased risk of cancer caused by azide impurities requires continuous exposure to azide impurities for several years before the effects can occur. Currently, the drugs with related hidden dangers have been recalled. Even if you take drugs with excessive azide impurities for a short period of time, the risk is not very high, so there is no need to be too nervous.

To sum up, sartan drugs themselves are not carcinogenic, but the azide impurity content in certain batches of drugs exceeds the standard, posing a potential carcinogenic risk. The drugs involved are all sold abroad and have been recalled. There are no related reports in China, so there is no need to panic.

The benefits of taking medication to control blood pressure far outweigh the possible impact of impurities on health. People who are taking sartan drugs should not stop or change medications without authorization. If you have any questions about medication, please consult a doctor or pharmacist in time. I am pharmacist Huazi. Welcome to follow me and share more health knowledge.