Acromegaly Life | SOMAVERT® (pegvisomant for injection) | Safety Info

Living with acromegaly

Removing the tumor from the pituitary gland can help diminish acromegaly symptoms in many patients. But some still suffer from high IGF-1 levels and continuing signs and symptoms, such as:

Joint pain

Headaches

Swelling of hands,
feet, and face

Increased ring size

Fatigue

Sweating

Joint pain

Headaches

Swelling of hands,
feet, and face

Increased ring size

Fatigue

Sweating

The longer patients live with uncontrolled acromegaly, the further physical changes continue. Some of these changes cannot be reversed
SOMAVERT is a treatment that can help control IGF-1 levels
Once you are being treated, make sure you get regular blood tests, as ordered by your healthcare provider, to check your IGF-1 levels
Remember to track your symptoms and discuss them with your doctor. Together you can determine if your current medication is working

“After 2 surgeries, and a round of radiation, I continued to have elevated IGF-1 levels. So my doctor recommended SOMAVERT.”

Signs, symptoms, and severity may vary.

—Jenifer, a patient with acromegaly

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IMPORTANT SAFETY INFORMATION

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Do not use SOMAVERT^® (pegvisomant for injection) if you are allergic to SOMAVERT or anything that is in it.

Be sure to tell your doctor if you use narcotic painkillers (opioid medicines) because the dose of SOMAVERT may need to be changed.

Blood sugar levels may go down when taking SOMAVERT. Be sure to tell your doctor if you use insulin or other medicines (oral hypoglycemic medicines) for diabetes. The dose of these medicines may need to be reduced when you use SOMAVERT.

Some people who have used SOMAVERT have developed liver problems. These problems generally disappeared when those people stopped taking SOMAVERT.

Stop the drug right away and call your doctor if you get any of these symptoms:

Your skin or the white part of your eyes turns yellow (jaundice)
Your urine turns dark
Your bowel movements (stools) turn light in color
You do not feel like eating for several days
You feel sick to your stomach (nausea)
You have unexplained tiredness
You have pain in the stomach area (abdomen)

Your doctor may do blood tests before and during your treatment with SOMAVERT to check that the IGF-1 levels in your blood are normal and/or that your liver is working correctly. Your dose of SOMAVERT may be changed based on the results of these tests.

If you have stopped SOMAVERT because of an allergic reaction, your doctor will carefully monitor what happens if you start SOMAVERT again.

The most common side effects with SOMAVERT are infection, pain, nausea, diarrhea, abnormal liver function tests, flu-like symptoms, and reaction at the injection site. These are not all of the possible side effects of SOMAVERT. For more information, speak to your doctor.

Inject SOMAVERT in a different place on your body each day. This can help prevent skin problems such as lumpiness or soreness.

SOMAVERT has not been studied in pregnant women. It is not known if SOMAVERT passes into the mother’s milk or if it can harm the baby.

You are encouraged to report negative side effects of prescription drugs to the FDA. Visit www.fda.gov/MedWatch or call 1-800-FDA-1088.

INDICATION

SOMAVERT is a prescription medicine for acromegaly. It is for patients whose disease has not been controlled by surgery or radiation, or patients for whom these options are not appropriate. The goal of treatment with SOMAVERT is to have a normal IGF-1 level in the blood.

This site is intended only for U.S residents. The products discussed in this site may have different product labeling in different countries. The information provided is for educational purposes only and is not intended to replace discussions with a healthcare provider.

ISI