FOI release

Assessment of causality following exposure to GLP-1 drugs

Case reference FOI2026/00102

Received 31 January 2026

Published 9 March 2026

Request

Dear Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency, today I read the following statement in a broadsheet newspaper: "Dr Alison Cave, the chief safety officer at the MHRA, said: "Patient safety is the MHRA's top priority and we continually monitor the safety and efficacy of all licensed medicines. For the vast majority of patients who are prescribed GLP-1s, they are safe and effective medicines which deliver significant health benefits. The risk of developing these severe side effects is very small". Every page of YCS website contains the sentence: "The existence of an adverse reaction report does not necessarily mean that the medicine or vaccine has caused the reaction." Incidence apart, the statement clearly implies causality. Could please explain how Dr Cave assessed causality of pancreatitis following exposure to GLP-1 pharmaceuticals?

Response

See attached

Documents

• FOI2026_00102 Response (redacted).pdf (1.1 MB)

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