News came early in the year approximately Sanofi's spic-and-span essential insulin called Toujeo, which is a higher concentration than the tenacious-official Lantus.

You may retrieve hearing rumors about this insulin years past while it was withal in development, when Sanofi execs were stressful to pinpoint a final name. At the meter, U-300 was the code name and many referred to it as "the son of Lantus" in diabetes body of water-tank chattering.

The FDA approved Toujeo in February, and every bit of April, you can straight off pay off the new insulin in a familiar spirit pre-filled, administration pen that is labeled SoloStar just like its predecessor. Except the insulin is of course different. Toujeo has that higher concentration (U-300 instead of the regular U-100 we've been old to for so long), so patients can inject less mass, and information technology has an drawn-out onset of natural action (6 hours vs. Lantus' 1.1 hours) that can help oneself reduce risk of hypoglycaemia.

One analogy Sanofi has suggested is to think of their two insulins like-minded laundry detergent brands. Lantus is the traditional Tide in a pour-container, but Toujeo is like the contemporary pods that don't require measuring for a single-wash. "Same cleaning power, simply in a smaller delivery and higher concentration."

Sanofi has reworked the SoloStar pen, so that it "does the math for you," meaning it automatically translates the 300 units of insulin per mm vs. Lantus' 100 into the equivalent number of write dials Eastern Samoa you'd fancy with Lantus.

And their merchandising boasts Toujeo's benefits: "Better than Lantus! Basal insulin lasts a full 24 hours! Fewer hypos!" Of course, they stand to win either way, since they as wel sell the competition.

An invite-only media webinar in mid-August enclosed a Q&adenylic acid;A session with Sanofi reps and diabetes educators happening Toujeo. While it was largely what you'd expect from medical professionals pledged in marketing or even from indication the Master of Education's manual, we did pick up some worthwhile nuggets from that webinar:

  • The Toujeo pen carries 450 units alternatively of the typical 300
  • The pen button for injectant is designed to be easier to press, and you don't stimulate to hold it down as long (just 5 seconds, compared to 10 seconds on others)
  • Sanofi isn't sure at this time whether Toujeo will ever be oversubscribed without the pen (just by vial)
  • Anyone who gets a Toujeo prescription has access to the current COACH program, which includes live one-on-one sound sessions with a CDE, alerts that can be sent to your phone to help remind you about meds, and admittance to online instructive materials on diabetes management

But aside from every last the official info on Toujeo site, we wanted — as always — to get word the real-world experiences of people with diabetes (PWDs) WHO are actually using this new do drugs. It English hawthorn be too archaean to baffle a brimfull impression of how the Diabetes Community feels about Toujeo, because not many are sharing their experiences yet publically. But so far, it seems Toujeo is more capable than its predecessor of lasting a full Clarence Day and exactly like former diabetes medications new and old, it can take some trial-and-error to stupefy the dosing right. Whether PWDs who try Toujeo will keep exploitation it remains to be seen.

To that end, we've kicked off the new hashtag #RealWorldToujeo along Twitter. And now we lend concise testimonies from deuce PWDs, one fairly newly diagosed and one veteran.

Jeff Dachis, Flop &A; CEO of OneDrop

Living in Northern California, Jeff was diagnosed equally type 1 LADA in Sept 2013. He had been using Lantus arsenic his base insulin since diagnosis, in front switching to Toujeo. He now takes 18 units once a day before bed, which is the same timing and dosage as he previously did with Lantus.

"So uttermost, I like it every bit well atomic number 3 or major than Lantus. Yet the panel is still out," he says after a month of using Toujeo.

"Toujeo seems less like an innovation in insulin therapies and Sir Thomas More like a marketing shift to attempt to exsert the life of Sanofi's patient relationships in the shadow of Lantus orgasm off patent protection and what could be the release of market dea in the face of generics," he says.

  • My blood sugars over the last month since I've used information technology are high about 8-10%. I average a 110 BG for the month normally and in the last calendar month am averaging about 122, which would indicate that the advertising claims are somewhat true that you May need more Toujeo for the Same level of control than Lantus — or I've gotten miry this antepenultimate month, but that is not likely.
  • I have developed a eldritch upper chest cold in late summertime which is inconsistent for ME, but consistent with some potential adverse reactions found in Toujeo clinical trials for type 1s.
  • I find a little "puffier" — also consistent with side effects for Toujeo, merely also could beryllium a lot of feeding forbidden this summer… 🙂
  • I like the full 24-hour window and monotone delivery, versus Lantus' 22 hours, but it's not very noticeable.
  • Value: Although Toujeo is questionable to be 3x atomic number 3 concentrated, I can't tell if I am injecting 1/3 of the actual amount of my previous social disease and therefore using 1/3 the amount in any given pen (that seems entirely too generous of Sanofi to offer such a value — 3 for 1!) or what is in reality going on in that location…  I'm victimization sample pens from my endo, thus I don't yet have got a good feel for how many pens a month I'm using.
  • I will likely date back onto Lantus as I've had good results (and privation to complain the chest cold).

Shawn Nowatzki, high-voltage Niagara transformer power tester in New York

Diagnosed with T1D more than ii decades ago at geezerhoo 3, Shawn tells us he was on an insulin pump for 16 years, but in mid-Aug he disconnected his heart and started taking Toujeo for his daily basic. Atomic number 2's also been on inhaled insulin Afrezza for four months, and says this compounding is working well for him.

  • Information technology did subscribe all but a week to get used to it, whereas the doctor said it would lonesome get hold of few days. And I am taking more insulin. On a pump, my daily basal total was 53 units. On Toujeo, I'm at 73 total units (and my doctor had started me at 40 units).
  • I am taking one shot a day at 9:30am, which is different from what I did with other long-temporary insulin. I tried Levemir for a time and found that if I did a shot at 9:30pm, the next 24-hour interval my numbers would start to rise by 7pm and I'd be in the 170 range all night in front taking that next shot. That doesn't happen with Toujeo equally much. It jumps a little, only maybe only from 120 to 140 or 150. I dismiss lively with that.
  • If the Toujeo is cold, it stings when going away into my body. Retributive care with the Lantus SoloStar compose, close to insulin does flow rear into the pen once you've pushed the dosing clit. That is the reason wherefore you need to reserve information technology down.
  • My insurance policy company questioned my consumption of Toujeo at first, but didn't sustain an issue after finding out I was going off my heart. That was going to be a cost savings for them, but I don't know how others testament fare trying to catch coverage for this new base insulin.

Thanks, Jeff and Shawn, for sharing your thoughts on Toujeo. We would love to hear from others in the D-Community about your #RealWorldToujeo experiences, too. Feel free to leave a notice beneath, or cast off us a line by email!