Drug manufacturers are recalling several medications containing the ingredient valsartan, according to a press release from Health Canada on Tuesday. The drugs being recalled are used to treat patients with high blood pressure to prevent heart attacks and stroke, and also for patients who have had heart failure or a recent heart attack. An impurity, N-nitrosodimethylamine, was found in the valsartan used in these medications, supplied by a Chinese company, Zhejiang Huahai Pharmaceuticals. This substance is a potential carcinogen that could cause cancer over the long-term. Exposure to high levels of NDMA can also cause liver damage, according to the United States Environmental Protection Agency. The European Medicines Agency is also reviewing the medication and there are recalls of these medications across Europe. Health Canada advises consumers to keep taking their valsartan-containing medicine, but to check with their pharmacist to see whether their medication is being recalled. If you are taking an affected medication, you should contact your health care practitioner as soon as possible to discuss your treatment options. Story continues below advertisement Here’s a list of the affected medications, provided by Health Canada. For a complete list including drug identification and lot numbers, visit their website: TEVA-VALSARTAN/HCTZ TABLETS PP 30s TEVA-VALSARTAN/HCTZ TABLETS (Bulk) ACT-VALSARTAN 40MG FC TABLETS 100 ACT-VALSARTAN 80MG FC TABLETS 100 ACT-VALSARTAN 160MG FC TABLETS 100 SANDOZ VALSARTAN 40 MG SANDOZ VALSARTAN 80 MG SANDOZ VALSARTAN 160 MG SANDOZ VALSARTAN 320 MG SANIS VALSARTAN 40 MG SANIS VALSARTAN 80 MG SANIS VALSARTAN 160 MG PRO DOC LIMITEE VALSARTAN 40 MG PRO DOC LIMITEE VALSARTAN 80 MG PRO DOC LIMITEE VALSARTAN 160 MG PRO DOC LIMITEE VALSARTAN 320 MG SIVEM PHARMACEUTICAL ULC VALSARTAN 40 MG SIVEM PHARMACEUTICAL ULC VALSARTAN 80 MG SIVEM PHARMACEUTICAL ULC VALSARTAN 160 MG SIVEM PHARMACEUTICAL ULC VALSARTAN 320 MG Related News 9 more cases of salmonella reported in Canada after No Name chicken burgers recalled<doc-sep>NEW A vastly improved search engine helps you find the latest on companies, business leaders, and news more easily.<doc-sep>The Food and Drug Administration has announced a voluntary recall of a widely prescribed blood pressure medication made in China, reviving fears about the safety of imported drugs. Three companies that sell the generic drug, valsartan, in the United States agreed to recall it after the F.D.A. said it might be tainted by N-nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA), considered a probable human carcinogen. The agency is still investigating, but said the contamination was believed to be related to changes in the way that valsartan was manufactured. All of the valsartan that is being recalled was made in China by the same company, Zhejiang Huahai Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd. It is distributed in the United States by three companies: Major Pharmaceuticals; Teva Pharmaceutical Industries, Ltd.; and Solco Healthcare. Solco, which is owned by Huahai Pharmaceutical, had about 45 percent of the market in 2017, according to John Brito, of Fore Pharma, the market research firm. “We have carefully assessed the valsartan-containing medications sold in the United States, and we’ve found that the valsartan sold by these specific companies does not meet our safety standards,” said Dr. Janet Woodcock, director of the F.D.A.’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research. “That is why we’ve asked these companies to take immediate action to protect patients.”<doc-sep>(CNN) — A common drug used to control blood pressure and help prevent heart failure was announced by the US Food and Drug Administration on Friday, a week after 22 other countries recalled it because the drug contains a chemical that poses a potential cancer risk. Valsartan is off patent and is used as a component of other generic medicines, but not all medicines containing the ingredient are involved, according to the FDA. The US recall includes the the versions of valsartan that are made by Major Pharmaceuticals, Solco Healthcare and Teva Pharmaceuticals Industries Ltd. as well as valsartan/hydrochlorothiazide (HCTZ) sold by Solco Healthcare and Teva Pharmaceuticals Industries Ltd. “We have carefully assessed the valsartan-containing medications sold in the United States, and we’ve found that the valsartan sold by these specific companies does not meet our safety standards. This is why we’ve asked these companies to take immediate action to protect patients,” said Dr. Janet Woodcock, director of the FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research. In Europe and Asia, Novartis, the company that originally developed the drug, said Sandoz valsartan and valsartan/HCT film-coated tablets are being recalled because they “do not meet our high quality standards.” Pharmacies in the UK are advised to recall valsartan batches containing medicines made by Dexcel Pharma Ltd and Accord Healthcare. The recall is due to the presence of the impurity, N-nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA), which was found in the recalled products, according to an FDA statement. NDMA is an organic chemical that is in a family of potent carcinogens. It has been used to make liquid rocket fuel, softeners and lubricants, among other products. It can also be unintentionally produced through certain chemical reactions and is a byproduct from some pesticide manufacturing, the making of rubber tires or fish processing. Animal studies have shown that NDMA can be toxic and cause tumors in the liver, kidney and respiratory tract. It can also be potentially harmful to humans in certain quantities. Exposure to high levels can cause liver damage and is a probable human carcinogen, according to the US Department of Health and Human Services. Novartis spokesman Eric Althoff said after the initial recall last week that products sold in the US were not affected by this recall, but the FDA’s ongoing review and laboratory tests found otherwise. “The presence of of NDMA was unexpected and is thought to be related to changes in the way the active substance was manufactured,” the FDA release said. “The amounts of NDMA found in Valsartan API are much lower than the cumulative endogenous production and usual external exposure of NDMA,” Althoff wrote in an email July 6. “There is no certainty as to how much this contaminant may potentially increase cancer risk in humans. Thus, the amount of NDMA found in the Valsartan API would not represent a significantly increased risk to the patients taking of Sandoz Valsartan and Sandoz Valsartan HCT Film coated tablets.” The FDA’s investigation into the drug will continue. “The FDA is committed to maintaining our gold standard for safety and efficacy. That includes our efforts to ensure the quality of drugs and the safe manner in which they’re manufactured,” Commissioner Dr. Scott Gottlieb said Friday. “When we identify lapses in the quality of drugs and problems with their manufacturing that have the potential to create risks to patients, we’re committed to taking swift action to alert the public and help facilitate the removal of the products from the market. As we seek the removal of certain drug products today, our drug shortages team is also working hard to ensure patients’ therapeutic needs are met in the United States with an adequate supply of unaffected medications.” Patients are advised to talk to their doctor if they are taking the medication. They should not discontinue taking medication without a doctor’s permission. Going off their medication without supervision could be dangerous, according to the American Heart Association. The-CNN-Wire ™ & © 2018 Cable News Network, Inc., a Time Warner Company. All rights reserved. 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Some drugs used to control high blood pressure and prevent heart failure were voluntarily recalled this past week due to an impurity that could possibly lead to cancer, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration said. These products — with the active ingredient valsartan, a generic drug used to treat high blood pressure — may contain N-nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA), a possible human carcinogen. The FDA asked three companies, Major Pharmaceuticals, Solco Healthcare and Teva Pharmaceuticals Industries Ltd., to recall their valsartan products. Solco and Teva were also asked to recall their drugs containing valsartan/hydrochlorothiazide (HCTZ). “We have carefully assessed the valsartan-containing medications sold in the United States, and we’ve found that the valsartan sold by these specific companies does not meet our safety standards,” said Janet Woodcock, director of the FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, in a statement. “This is why we’ve asked these companies to take immediate action to protect patients.” The FDA is now looking into the potential impacts the drugs have had on patients who have already taken them, as well as how to get rid of the impurity from future batches of these products. The agency advised patients taking the products to continue to do so until they have a suitable replacement. Companies impacted by the recall have shared instructions for patients impacted by these products. The FDA also said patients should talk to their pharmacists and doctors who prescribed the medicine to discuss their next steps. Earlier this year, the European Medicines Agency announced it was reviewing medicine with an active valsartan ingredient supplied by Zhejiang Huahai Pharmaceuticals, a China-based company, for the same reason. Zhejiang Huahai Pharmaceuticals supplied the three U.S.-based pharmaceutical companies with these products, according to The New York Times. Contact us at letters@time.com.