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Humira & Imuran together?

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Crohn's Disease
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Posted 3/15/2011 5:40 PM (GMT 0)
Anyone take both of these at the same time..? It seems odd to me to be on two drugs that both lower the immune system but I'm tapering off prenisone again (I've been on humira for two and a half months now) and the doctor told me if i start having issues again once i'm off the prenisone(happened twice before, but now i'm on humira for a while so the hope is i wouldn't) then he would start me on imuran with the humira.
I've been on 10mg since friday and can already feel more pain =/.
Posted 3/15/2011 5:48 PM (GMT 0)
I am currently taking Humira, azathioprine and pred. Will be in the azathioprine for rest of my life and Humira for foreseeable future. So will be taking two immune lowering drugs from now on and pred when necessary for any flares.

Studies show that Humira has best result when taken alongside another immune suppressing drug.
Posted 3/15/2011 5:49 PM (GMT 0)
I have never been on that combo however my GI has talked about placing me back on Imuran (and I use Humira weekly) I was on both Imuran and Remicade at the same time before. I started Imuran around 1988ish and stopped it I think in 2006 or 2007. I was having wbc count issues and bad yeast infections for about 2 years.
Posted 3/15/2011 7:00 PM (GMT 0)
Not Imuran, but 6mp. I was on Remicade and 6mp at the same time for 6 or so year. I just started Humira this month and am on 6mp still at the same time. My GI is of the opinion that the results of these drugs (the biologics) seem to work better together with an immunosuppresent like Imuran or 6mp.
Posted 3/15/2011 7:56 PM (GMT 0)
I've been on both the Humira and Imuran now for a couple of years.  The combination has worked well for me for the most part.  It's all about finding the right mix.  If it works for you without bad side effects, I wouldn't question it, just go with it.  Good luck. 
Posted 3/15/2011 11:37 PM (GMT 0)
Thanks for the help guys. Doesn't seem quite so strange now.

I do have another question though, if I'm only recently 20 years old and already going to be on Humira & Imuran after being diagnosed in oct. does that mean I probably have crohns relatively bad? It seems like most of peoples stories I read they don't end up on meds like this until many years later and go through lower level drugs for a while first until they stop working.
I do consider myself extremely lucky in one big sense though, my crohns doesn't seem to affect my bowl movements much unless it gets really bad. IT can be very painful, but I can always take a pain pill and go to work and school. Would be a lot harder to do if I had to go to the bathroom all day long like many others do & my dad does when he has flares with his colitis. Most of my inflammation is in a pretty short section of the small intestines before it hits the large intestines, which I have been told is a common spot. Doc says that because of the inflammation its only about a finger width of room in that section(and in one part of it much smaller than that, i have the remains of an abscess that presses it in a little from the outside) and the opening is normally much bigger which I guess is where the pain comes from.

BTW, not sure if its too relevant to my question, but I'm also on pentasa, 8 500mg pills a day.

Thanks again for the help.

Post Edited (Xycron) : 3/15/2011 5:42:30 PM (GMT-6)

Posted 3/16/2011 12:37 AM (GMT 0)
To a certain extent I would be grateful that my GI had put me on a drug regime that will hopefully keep CD in full remission and not give it a chance to get any worse. From what you say it is only affecting a very small bit of bowel and that is def how you want it to stay. The fcat that you have pain means it is not totally in remission and hopefully the drug combo will sort that out for you.

Also my GI put me on Humira to sort out a stricture that wouldn't respond to pred as although in flare at moment and getting better, no real area of active CD, if you see what I mean.
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