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Entocort (budesonide)

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Crohn's Disease
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Posted 8/15/2012 3:44 PM (GMT 0)
Hey everyone, has anyone been prescribed Entocort and gone to the pharmacy only to find out it costs $700 - $800 for a 30 day supply???? I was just put on this and had to back to my dr for other options as I cannot afford this. He gave me a months supply of samples for now. Anyone know of any free or discounted pharmacy programs for Crohn's disease? Thank you!!
Posted 8/15/2012 4:18 PM (GMT 0)
I have great insurance but I found my cost for entocort to be outrageous, too. You might try calling around to other pharmacies. The generic, budesonide, should have a lower price, right? I don't think it's available in the US.

The good news is that it's very good at reducing inflammation in the TI and you should only take it for a few months. So if you really need this med, you should think about sucking it up and paying for it. If your DR prescribed it as a random trial of a pretty good drug, then forget it IMO.
Posted 8/15/2012 4:48 PM (GMT 0)
Budesonide is available in the US; I was on it for a few weeks.
Posted 8/15/2012 5:11 PM (GMT 0)
Thanks for the info...that price was for the generic...I don't have major medical so I am sure that doesn't help. Have you guys taken it for long periods of time? Have you had any side effects?
Posted 8/18/2012 2:22 AM (GMT 0)
I can't imagine fighting Crohns without medical insurance - costly even with it... one 3 month mail order Rx of my Pentasa meets my deductable without a blink of an eye, then coinsurance for the rest of the year. Unfortunately, this year after trying Entocort on top of my Pentasa - I'll reach my yearly out of pocket for the first time.

I never understood why Entocort is so expensive... I have good insurance and it's still pricy... I wouldn't mind if it had worked - I was on it for 6 months along with Azathioprine... I felt good at 3 months, but got worse a few weeks before my 6 month checkup... all of my symptoms increased along with being unable to get over my 2nd round of bronchitis in less then 6 months when I've never had it before in my life... Dr changed to high dose Prednisone until my colonoscopy next month that we have to submit to my insurance for Humira approval. Luckily, Humria is a little bit cheaper than Entocort on my insurance plan!

I'm trying to stay hopeful that this treatment option will be as promising as the Dr makes it seem - he swears he can put me in to remission.... at this point I'll try anything to feel better - just wanna feel like the 'real' me again!

Best of luck - hope you can find a treatment that works for you (& your checkbook) to bring you some relief.
Posted 8/18/2012 6:16 PM (GMT 0)
It's very hard having a disease like this with no insurance. We had some with a very high deductible when I was diagnosed but the following year we had to drop it due to the cost.

Several years ago I took Entocort and was getting it through a company in Canada. Their website is http://www.canadadrugs.com I hope you will find they are still less expensive. When I used to order it was about half the cost of what I had to pay from a pharmacy here. I never had an issue with getting the medication or any problems with it. They were great!

I hope this helps!
Posted 8/18/2012 11:51 PM (GMT 0)
wow! i had no idea it was that pricey. i just started it 2 months ago- for the 1st few days i thought it was amiracle drug. i seemed to be doing great...then nothing. im not sure it is doing anything for me at all.
Posted 8/19/2012 11:25 AM (GMT 0)
would you consider a clinical trial? here is a link for one my gut guy suggested... I do not qualify but you might. www.clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT01086553?term=BUDESONIDE&rank=7
Posted 8/19/2012 5:00 PM (GMT 0)
Thank you all for your help and suggestions. I am looking in to that clinical trial and we will see what happens. I wish I could just take the Imuran alone and see what that does because it only cost me $6.00. For the past couple months I have just started having issues again and though I was diagnosed in 1999 and have had a resection, I haven't had many issues with the disease until now. Today is not a good day. In the bathroom and I feel so tired with mild cramping. So anyhow, thanks again and I will let you know what I figure out :)
Posted 8/19/2012 5:38 PM (GMT 0)
Something that helps me so much with the cramping is a hot water bottle. I had tried a heating pad but it doesn't do the same, the hot water bottle is a huge help. Maybe it would help you too!
Posted 8/19/2012 6:26 PM (GMT 0)
Thank you for your suggestion. I will try that. I have used heating pad with my period and I guess I never thought about it for Crohn's pain. How are you doing? Are you taking any meds now?
Posted 8/19/2012 6:51 PM (GMT 0)
I had to order my hot water bottle online to find one but it was not expensive. It is well worth it and I did find it works alot better than the heating pad. I hope it works for you!

Thank you for asking, I've been well for about 3 years now. I feel better than I did since before being diagnosed. I did some strict elimination dieting ( on my own ) and was able to find out several things that I have a high intolerance to including gluten and dairy. Without them in my diet I am SO much better. I've also moved to eating better foods - more whole foods and cut out almost all processed foods now. Food really makes an enormous difference.

Just before changing my diet my doctor told me that only option left for me was surgery, so I'm very glad I tried the changes. I've been off all medications since 2009 when I had a bad reaction to the Humira I was on. I had to go off it and that's when the doctor told me that surgery was the only option he could see. Since then I have only used antibiotics a couple of times when I had bacterial overgrowth but I don't have the constant pain, diarrhea, constipation, blockages i used to.
Posted 8/19/2012 7:14 PM (GMT 0)
I am glad you are doing well :) I have also wondered and read about gluten having some effect on crohn's disease...I will have to look for one of those water bottles and try that..and I have ran across some things I can't tolerate like raw broccoli & carrots, bananas at times, and spicy things...I think its all a matter of trial and error for each person. Thank you again for your help. It is nice to know I am not alone in all this!!!!
Posted 8/19/2012 7:25 PM (GMT 0)
You're very welcome. It is nice to know there are others out there. I am so happy about not having problems anymore I really enjoy being able to pass on info that worked for me in order to help other people feel better : )
Posted 8/23/2012 11:52 PM (GMT 0)
Try contacting the company to see if they offer any assistance. I've had good luck with the Pentasa people. Entocort is one of the only drugs that has helped me. Don't give up just yet.
Posted 8/24/2012 1:02 AM (GMT 0)
I was on Entocort for about 1 year. When I went to but it with my great insurance it was about $1,200 a month. When I added my pentasa it was 3,000 or more per month.
That is when I went to Canada for my drugs. The delivery system of the pentasa sold in cnada is different than that of the US. However the price was about $150 a month.
Entocort sourced from Canada is the same as the US. I called and spoke with the Canadian Entocort product manager out of Montreal and he confirmed it. Also it looks the same. It has been a while but it was about the same as the pentasa. Someone above referenced Canadadrugs. I am sure they are great. I have always used Jandrugs out of Winnipeg, MB. I know they are 100% liget.
The bad news is that the canadian pentasa has doubled in price in the little while. I still have a couple of months of inventory so I hope it comes down. But, even at double the price, it is still way cheaper.
If you buy from jandrugs and you reference me I think you get a 10% discount. Also, they always try to charge for shipping and I always complain to the manager and I have never paid for shipping once. That is about 10 or 15 bucks saved also
On so many levels I can not afford this DD
Best of luck
Dave
Posted 8/24/2012 1:05 AM (GMT 0)
One more thing. Entocort can be sourced from many countries if you use a Canadian pharmacy. I always specify sourced from Canada. It might be fine from another country, but personally I am more comfortable from Canada.

I was born in Canada and it would be the same stuff I would be taking if I did not move

Dave

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