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Azathioprine

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Ulcerative Colitis
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Posted 9/3/2008 1:23 AM (GMT 0)
My doctor wants to put me on Azathioprine but told me to read up on the side effects before I begin taking it. I was just wondering if anyone here has ever had a bad reaction to it/side effect, and if so what was it?
Posted 9/3/2008 1:39 AM (GMT 0)
I felt nuasa the first time, but that it was it. Still on it doing fine, have to watch your CBC though.
Posted 9/3/2008 1:51 AM (GMT 0)

I never had any side effects, but here's a good reference:

http://www.medicinenet.com/azathioprine/article.htm

Posted 9/3/2008 3:06 PM (GMT 0)
I've been on it a year and a half. Other than mild nausea at the beginning I haven't had any direct side effects from the drug. However, I have had a major increase in infections of other types, especially nasty throat infections and the surfacing of herpes (which I apparently had for years but was suppressed).

Other things I learned at the begining:
* It took a little while getting used to going in for regular blood work, but that's not big deal really
* I really had to remind myself that I wasn't going to see results right away, because its hard taking a scary drug and not getting a magic fix

For me, Aza has been great (although I'm in a flare right now and trying to figure out why, see my other post). It took about 4 months to start to see an effect and within 6 months I was in remission with only a few blips along the way.
Posted 9/3/2008 3:11 PM (GMT 0)
Like BadGutGirl, one of the hardest parts for me so far has been the fact that I have been on it for 8 weeks and am only now seeing (minor) improvements to a 7 month long flare. And I am at some pretty high doses for my weight.

I get nauseous often, and have phenegren prescribed for that. If the day goes well, I normally only get nauseous in the evening and then take half a Phen and hit the sack early. Other than that, I would say expect to get a few sore throats and colds.
Posted 9/3/2008 8:14 PM (GMT 0)
For those of you who feel nauseous when taking it, does spacing out the dose over a period of 24-hrs help any, or is this something that happens no matter how you take it?
Posted 9/5/2008 12:44 AM (GMT 0)
Try taking it at night.  Then you will sleep through most of the side effects.  I still wake up slightly nauseated, but am fine as soon as I have eaten something.  The only other major side effect I have is complete exhaustion.  By 8 -9 at night I am ready for bed.

Posted 9/5/2008 1:14 AM (GMT 0)
Serious side-effects of azathioprine to bear in mind include an increased susceptibility to opportunistic infections, and a heightened risk of developing certain cancers.

Is your doctor incapable of explaining side-effects, or simply lazy?
Posted 9/5/2008 2:36 AM (GMT 0)
My doctor explained the side effects and all. I was just wondering about how many people actually do have them. I know they do clinical trials and have to disclose all the side effects experienced in order to cover all their bases. It just seems like a really scary list of side effects and I was just wondering how many people actually do experience some of them.
Posted 9/9/2008 9:15 PM (GMT 0)
My doc made me aware of side effects as well, though he really made it seem unlikely I would experience anything negative.

At any rate, I am on this drug going on 4 years..and no side effects ever.  I take my meds in the evening and my colitis has remained in remission.  I have never had a remission this long (well not since 18 years ago) and I am pretty convinced this did the trick for me.  My stress levels have sure not diminished! turn

Hope all goes well for you.

 

Posted 9/9/2008 9:46 PM (GMT 0)
Looks like everyone is different (dynamics win again!!).

I always take them in the morning, and rarely see any nausea until evening time. I have however gotten a few colds and sore throats, but nothing major (I think I might have got a 24 hour bug last week that hit me hard, and left me in my current spike and back on prednisone).

It hasn't put me into remission, but I think it has helped overall. I will be hitting the remicade soon in hopes that that is the finally push back over the proverbial edge for this disease.

MicheleV - can you express what your remission is like? Is it back to pre-diagnosis normalcy or is it just low-level symptomatic, manageable? And good news to hear that you feel great.
Posted 9/9/2008 10:16 PM (GMT 0)

My huisband was prescribed 6MP, while it isn't Azathioprine, it is also an immune suppresent with with side affects and the risks of cancer.

I think each person has to assess their personal situation. Like every other treatment, it seems to affect each one differently.

We opted out because he already has a history of cancer. We thoguht it would increase the chances of it coming back, and we aren't up to that, on top of this right now. Actually, who am I foolin', we aren't up to that ever again shakehead   We decided to try changing his diet. I see that SCD has a high success rate for remission.

Lucky777,

We just recently have started the switch to SCD, while my husband is headed into remission. LBM only now, after 4 months. We also started slow, because we wanted to make sure that this was something we could adjust to and not spend a whole lot to just try it and fail. I have found so many recipes and resources! I was very excited. I thought it would be hard to change our diet, but I have found a new version of our normal recipes throughout the links I have been given or have come across on my own.

Posted 9/10/2008 3:24 AM (GMT 0)
I've been on it now for 2 1/2 months. It's the best thing that has happened to me. Before that I was in a constant flare for 3 years. I couldn't go 4 weeks without another flare-up. Now I have one bm a day. I smile when I get off the toilet. Keeping up with blood test isn't a big deal for me. The only side effect I feel now is I'm tired and I do have some heartburn. Hopefully as my body adjusts from getting off the entocort and being on the azathioprine all this will pass.
Posted 9/11/2008 9:04 PM (GMT 0)
I tried it and within 4 days it shot my temperature up to 104 and had to stop. That's the only side effect I can tell you about
Posted 9/12/2008 1:10 AM (GMT 0)
I've been taking it for over 5 years now. No problems except for it doesn't keep me in remission. Sometimes I want to just stop taking it.

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