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Posted 6/4/2013 4:47 PM (GMT 0)
I still don't understand why Asacol has been removed from the market due to DBP but Asacol HD, which is identical to regular Asacol except double the dose, is ok and why Dezlicol, which is nothing but a regular Asacol pill put into a stomach dissolveable capsule, is also ok. Nobody has been able to explain either one of these.
Posted 6/4/2013 5:29 PM (GMT 0)
Gary -how the hell should we know? -Unless there's someone here that works for the company, we will get no answers.
When I asked my doctor, he said both Asacol and Asacol HD are being discontinued.
All we can do is research this issue and make our own conclusions...
Posted 6/4/2013 5:35 PM (GMT 0)
Also, Gary, how do you know that the DBP hasn't been removed from the Dezlicol? Just because it looks the same doesn't mean anything, really. Besides, the drug company would have to be pretty darn stupid to NOT remove DBP from it -- they'd really be opening themselves up for some mega lawsuits.
Posted 6/4/2013 5:39 PM (GMT 0)

beatUC said...

All we can do is research this issue and make our own conclusions...

Posted 6/4/2013 6:23 PM (GMT 0)
The DBP has been removed from the Delzicol. I called Warner-Chilcott and they told me so. And trust me, it was hard to get hardly ANY information out of them so the fact they said that speaks a lot. All the papers show that DBP is only linked to negative effects at hugely larger doses than what is in Asacol. And the effects were on the endocrine system (think reproductive system)...it's not "toxic" in the sense that we are going to necessarily notice any effects from it immediately or even at all. I'm personally not worried about it. I'm more aggravated/pissed that Warner-Chilcott made a "new" formulation with hard-to-swallow capsules (I remove the capsults but it's time consuming) just so they could get a new patent...not to mention how secretive they have been about the whole thing.
Posted 6/4/2013 10:34 PM (GMT 0)
From what I understand the DBP was supposedly in the reddish brown outside covering and when you open the Delzicol capsule you still have the same reddish brown outside covering Asacol pill just set inside a capsule. If the DBP were removed then why is the reddish brown outside covering still there OR if they removed the DBP but the Asacol still has a reddish brown outside covering then why to they have to go a step further and put it inside a capsule that dissolves in the stomach? That doesn't really make sense because the medication needs to make it to the colon so putting it inside a capsule that dissolves in the stomach makes no sense. It still needs a covering that will make it to the colon and if that is the reddish brown covering, minus the DBP then well, back to the same question, "Why do they have to put it inside a stomach dissolving capsule? This doesn't even address the Asacol HD dilemma. I'm assuming that the reddish brown covering was the same on both Asacol and Asacol HD so why haven't they discontinued the HD as well but if the Asacol HD reddish brown covering does not have DBP then why can't they put that same reddish brown covering from the HD version on regular Asacol, and again, why do they have to insert this regular Asacol pill into a capsule that dissolves in the stomach? It is obvious to me that we aren't being told the truth about any of it.
Posted 6/8/2013 5:50 AM (GMT 0)
Hi Everyone, I'm new here and have never done this before but I am desperately looking for some help. I just found out about Asacol being discontinued thanks to a letter in the mail telling me my prescription would be changed to Lialda. I have Crohns Disease and have been taking Asacol since I found out. I was told it was rated "B" and a safe drug for pregnancy and breastfeeding. I currently am breastfeeding a baby boy and am very scared. I do not know if I have unknowingly harmed my children and as a parent that is the worst feeling ever. I"m emotional every time I have to feed my son. I am very stressed and as you all know that just makes me more sick. After reading your "thread", I contacted my Dr. and asked about Asacol and the possible exposure to Dibutyl Phthalate. He told me I knew more than he did. He researched the medicine and couldn't find anything about the DP. He told me it would be unsafe to stop my meds to continue breastfeeding my baby for the duration. He suggested I speak with the Pharmacy for more details. I spoke with our Pharmacist, she looked through what she had and didn't have anything mentioning DP. She told me the law does not require the manufacturer of Asacol to disclose any ingredients other than the main ingredient (Mesalamine). She has put a call into Lialda to find out is they use DP and will call me when she has a reply. I later asked my Dr. if I can take a test for the DP in my system or the breast milk or to see if my hormone levels are normal and they replied they don't have one available & I should try my regular Dr. or OBGYN. I will be calling them next. I also called our Pediatrician and am waiting to hear back. Does anyone know if there is a urinalysis or blood test for DP? Do any labs or clinics offer such a thing? Has anyone else had children (men or women) or breastfed while taking Asacol? I have had 4 boys in the past 6 years while on Asacol and as a Mother it is my job to protect my children and I'm terrified that I may have exposed them to something that is going to affect them for the rest of their lives. Any information helps.
Posted 6/10/2013 5:56 PM (GMT 0)
Count me in with those who find the whole DBP scare pretty darn suspicious - Asacol has been on the market for *20 years* (generating billions and billions under patent protection) and lo and behold, just before Asacol is about to go generic in the US, DBP is suddenly some sort of major issue flogged by a small number of posters (pharma rep shills?) referencing one or two obscure websites and one or two anecdotal cases.

Any Pubmed papers listing the dangers of DBP as it relates to DBP? From the last 20 years?

Couple this with 1) the magical appearance of Delzicol - which appears to do not a goddarn thing other than wrap a traditional Asacol tablet in a capsule and 2) the continued production/marketing of Asacol HD (still under patent protection - why?) despite the obvious likelihood that *its* ph-release coating contains the same darn DBP.

Not to mention the fact that no Asacol generic has been announced (remember, Asacol is a multi-billion earner over the years - it is at *least* a mid-sized market).

It doesn't take a conspiracy theorist to sense some Pharm crap-baggitry going on.

If WC is ****ing around with the generic approval process (and using underhanded tactics to "poison" the market for any possible generic alternative to WC products) then I think it is time to contact the FDA, the FTC (commercial fraud), and private class action lawyers.
Posted 6/10/2013 5:58 PM (GMT 0)
"Any Pubmed papers listing the dangers of DBP as it relates to DBP? "

Should read, "Any Pubmed papers listing the dangers of DBP as it relates to Asacol?"
Posted 7/19/2013 3:39 AM (GMT 0)
someone asked on here about a liquid form of mesalamine, how about metamucil. Psyillium husks is natures mesalamine from what I have read.
Posted 7/19/2013 7:11 AM (GMT 0)
Is Asacol not being discontinued in Canada or has it just not happened yet? Because I just refilled my prescription today.
Posted 7/19/2013 1:25 PM (GMT 0)
As far as I know it is not being made anymore by the company who makes it. Canada does have generic. You should have asked the place where you picked it up.
Posted 7/19/2013 1:38 PM (GMT 0)
"As far as I know it is not being made anymore by the company who makes it"

so .... do they make it or..... not ???
Posted 7/19/2013 8:17 PM (GMT 0)
seems they do but it's put into a capsule and called Delzicol.

Canada has a generic. I take it with no problems since Christmas.

q
Posted 7/19/2013 11:32 PM (GMT 0)
I see... I should've asked but I wasn't the one who picked it up. I asked my GI about it last time and he didn't seem to know anything.
Posted 7/20/2013 12:25 AM (GMT 0)
call the pharmacy back and ask.
Posted 7/20/2013 12:56 PM (GMT 0)
beatuc, what dosage were you on? Maybe you could get down to the minimum dose? 800mg is what I'm using and all of the nasty side effects are no longer.

How do you feel without it so far?
Posted 7/27/2013 3:58 PM (GMT 0)
here is a video I took of the new drug and taking it out of the capsule that seems pretty useless.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=oIUYFg7wGj8
Posted 7/27/2013 4:22 PM (GMT 0)
I'm taking Asamax, is it the equivalent to Asacol? have u ever heard anything about Asamax toxicity?
Posted 7/27/2013 5:35 PM (GMT 0)
stereo i still have some Asacol left, so I'm still taking 12 tabs a day of the 400s. When I asked my doc about it, he took a Dezacol out of the outer capsule and said "see, it's the same Asacol you've been taking". so, I guess I'll be taking Dezacol now...
There seems to have been no toxic plastic, just a scam by the drug company so it doesn't go generic. Nice folks these drug companies, eh?
Posted 7/27/2013 11:16 PM (GMT 0)
Has anyone Found an ALTERNATIVE, or is that a forum taboo What about DIGES-TA-CURE?
Posted 12/17/2013 10:32 PM (GMT 0)
The toxicity of the coating was most likely known by the manufacturer. It was only brought to light by the mahufacturer when others applied to produce the generic. FDA can't approve something that is known to be harmful. Then, the patent holder put the pill in a capsule and claims it's a new drug and also not harmful. And extended patent on the "new" medicine. The patent holder, a German company, has held a patent for 30 years, far longer than usual patent protection. It is clearly manipulation of the patent system for considerable profit. My insurance company had been paying about $9k/year for my medicine. This info came from my GI, probably the top GI in my region of the country. It is... a crime.
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