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Posted 5/10/2009 12:42 AM (GMT 0)
I just got the bill for the Prometheus test...$902.65!!!!! Holy cow! Thank goodness I have good insurance and only have to pay $17.
Posted 5/10/2009 12:59 AM (GMT 0)
I have insurance and I had to pay around $100.
Posted 5/10/2009 5:08 PM (GMT 0)
Great, I just had that done...can't wait for the bill. lol. Yikes!!!
Posted 5/10/2009 6:41 PM (GMT 0)
What is this test for?
Posted 5/10/2009 7:46 PM (GMT 0)
My GI gave me the option to have this test before I start 6mp. He knows how paranoid I am so he suggested I get it.

What is a TPMT test?
A TPMT test is a blood test. It checks for certain forms of a gene called Thiopurine smethyltransferase.
Some people have forms of the TPMT gene that make them sensitive to
thiopurine medicine. These medicines include 6-mecaptopurine (6-MP), azathiopuine
(Imuran) and thioguanine. Sometimes the test also measures the TPMT gene product.

What are the potential benefits of the TPMT test?
• The test greatly improves the chances that the medicine will help you as
intended.
• The test lower’s the chance of severe side effects from the medicine.
• You may need to be tested for the TPMT gene only once in his /her lifetime. The
genes inherited from our parents very rarely change. Therefore, doctors in the future
can use the results from this test if you need thiopurine medicines.
Posted 5/10/2009 11:30 PM (GMT 0)

Now my question is....

After taking 6 MP since February 28 - 50mg. (I went up to 75mg. for one week after 50 mg. for 5 weeks and then doctor ordered the prometheus test to see how it was doing - and the lab did the wrong test - they tested for celiac which I don't have).  Now after several more weeks of 50 mg. I am going up to 75 once again for a week and then having the right prometheus test done.  Of what use will it be after so long.  The doctor said he is trying to find out if the 6MP will work for me and if I should keep taking it.  I have now taken it for nearly 3 months.  YIKES!  Also, tapering to 15mg. prednisone  -been on 20 mg. for weeks - starting tomorrow.  Hope this works as he is reffering me to a special specialist in Albany if not!!

I am sorry but quess I am too old to understand what AMK77 wrote.  I can't believe I am sensitive to that gene or could that be at higher doses since I get more side effects past 50 mg. - headaches, dizzy, sweating, etc.

ElaineNY

Posted 5/11/2009 1:15 AM (GMT 0)
My insurance - which normally pays for everything - would not pay for these tests. Fortunately, the hospital ended up paying for most of it.

Posted 5/11/2009 1:29 AM (GMT 0)
If you have to pay for the test yourself, you can pre-pay on the lab's website using a credit card and get a discount. I did that about a year or two ago and I assume you can still do it. My doctor didn't know about it; I just found it on their website. I think I saved about 20% or something.

Some insurances that say they won't cover the test will actually pay up if you hassle them enough about Prometheus Labs being the only lab in the US that does this test. There's no choice to go "out of network" and the test is medically necessary. It just takes time to get hte insurance company to believe that.
Posted 5/11/2009 7:34 PM (GMT 0)
You need to have the test done - if you have the gene you should not take 6mp or Imurn(spelled wrong). There is another prometheus test that is a blood test that is another way to see if you have UC or Crohns but it isn't 100%. Mine came back neg for both but my biopsys were positive for UC.
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