Going off of 6mp while on Remicade-did you flare-

Hi, my daughter has been on Remicade since February 2011-It put her flare in control right away, she was already on 50mg 6mp since the beginning ('08) and has been on 25mg of the 6mp for about 2 years-
along with apriso-
She has been experiencing different symptoms that make her feel dizzy, head pressure, palpitations, and has passed out from it on 2 occasions -ending up in the e r.
We have checked her out from head to toe and are still doing so- she wore a heart monitor for a month, mri of brain-normal and a monitor of the brain for 24 hrs. eye dr, e n t, dentist, blood testing -my heart says of course it's all of the drugs, but she will not give up the remicade and the gastro is ok with that as long as everything keeps coming back ok. I understand, and could not encourage her to do so.

In hopes that it's the 6mp and not the remicade, she is weaning off 6mp, and I'm wondering if anyone here stopped taking the 6mp when the remicade is working, and did you remain flare free? The intention was for her to come off the 6mp eventually anyway- we know the combination is not good.

i did flare as i came off 6mp and remicade. my problem was that the 6mp was causing high liver enzymes and my doctor told me to stop it and just try remicade. well, that didn't work and i've been flaring ever since.

Thank you for your answers there are so many decisions to make.

She didn't flare on the the 6mp at 50mg before remicade, but she got a mersa infection- so it was cut down and then the flare came on, maybe she could go off the remicade and try the 50 mg again... Her colonoscopy was clean last month, 1st since remicade, there was no sign of inflammation I wish she could go back to colazal alone and see if that would keep her flare free -

The head symptoms have been here since around February. They come and go throughout the day, every day. Her blood pressure runs around 118/80.

I'm going to meet her now for another test- ent ordered an e n g - 2 hours of exploring balance through electrodes measuring eye and inner ear movement- I think.
But he doesn't expect it to show a problem, just ruling out the ear connection.

I don't think it would be expected that she would flare from stopping 6mp. The reason doctors keep us on both medications is to stop the body from building antibodies to Remicade. If your body builds up antibodies, the Remicade will no longer be effective. At that point, your options are limited. Usually remicade is the end of treatment options. There are always alternatives, humira and clinical trials but there's no guarantee any will work. That's why people want to prevent Remicade from becoming ineffective.

     I was a lot older than your daughter and I took 6MP for seven years prior to starting Remicade.  The doctor took me off the 6MP two weeks before my first dose of Remi.  He said it was too risky to have me on both.  The reason could be that my liver and pancreatic enzyme levels were both elevated.  I was on 50 mgm of the 6MP.  I built up antibodies to the Remicade relatively fast, after my 3rd infusion.  I did go for a 4th infusion, but it didn't work.  I gave Humira a try for three months, but no dice.  I had surgery in 2010.

I was taken off imuran after 6 months of being on remicade and was fine

Thanks for updating us, Rey. Probably you could benefit from more info. about continuing research studies being done on Remicade. I attended a presentation last winter by a visiting gastro/researcher from Europe who said that 3 recent major studies show young MALES are more at risk from Remicade/immunosuppressant drug combos. This doctor also talked about what is being done to fine-tune Remicade dosing among patients. I know your daughter's gastro recognizes the need to individualize treatment for IBDers whenever possible & if supported by solid research findings. That's basically what you have to go on, but it's about the highest available standard of care your daughter could get anywhere for UC. I'm hoping you'll be able to report back to us soon that her side effects have been conquered! / Old Hat (31 yrs with left-sided UC; presently in remission taking brandname Colazal)

I think the most recent studies also indicate that seniors run a higher risk of lymphoma with combo-immunosuppressant IBD treatment. In general, though, seniors are at higher risk of just about everything (except pregnancy, LOL). C'est la vie! / Old Hat (31 yrs with left-sided UC; presently in remission taking brandname Colazal)

You mean she never took Prednisone, right? (Because I recall your posting about steroid retention enemas & suppositories at least during her 1st yr in treatment for UC). The most experienced IBD gastros have been trying to eliminate Pred from treatment options in recent yrs because of its potential for causing major bone damage. So-- if your daughter did not get an Rx for Pred that would likely be the reason, especially if she is small-boned. / Old Hat (31 yrs with left-sided UC; presently in remission taking brandname Colazal)