Might be going on Entyvio

Hi everyone,
Hope all are having a good week thus far. Last week I had a colonoscopy for the first time in 3 years to check on how I have been progressing on Humira.

Good news - Most of my colon looks good and I feel fine! Only issues I have is urgency in the mornings, but who doesn't with this blasphemous disease?

Bad news - rectum does not look good and i have elevated platelet counts.

Because of this my GI and I are in preliminary talks about making the switch to Entyvio. For those who are on it, a few questions:

How's it working for you?
Any weird side effects?
How much is your copay? (I currently use Accredo for my Humira, I assume the same will be for Entyvio)


I can search through some old topics, but wanted to ask here too

Post Edited (turtlepower) : 8/29/2017 10:33:33 AM (GMT-6)

Doh! I always forget, apologies.

1.2g generic mesalamine 4 tabs a day
20g dicyclomine (up to 3 a day if needed)
1 immodium if needed (GI approved)

One humira injection every other week.

Hi turtle, I am currently on Entyvio and finished the final loading dosage so my next infusion is October.

I kinda agree with iPoop above, it seems like a big jump to go from Humira to Entyvio based on your change in symptoms. Have you and your doctor considered a secondary medication to go along with the humira to try to bridge the gap? it sounds like Humira is still pretty effective minus the urgency in the morning.

Entyvio has been fine for me so far. I havent paid any type of co-pay. my insurance at my company is really good, plus the insurance provider is also the operator of the hospitals/doctors that i utilize so i havent had to pay anything.

Entyvio is a slow moving drug. I am fighting a bad flare right now so it's probably going to be until at least December until I see remission-type relief based on my conversations with my doctor/others here currently on it. having said that, i have seen some improvements as early as after the first loading dosage. not a ton of relief and it comes with good days and bad days. id say you could see some relief early on, but the full affects of it will take awhile, especially after your loading dosages are finished.

side effect wise, nothing major. i noticed i had bad urgency and BMs in the afternoon following the infusion (i had it first thing in the morning). im guessing that is more of a symptom of having it enter your body for the first time. i didnt notice it after my last infusion. the only other symptom i've had is that i've been pretty tired/sluggish the day of and after my infusions.

turtlepower said...
For those who are on it, a few questions:

How's it working for you?
Any weird side effects?
How much is your copay? (I currently use Accredo for my Humira, I assume the same will be for Entyvio)

==============
I get Entyvio every 8 weeks, from Crescent Healthcare (aka OptionCare). Every 8 weeks they bill my insurer, Blue Shield of California, $15,600 for the medication. Blue Shield responds with their negotiated rate of $5,200; Crescent accepts that. Of the $5,200 I have a co-pay of 20%, or about $1,000 per treatment, at the beginning of the year. by mid-year, I max out my prescription drug Out-of-Pocket expenses (which includes a lot more than Entyvio), and I don't pay that $1,000 any more.

Each infusion also costs a few $100 in miscellaneous and nurse cost, which aren't subject to the prescription drug OoP limit. At the end of the year, I am paying $65 for each infusion, since the Entyvio is "free" to me.

So, without insurance, I would pay $15,600 x 6 ~ $94,000 per year. With insurance, it's a few thousand per year (Thank you, ACA, or I would be on my own to negotiate the price down). If I didn't max out my OoP expenses, I would be paying $6,000 per year just for Entyvio. Of course, I pay the normal insurance plan monthly premiums to get that coverage. If I had a "gold" plan, I would pay more in insurance premiums, but reach my max OoP sooner. If I had "bronze" plan, I would pay higher insurance premiums, but reach my max OoP later.

Hope that helps.

Entyvio works well, but slowly, and I need other drugs in addition.

No side effects that I can notice.