Spring Break
Different therapy for vasculitis reduces devastating side effect
Issue date: 10/29/09
We have all seen prescription drug commercials that end with a voice rapidly listing information about potential side effects and hazards. In the case of cyclophosphamide, the treatment for ANCA-associated vasculitis, the side effects can sometimes be worse than the disease itself.
Vasculitis is a disease involving the inflammatory destruction of blood vessels, including both arteries and veins. The ANCA-associated type indicates that there are antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibodies in the blood.
Symptoms of this illness include fever, weight loss, purpura (seen as purple spots on the skin), myalgia, arthritis, headache, stroke, heart attack, hypertension, gangrene, nosebleeds and bloody cough.
Before any treatment was found, 70 percent of patients diagnosed with ANCA-associated vasculitis could be expected to pass away within three years. In the 1970s, doctors began to prescribe cyclophosphamide, but recently, it has been shown that the benefits of the drug come at a price.
At the Hopkins Vasculitis Center, cyclophosphamide is one of several treatment options, including prednisone and methotrexate. However, in their informational Web site, the researchers insist that for some cases of vasculitis, such as the ANCA-associated type, steroids such as prednisone are simply not enough.
They believe that small doses of cyclophosphamide in addition to the steroids may be a life-saving medicine.
They also give both the pros and cons of cylophosphamide, saying that the drug itself will not induce weight gain, bone thinning, increased blood pressure or diabetes.
However, they do list the several, more harmful-sounding side effects of cyclophosphamide: fungal and viral infections, bone marrow suppression, cancer, bladder problems and infertility.
Such side effects have often been considered worse than the disease itself, and several investigators agree that there must be a less potentially harmful alternative for patients with ANCA-associated vasculitis.
Vasculitis is a disease involving the inflammatory destruction of blood vessels, including both arteries and veins. The ANCA-associated type indicates that there are antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibodies in the blood.
Symptoms of this illness include fever, weight loss, purpura (seen as purple spots on the skin), myalgia, arthritis, headache, stroke, heart attack, hypertension, gangrene, nosebleeds and bloody cough.
Before any treatment was found, 70 percent of patients diagnosed with ANCA-associated vasculitis could be expected to pass away within three years. In the 1970s, doctors began to prescribe cyclophosphamide, but recently, it has been shown that the benefits of the drug come at a price.
At the Hopkins Vasculitis Center, cyclophosphamide is one of several treatment options, including prednisone and methotrexate. However, in their informational Web site, the researchers insist that for some cases of vasculitis, such as the ANCA-associated type, steroids such as prednisone are simply not enough.
They believe that small doses of cyclophosphamide in addition to the steroids may be a life-saving medicine.
They also give both the pros and cons of cylophosphamide, saying that the drug itself will not induce weight gain, bone thinning, increased blood pressure or diabetes.
However, they do list the several, more harmful-sounding side effects of cyclophosphamide: fungal and viral infections, bone marrow suppression, cancer, bladder problems and infertility.
Such side effects have often been considered worse than the disease itself, and several investigators agree that there must be a less potentially harmful alternative for patients with ANCA-associated vasculitis.
Viewing Comments 1 - 1 of 1
Kathleen Bacon
posted 10/30/09 @ 9:06 PM EST
I have both CSS and MS. I have experienced an adverse reaction to copaxone due to the fact that I have both autoimmune diseases. Has Rituxan ever been given to a person with both diseases? Right now I am on Prednisone (IV and oral) and CellCept. (Continued…)
Post a Comment