Crohns journey and new meds.

[AndreaB1979]

Hi everyone, my journey started a couple of years ago when I started to notice blood when I went to the toilet. Went to see my GP and she thought it might be heammaeroids and prescribed cream. No improvement, in fact things got worse and instated to have stomach pain and urgency with diarhhea . She sent me for feacal calprotectin tests which came back positive and armed with some prednisone I was referred to the GI specialist.

Shortly after that I was sent for a colonoscopy and was told I have proctitis to around 15cm in the rectum. They removed a couple of small polyps which came back clear. He put me on pentasa 800mg 3 times a day and started to reduce the prednisone. Things started to improve and after a few weeks the situation was much much better. However a couple of months later everything started up again. More prednisone was prescribed along with supposotaries but this time nothing improved. Back to see the GI and another colonoscopy in January this year showed further inflammation patches in the ileum as well as the inflammation in the rectum which had spread another few centimetres.

Had blood tests and I can't have azathioprine so am being started on biologics. Assumed it would be humira but have been told it's a new version called imraldi. Just waiting for the paperwork to go through.

I really hope this stuff works, I'm a single parent with a job and an 8 year old and it's really taken over my life.

Anyone with experience of the new biosimilars for humira let me know how you are getting on. I'm terrified of injecting myself but it's got to be better than feeling like this.

Thanks, Andrea xxx

 

[David]

Hi Andrea and welcome to the community. I'm sorry to hear about your struggles. Especially as a single mother to a young child. I can't imagine how taxing that is for you.

I hope beyond hope that your new medicine does the trick.

Please keep us updated and check out our treatment section to see if others have any feedback on the Imraldi.

 

[Trysha]

Hello Andrea ...you will soon be an old hand at injecting yourself..especially
if it takes care of your symptoms..
Sometimes the thought is worse than the deed.
Lets hope the treatment works swiftly for you and stops the disease process
Hugs

 

[Peggy H]

Hi Andrea,
Thanks for posting. Please keep us informed how it goes. Sorry I can't give you any information. I'm waiting to get a new GI specialist to hopefully get on a biologic, I assume Humira, but I might find out like you that a biosimilar is recommended.