I am a 24 yr old female, I was diagnosed with crohns illiitis when I was 18 after my appendix burst. I am currently on pentasa, nexium, 6-mp, cipro for crohns. I was recently recommended for remicade and I am worried about developing cancer because I am on 6-mp. I cant find any statistics on this combination of drugs, If anyone has any insight I would much appreciate it, and thank you for your support!
Crohns
- Thread starter JTChavez
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xJillx
Your Story Forum Monitor
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Hi JTChavez and welcome! I don't have any advice on 6-mp and Remicade, but I suggest you check out the Remicade sub-forum in the Treatment forum. You may even want to post you question there as you could get a better response.
Deciding on the right treatment can be difficult. I hope you and your doctor can make the choice that is right for you soon. Good luck!
Deciding on the right treatment can be difficult. I hope you and your doctor can make the choice that is right for you soon. Good luck!
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Hi JTChavez 
I know the side effects can be overwhelming. And when you throw cancer into it, that's a bit more serious than nausea or skin rashes. I was extremely terrified of start on Humira, but knew I needed to because my disease was really aggressive. I had fistulas, strictures, and abscesses. So, I needed something that was really going to take care of business.
I felt great on Humira alone for a few months and then I went backwards again. That's when they added Imuran on top of the Humira.
There are many articles out there confirming that the onset of remission is induced more quickly with the combination of biologics and 6mp/Imuran. That gave me a lot of reassurance. I know David has posted several articles on this specific subject.
My doc also said that being on Imuran would only be temporary. So, I think he's hoping to get me into remission and then scale back to just Humira as my maintenance drug. Talk with your doc and see what their long-term plan is for you
I know the side effects can be overwhelming. And when you throw cancer into it, that's a bit more serious than nausea or skin rashes. I was extremely terrified of start on Humira, but knew I needed to because my disease was really aggressive. I had fistulas, strictures, and abscesses. So, I needed something that was really going to take care of business.
I felt great on Humira alone for a few months and then I went backwards again. That's when they added Imuran on top of the Humira.
There are many articles out there confirming that the onset of remission is induced more quickly with the combination of biologics and 6mp/Imuran. That gave me a lot of reassurance. I know David has posted several articles on this specific subject.
My doc also said that being on Imuran would only be temporary. So, I think he's hoping to get me into remission and then scale back to just Humira as my maintenance drug. Talk with your doc and see what their long-term plan is for you
ameslouise
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Hi JT and welcome!
I hear ya. As someone who tends to get EVERY side effect listed, and even some that aren't, I was terrified of going on Humira. But my doc told me that the general population has a 4 in 10,000 chance of getting lymphoma (the kind of cancer associated with these drugs). On Humira, my chance increased to 9 in 10,000 - still a very low number. I decided in the end it was worth it.
But everyone has to make that decision for themself. Good luck. Hope you start feeling better soon, whatever you decide.
- Amy
I hear ya. As someone who tends to get EVERY side effect listed, and even some that aren't, I was terrified of going on Humira. But my doc told me that the general population has a 4 in 10,000 chance of getting lymphoma (the kind of cancer associated with these drugs). On Humira, my chance increased to 9 in 10,000 - still a very low number. I decided in the end it was worth it.
But everyone has to make that decision for themself. Good luck. Hope you start feeling better soon, whatever you decide.
- Amy
Thank you all sooooo much, I really appreciate it, I am glad I found this site to express my concerns. I have decided to see another dr and see if humira is an option for me instead of remicade! Thank you all for your support and I hope you all are doing well!
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Hi JT! Sorry I don’t have any incite for you, but welcome to the club! You will learn a lot here, and hopefully will also make a few friends along the way!
