- Joined
- Jul 16, 2014
- Messages
- 93
Sorry in advance for the novel. I'll share my background really quick and then get to my question. I was diagnosed with CD in June 2014 after a partial obstruction landed me in the ER. It turned out that I had at least 1 stricture that caused the obstruction. I ended up having a fibrotic stricture with a bit of inflammation and was prescribed Humira. Shortly after that I was prescribed Imuran to prevent antibodies. This combo worked great, but my GI took me off of Imuran after 1 year due to the cancer risk to young men being on Imuran long term.
Humira every other week was not enough to keep me in remission. I began to flare again late last year and had actually scheduled surgery for early December. Before the scheduled surgery, I met with my GI, who wanted to put me back on Imuran, but wasn't sure because of the risks, so he sent me to Duke for a second opinion. He put me on Entocort in the mean time, which worked great. The doctors at Duke agreed that going back on Imuran would be my best bet for now, so I was put back on Imuran. They also had the Prometheus test done, and it looked I had no antibodies, and my GI said my levels were good. Unfortunately, I was not aware at the time that it took a few months for Imuran to really kick in, and I began tapering my Entocort way too soon. This caused me to flare back up. I believe due to my initial stopping of Imuran and tapering the Entocort too soon, more scar tissue has built up and made my stricture worse. My symptoms have certainly gotten worse.
I had an appointment with my GI yesterday to discuss my latest MRE results. We both agreed that due to my worsening stricture, it's time for surgery. However, he said that after surgery he'd like to take me back off of Imuran and place me on Methotrexate due to a lesser risk of cancer. I have not had any side effects with 150mg of Imuran and the 40mg of Humira, and if they seem to be working once they're in my system, I would prefer to stay with that combo after my surgery. It seems that MTX may actually have more everyday side effects than Imuran, and I've also read that many people have stayed on Imuran long term with no ill effects. Does any one have any experience with switching from Imuran to MTX? Also, my wife and I are trying to conceive, and she informed me that MTX shouldn't be taken when trying to conceive (she's a NICU nurse), so I won't be making the switch soon, but it may be an option in the future. I've also thought about suggesting just trying Humira alone after surgery, even if we have to up the dose, but I haven't discussed this with my GI.
Humira every other week was not enough to keep me in remission. I began to flare again late last year and had actually scheduled surgery for early December. Before the scheduled surgery, I met with my GI, who wanted to put me back on Imuran, but wasn't sure because of the risks, so he sent me to Duke for a second opinion. He put me on Entocort in the mean time, which worked great. The doctors at Duke agreed that going back on Imuran would be my best bet for now, so I was put back on Imuran. They also had the Prometheus test done, and it looked I had no antibodies, and my GI said my levels were good. Unfortunately, I was not aware at the time that it took a few months for Imuran to really kick in, and I began tapering my Entocort way too soon. This caused me to flare back up. I believe due to my initial stopping of Imuran and tapering the Entocort too soon, more scar tissue has built up and made my stricture worse. My symptoms have certainly gotten worse.
I had an appointment with my GI yesterday to discuss my latest MRE results. We both agreed that due to my worsening stricture, it's time for surgery. However, he said that after surgery he'd like to take me back off of Imuran and place me on Methotrexate due to a lesser risk of cancer. I have not had any side effects with 150mg of Imuran and the 40mg of Humira, and if they seem to be working once they're in my system, I would prefer to stay with that combo after my surgery. It seems that MTX may actually have more everyday side effects than Imuran, and I've also read that many people have stayed on Imuran long term with no ill effects. Does any one have any experience with switching from Imuran to MTX? Also, my wife and I are trying to conceive, and she informed me that MTX shouldn't be taken when trying to conceive (she's a NICU nurse), so I won't be making the switch soon, but it may be an option in the future. I've also thought about suggesting just trying Humira alone after surgery, even if we have to up the dose, but I haven't discussed this with my GI.
