Rheumatoid Arthritis Support Group
Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic, inflammatory, multisystem, autoimmune disorder. It is a disabling and painful condition which can lead to substantial loss of mobility due to pain and joint destruction. The disease is also systemic in that it often also affects many extra-articular tissues throughout the body including the skin, blood vessels, heart, lungs, and...
I was diagnosed with RA over 30 years ago. I have basically been lucky until the last 5 years. Now my hands and feet are very crippled and my knees are swollen. I am on prednisone, plaquenil. celebrex and enbrel. I have to come off the Enbrel because I have been diagnosed with stage 3 heart failure. Now my doctor wants to put me on Rituxan. It is a very expensive infusion and I am not sure that it is worth it. Apparently the other injectable drugs aggravate HF. I am also very concerned about the side effects and what horrible things it can do to your body. I believe this is a relatively new drug and don't know what really happens.
Has anyone else taken this drug? I would like some information and would like to hear from anyone else that has HF. My HF was not caused by the RA. They can find no reason for the HF.
Hilda
Has anyone else taken this drug? I would like some information and would like to hear from anyone else that has HF. My HF was not caused by the RA. They can find no reason for the HF.
Hilda
I've been taking Rituxan for 2 1/2 years (5 treatments) with a lot of success. I don't have heart issues. There are several others who have started taking it within the past few months but are still waiting for success.
I've been fortunate to not have any serious side effects, but you're right to take them seriously. Rituxan was approved for RA in early 2006, but it's been around for quite a bit longer, for Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma.
If you search for Rituxan in the search box near the top of each page, you'll find a number of discussion threads. There's another recent thread titled "Retuxan." If you haven't already read the "package insert" for Rituxan, you can find it here:
http://www.gene.com/gene/products/information/pdf/rituxan-prescribing.pdf
Good luck with your decision. I've had severe reactions to 2 other drugs, and I know how scary it is to consider the potential consequences. Be informed, trust your instincts and weigh the risks vs benefits.
doug
I had my infusions about four months ago after struggling with other drugs. I did not tolerate MTX but I am on plaquenil and arava with mild success. Although it took nearly three months to kick in, I am actually feeling really great right now. For the first time I was able to tell my Rheumy that I am no longer in pain. In fact, the only real issue that I have right now is a sore trigger finger! Not bad at all! We are scheduling the second series in December (though he said that it could be as much as a year between treatments if the improvement continues).
As Doug said, Rituxan has been used for years to treat Lymphomas. If I recall from my nursing days, the most common side effect that we saw was related to the pulmonary system. Of course, there could be others (as is the case with all of the RA drugs....most are pretty serious drugs!)
Wishing you luck on your journey.