PURINETHOL Reviews (MERCAPTOPURINE)Average Rating: 3.5 (314 Ratings)Filter ResultsCompare PURINETHOL with similar:
Type: Rx Drug
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Results are sorted by Date added. Key to Ratings: 1=LOW (I would not recommend taking this medicine.) |
More on PURINETHOL: Reviews Summary | Drug Safety Information
| RATING | REASON | SIDE EFFECTS FOR PURINETHOL | COMMENTS | SEX | AGE | DURATION/ DOSAGE | DATE ADDED |
| 2 | crohns/colitis | Was on immuran, got too much joint pain, and hard time sleeping. Purinethol seem to be fine but now that i'm into my 2nd month, I feel tired, nausea, and just fatiged, sleeping is starting to get bad again, along with joint pain! | F | 34 | 2 months 75 mg 1X day | 9/9/2010 | 1 | Ulcerative Colitis | Exhausted, Nauseaus, Weak, No Energy, Hair thinned out dramatically, no appetite. Complete inability to digest any carbohydrate. Blew up like I was 6 months pregnant every time. | I've been dealing with Ulcerative Colitis for 20 years and thought this was finally the answer: just SHUT DOWN my immune system so it became impossible for it to flare-up again - perfect! But I was wrong. I took this drug for a year and slowly became weaker and weaker, had no energy, got a cold or sinus infection about every 6-8 weeks, was nauseaus and could only eat simple carbs because I was nauseaus, my hair thinned out a lot (I actually have gorgeous Barbie hair, so this was really terrible), but strangest of all: I am left with a complete inability to break down Fructose. Apparently it is metabolized in the liver, and after a year of taking this drug, my liver seems to no longer have that ability. So any time anything with Fructose sneaks into my food, I blow up like I'm 6 months pregnant and have to go to bed. It is a horrible effect and seems to be irreversible. I originally thought it was Yeast, but my GI was able to diagnosis it with a series of hydrogen breath tests and confirm Fructose Malabsorption. So my advice to anyone contemplating 6MP: DON'T. Just get off all meds. Slowly but surely, get off them. Go to an acupuncturist or holistic practitioner. DRAMATICALLY overhaul your diet to clean, healthy foods, and DRAMATICALLY overhaul your lifestyle to keep emotional stress at a minimum. I've only had one "allergy-induced" flare-up in 5 years and I haven't been on any meds since the hell that was 6MP. You have to change your lifestyle - you | F | 33 | 1 years don't rem 1X day | 6/20/2010 | 5 | Crohn's | Fatigue, lack of energy. | I have been taking Purinethol for almost five years and so far so good. I'm getting married in August and I would like to have a baby very soon. I have read mixed reviews on pregnancy and purinethol. At this point I think that I will probably stop taking it but I'm afraid that I might get sick again. Any advice? | F | 29 | 5 years 75mg 1X day | 5/28/2010 | 1 | Crohn's Disease | Nausea, brain fog, fatigue. At 12 weeks I got shingles. | I was on 6-MP for 18 weeks. It had clearly suppressed my immune system as I came down with shingles which I've never had before. As I reduced my prednisone it was clear it wasn't working as all my Crohn's symptoms came back. As soon as I stopped the 6-MP the brain fog lifted. I'm now on low dose naltrexone which has been really effective with few side effects - the best Crohn's med I've taken | F | 54 | 18 weeks 50mg 1X day | 5/5/2010 | 5 | ulcerative colitis | The last 4 years I've had skin cancer; I also have genetic/environment risks however I have had several squamous that required some reconstructive surgery. I have other skin problems as well. Exercise is a must however the body sometimes just can't do it, never in the morning but I think that is part of the illness. I have real difficulty with acension work. I've had a heart stress test and was told the heart was fine however I was dehydrated, I couldn't completely finish the test because I almost fainted. I'm thinking it had more to do with the medication and its impact on anemia readings in the blood work. | I was steroid dependent when I started taking purinethol and it took 1 1/2 years to transition. I have had periodic breakthru bleeding over the years however my current dose plus 3 Lialda a day usually will hold me. I used to think I could stop the purinethol however it takes me months to get the bleeding to stop and my UC under control, even with steriods. I am religious about keeping up with the required blood work monitoring. I rarely get a cold or flu virus so I think I am at the right dose on this medication, keeping my immune system from overreacting. I used to have severe allergies. I do bruise easier and sometimes with the skin cancer work I don't clot quickly so they cauterize. I still have periodic joint pain and redness in my elbows. Severe right sided pain flares still occur a couple times of year. For me, as much as I dislike the side effects, this drug has allowed me to keep my large intestines and am cancer free (my grandfather died of colon cancer). | F | 52 | 17 years 75 mg 1X day | 4/27/2010 | 1 | Crohns Disease | A severe headache and diarrhoea which caused my Crohns to flare up. | MP6 gave me diarrhoea within a day of first taking it which flared up my Crohns. I was down to 1 a day on my 3rd 8 week session of prednislone but had to go up 4 a day as my CRP was up because of the diarrhoea the 6MP gave me. The next day I woke with a thumping headache and over the next week it got so bad I couldn't sleep with it (I only realised later that the headaches were worse in the night because I took 6MP before I went to bed). The GP said it was because of the increase of steriods and gave me tylex. This had no effect on the pain. 2 days later I went to A+E there after blood tests they found my CRP was 190 but they didn't know why?as my crohns was fine. I told them that it was the 6MP as I had been given Imuran before the 6MP and that didn't agree with me either. after 2 days of testing including a lumberpuncture they stopped the 6MP and within 2 days the headach was gone. But I was left with an enlarged liver and maybe some liver damage. My CRP is still up at 55 and I'm anemic. The doctor said that they had researched 6MP and there were no record of Headache as a side effect. But thats the side effect I got and just as well or who knows what damage this drug could have done to me. I spent a total of 8 days in hospital. If u have to take this drug be careful and just because a side effect isn't on the insert doesn't mean these drugs arn't causing it good luck :-) | F | 38 | 3 weeks 5mg 1X day | 4/8/2010 | 5 | UC | A little tiredness initially but not so bad now | I have had UC for 10 years after stopping smoking. Initially I was not sure about this drug but since being on the Purinethol I have not had any major flare ups and must say that it is controlling my UC well. I did notice some tiredness at first but that has either reduced over time or maybe I simply got used to it, Either way I manage to work play and run a few miles a week. I'm fine feeling a little tired if the alternative is cramping pains weight loss and spending half my life either in or seeking a bathroom! | M | 54 | 2 years 75 1X day | 3/21/2010 | 4 | Crohn's disease | Fatigue, memory problems, hair loss but it grows back | Have had Crohn's for 31 years. Other meds did not work as well. Not sure if I want to risk having a Crohn's flare to try to stop the 6MP and see if my fatigue lessens. | F | 49 | 4 years 75 mg 1X day | 3/7/2010 | 5 | Ulcerative Colitis | None | I have been "on" 6MP for five years, after other meds for UC did not prevent symptoms and flares. It worked for me almost immediately. Although I experienced no side effects, I decided to see how low a dosage I could get away with. I only need to take 100 mg about once every two months in order to prevent return of UC symptoms. It is true that I had a relatively mild case of UC, but still, bad enough to land me in the hospital twice in the first 18 years since I was diagnosed, and I was never free of symptoms until I started 6MP. | F | 56 | 5 years | 12/10/2009 | 4 | ulcerative colitis | tiredness, lack of concentration, loss of appetite, dry skin, slight loss of hair, mood swings | i was diagnosed 2 years ago with UC and 6MP definetly saved me from a lot of pain etc etc. however, i still hopw there is a way of weaning myself of it. i would hate it to effect my fertility | M | 18 | 2 years | 11/29/2009 | 3 | Crohn's Disease | Bloating, rapid weight gain, headaches, joint pain, nausea. | Was on Azathioprine for a couple years, which gave me no problems. Not sure why, but doc switched to Purinethol a few months ago. Since the switch, I have developed frequent headaches, nausea (which I have never really had before on meds), moderate to severe joint pains and rapid weight gain. I will be contacting doc to go back to Azathioprine if possible. | F | 37 | 60 days | 11/13/2009 | 3 | ulcerative colitis | chronic fatigue, skin sensitivities, skin cancers, joint pain, depression, weakness, difficulty concentrating | I have had uc for 16 years and I take 100mg of 6mp in conjuncture with lots of asacol. This keeps my colitis from flaring up and my last colonoscopy looked great. But at what cost? I feel like it's eating up the rest of my body. | M | 44 | 7 years | 10/2/2009 | 4 | Crohn's | Nausea, faintness, dizziness and fatigue at first, which subside after about one month. Still have lack of appetite, possibly worsening of acne and tiredness. Possibly neck pain. | Taking 50mg daily for an indefinite period for maintenance of remission after bowel resection. My WBC count is now under 4000. Took this drug in the past for 3 years. | M | 28 | 4 months | 8/19/2009 | 5 | Crohn's | Just a lite fatigue. But I aways feel great. | This is the only medicine that has saved my life. I have had crohn's for 25 years.H Had my share of fistula and was on disability. I do work full time and live life like I was sick....my only side effects shingles....herpes zostors. | F | 47 | 19 years | 4/12/2009 | 4 | crohn's | nausia | i was diagnosed with the disease 3m before i turned 11 and have been on an immune suppresant before for about 3yrs but when i started it i was put onto entocort too and had a side effect of nausia. ive only been on purinethol for a short while now but was again put on the entocort at the same time. only real side effect was nausia but i dont know which was causing it. this has since disappeared. my guts arent cramping and only occassionally ache for short peroids and my stools have firmed up quite a bit and im going to the toilet less. food intake is about the same. am alittle tired but thats prob due to the late nights and boredom looking for a job, but after saying all that i dont know which of the two drugs is helping the most, or if its the combo or if my body reacts well to these drugs. im having a blood test today, so heres hoping its all as good as it seems. | F | 24 | 2 weeks | 4/6/2009 | 4 | Crohn's Disease | None that I'm aware of. | I started taking this along with Remicade infusions. I take 50mg a day. This along with the Remicade helped, but I eventually decided to stop the Remicade treatments. My GI doctor put me on opium tincture, and that seemed to kick my flare. Since then, I've been pretty normal & just take the 6mp every day. Anyone who's not having much luck with anything else aside from steroids may want to look into opium tincture or a similar narcotic since narcotics themselves cause constipation...kind of like a reverse effect. It was an extremely small dose, so I didn't feel anything & was able to go about my day normally without any side effects. Just don't overuse any narcotics...I just read on about.com that the OVERuse of narcotics may cause Toxic Megacolon. Great things we with IBD get to worry about, right? | F | 28 | 4 years | 3/23/2009 | 4 | ulcerative colitis | When I first started taking 6mp i had leg pains for the first 2-3 months, then it went away. Didn't notice any hair loss, maybe a little bit of fatigue. I used to take it in the morning now I take it at night to fight off the fatigue and it seems to work. Also noticed recently that my cuticles are starting to crack and became sore. | I have had uc from 1999. Usually had mild flare-up every few months. Had a severe flare-up in 2006 where I had lost 20 lbs in two weeks and was dehydrated. That got me into trying some herbal supplements I read about in Jini Patel Thompson's book. I continued to take asacol until I had my last flare in 9/2007. Had to take Prednisone and then started the 6MP at 50mg a day. I have been free of any symptoms since I (reluctantly) started the 6mp.(No more Prednisone) I am starting to implement more holistic healing so that I can start to wean myself off of the 6mp but it has help me tremendously. | F | 51 | 15 months | 1/30/2009 | 5 | CHRONS DISEASE | originally was more tired, but thats better now. ive had the longest cold ive ever had this year...maybe due to this drug, i dont know. for the most part, ive had little problems and its working. blood counts are normal. | 120 days | 1/13/2009 | 4 | Crohns | slight hair loss, low immune system, light trouble sleeping, little weight gain | I was diagnosed with Crohns 11mo ago. In & out of the hospital for a reoccurring abscess, took endocore, pentasa & prednisone & azothioprine together, finally had surgery to remove a portion of my intestine since it would not go away. My GI doctor put me on Purinethol about 4 months, I have felt pretty good, I noticed I get sick easily. I hope that this continues to do good things for my Crohns. My question is it ok to take things like probiotics & immune boosting suppliments for normal health (like colds) or do they counter act the Purinethol | F | 23 | 4 months | 1/6/2009 | 4 | Crohn's of large | been so long so not sure what is Crohn's, what is purinethol and what is just me | Been taking for so long I don't know. But recently talked to sister in law who was on it just a year, and said she felt so much better energy and mood wise after getting off of it. Got me thinking. I can't remember ever not feeling tired in my adult life, unless I drink a lot of coffee. Maybe that would be the case anyway. I have had 5 episodes of bad depression in 20 years and still is low grade. As far as the crohn's, purinethol has always helped and when I tried to get off it, I immediately had terrible pain. I have only had to have one surgery so far and on 50mg now, I feel lucky but wonder why my fatigue/ mood issues exist. | M | 38 | 20 years | 12/26/2008 |