Reply to Cindy who is New to group - have leukemia and RA.

[Guest guest]

:

I am very sorry to hear of your health conditions, but glad to hear the

leukemia is in remission.

As far as the RA goes, each person is different and has a different

experience. You have to give each drug a reasonable trial until you find what

works best for you. I have struggled through at least two years of drug

combinations trying to keep off the newest class of drugs - the biologics - due

to the expense even though most rheumatologists now recommend early aggressive

therapy usually with the biologics. I have been on methotrexate (mtx) the

longest. I could not take the pill form because it made me very ill and

switched to injections, which work great for me. I also take plaquenil and have

been on it about as long as the mtx. Both have helped, but I still hurt every

day. Just a few months ago, my rheumy put me on what's called " triple therapy "

and added sulfasalazine. All of it has improved my quality of life to an ever

greater degree, but I am not symptom free and live with daily pain.

Perhaps if I quit being stubborn and go on a biologic like Remicade, Enbrel,

etc., that might change. There are folks in this group that have done very well

with such drugs and there are others that did not find it quite so helpful. In

any case, I still live with daily pain. But, not so much that I am disabled. I

work a full-time job, have 4 children ranging in age from 11-18 and am active in

my church.

The key is to never give up on finding what meds work best for you and to give

each med a reasonable trial. Your rheumy can tell you what a reasonable trial

is. For most meds, that's anywhere from 3-6 months.

Wishing you the best of God's blessings,

in Texas

thea7441 <thea7441@...> wrote:

Hello Everyone,

I am new to the group, and I've recently been diagnosed with RA.

I have had CML (leukemia) since 2000, and take the drug Gleevec. Now

my doctors are trying to see if I can take methotrexate or paquinal

with Gleevec. I really would like to take methotrexate, as I hear it

is the best, but I'm not sure yet if I can. I hear that methotrexate

supresses your bone marrow, and I take Gleevec which also supresses

your bone marrow. By the way, I've been in complete molecular

remission on Gleevec since 2000.

So, I have a few questions...does the pain of RA ever go away?

Every joint in my hands, and my wrists, are in a great deal of pain.

I feel as if my wrists are breaking any time I lift things. Will

this go away once the doc's put me on paquenal, which is what I think

they're going to start me on next week.

I do take Alieve, and I've been given a script for naproxin.

This is new to me, and the symptoms just started last fall, so I

would appreciate any advice.

Thanks to all,