? methlytrexate

[Nickmark59]

My wife who is a stage II thyroid survivor was recently DX with a mild form of Sclearaderma and they are saying she may have to take methyltrexate a chemo drug to keep it in check has any one used this chemo and can give any advice?

[justin case]

Nick, my wife took it for an overactive immune system, or rheumatoid arthritis, and as I recall no major side effects.
Michael

[kiwiinoz]

Nick,
Took it for a number of years for Psoriasis, where it is used in the same way as Michael's wife used it, in that it is a chemo drug that acts as an immune suppressant to stop your body reacting to itself. I had to google Sclearaderma but I would imagine it is for her body to stop hardening her tissue.
I used it for about 7 years, and had blood tests every 3 months as it can do some damage to your liver. I used to also have to take it with folic acid.
Hope it goes well for your wife.
Kiwi

[GrouseMan]

Nick, they give it at a lower dose than for cancer patients. It has been quite successfully for auto immune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis as Michael has indicated. I once many years ago worked in a group that came up with a drug call Trimetrexate, which has the same mechanism of action, and very similar chemical structure which we were investigating also as an anticancer drug. We found it worked particularly well against Karposi's Sarcoma, which is common in in Advanced AIDS patients. If I recall both these drugs act on the TS pathway, and are Dihydrofolate Reductase inhibitors, similar to 5-FU, and it will impact use of Folic acid similarly.

Regards,

GrouseMan

[Ron50]

Part of my long term side effects from chemo I have psoriatic arthritis plus an unknown auto immune disease of the kidneys resulting in my losing up to seven grams of protein a day thru my urine. My rheumatologist and nephrologist agreed that I should take methotrexate to combat my auto immune problems. I started out taking tablets , the stuff has a terrible likeness to 5fu even to the point of taking folic acid and or leucovorin to try and minimise the side effects. I found tablets nauseating so I went to self injections. That helped but both tablets and injections both caused a major flare in peripheral neuropathy. I went to a neurologist who did nerve conductivity tests and confirmed severe motor sensori peripheral neuropathy. It was suggested I stop taking methotrexate. My protein loss went thru the roof and I was put on cyclosporine , a more powerful immune suppressant. I have been on it over a year. It is controlling the nephrotic syndrome. Ron.