Face Transplant Patient Can Smell, Taste, Breathe Normally Nov 19, 2009
Culp, then 46, was given immunosuppressant drugs to prevent rejection. Before operating, surgeons weren't sure if all of the donor tissue could be supplied with blood through the facial arteries, but bleeding from the tissue during the surgery told them the facial arterial system would be enough, according to the report. (MEDLINEplus)
Heart Transplants Nov 16, 2009
The patient survived the operation, but the immunosuppressant drugs used to keep his body from rejecting the new organ weakened him ... But keeping a patient's immune system from turning on the new organ often required large doses of immunosuppressant drugs that left patients vulnerable to deadly infections ... His team of doctors and scientists developed a technique to determine whether a patient's body was gearing up to reject an organ, allowing them to tailor their prescriptions of... (Time.com)
Rationing health care not new Nov 15, 2009
With kidney transplants, the program covers only the cost of immunosuppressant drugs. "We're the provider of last resort," said Jim Wolf, manager of community services for the Wyoming Department of Health. (Casper Star-Tribune, WY)
Low Dose Naltrexone (LDN) For Fibro... Nov 10, 2009
LDN should also not be combined with immunosuppressant drugs (which are not used in the treatment of fibromyalgia, but many people with FM may be taking them for an autoimmune disease). Low dose naltrexone is, however, compatible with all other medications, including Lyrica, Savella, Cymbalta and other antidepressants and anticonvulsants. (Suite101.com)
UCLA researchers reconstitute enzyme that synthesizes cholesterol drug lovastatin Nov 4, 2009
Polyketides represent a class of 7,000 known structures, of which more than 20 are commercial drugs, including the immunosuppressant rapamycin, the antibiotic erythromycin and the anticancer drug doxorubicin. "In this study, we studied the enzyme that makes a small-molecule precursor to lovastatin. And what's really different about this enzyme, compared to all other enzymes people have studied, is that this enzyme is extraordinarily large," said Yi Tang, associate professor of chemical and... (EurekAlert!)
Switching immunosuppressants reduces cancer risk in kidney Nov 1, 2009
Switching to a newer type of immunosuppressant drug may reduce the high rate of skin cancer after kidney transplantation, according to research being presented at the American Society of Nephrology's 42nd Annual Meeting and Scientific Exposition in San Diego, CA. ... One group of patients remained on standard immunosuppressant drug treatment ... The other group was switched to treatment with sirolimusone of a newer class of immunosuppressants called mTOR inhibitors. (EurekAlert!)
Rheumatoid Arthritis Treatment Doesn't Promote Cancer Oct 30, 2009
TNF blockers are immunosuppressants that reduce inflammation in people with rheumatoid arthritis, but concerns have been raised that long-term use of the drugs may increase the risk of infections and cancer ... 00 and remained unchanged for those taking immunosuppressant drugs for up to six years, the researchers found ... "Our research indicates the overall cancer risk is the same for rheumatoid arthritis patients on immunosuppressant therapies and those not taking medications for the disease,"... (Atlanta Journal-Constitution -- Health)
Anti-tumor necrosis factor treatment does not increase cancer Risk in RA patients Oct 29, 2009
TNF inhibitors (or TNF blockers) are a class of therapies used to reduce inflammation in chronic inflammation such as RA. The common immunosuppressant drugs and those included in the study are Remicade, HumiraTM, and Enbrel ... Results show there were 240 first primary cancers diagnosed during the 25,693 person-years of follow-up in the patients using anti-TNF therapy who had no history of cancer at the onset of immunosuppressant treatment ... 00 and remained unchanged for those taking... (EurekAlert!)
Santa Cruz County Clinics Out Of H1N1 Vaccine Oct 29, 2009
Anyone ages 25 through 64 with certain medical conditions that put them at higher risk for influenza-related complications (asthma, immunosuppressant, diabetes, or heart or lung disease). For more information. (KSBW 8, CA)
Scientists: Womb Transplants Could Happen in 2 Years Oct 23, 2009
A successful transplant would also be temporary, to avoid the patient having to tak 00003BB5 e immunosuppressant drugs for life, in order to avoid rejection of the womb. But a woman recipient might be given two to three years to conceive and carry a baby or babies before the womb was removed. (Fox News)
A step too far? Oct 23, 2009
As well as the surgery itself, the woman in question would have to take immunosuppressant drugs to stop her body rejecting the organ. Diabetes and osteoporosis are among the consequences of this form of medication which can also lead to renal failure, cardiac arrest, and increasingly, it is believed, cancer. (BBC News -- Health)
Skin itch caused by rare disorder Oct 6, 2009
Treatment includes oral or topical corticosteroids, such as prednisone or hydrocortisone, which reduce inflammation; immunosuppressant drugs that calm the immune response and reduce inflammation; or corticosteroid-sparing agents. It is important to protect the skin from the sun by using sunscreen whenever going outside; take supplements, such as calcium and vitamin D if on long-term steroid treatment; avoid injuries because of skin fragility; and, if the mouth is affected, avoid crunchy foods,... (Erie Times-News, PA)
Longer-lived, Healthier Mice Offer Promise Of Drug Treatments For Age-related Diseases Oct 3, 2009
Rapamycin is used in humans as an immunosuppressant (to prevent organ rejection after transplant) and so could not be administered as an anti-ageing drug in its current form. However, rapamycin blocks the activity of S6K1 and may therefore extend lifespan through its effects on S6K1. (Science Daily)
What Triggers Hair Loss? Sep 16, 2009
Major causes are immunosuppressant drugs, chemotherapy and radiotherapy. Hair growth normally restarts when the therapy has finished. (Suite101.com)
* Transplant policy looks penny wise, pound foolish Sep 15, 2009
Federal law, however, limits Medicare reimbursement for the immunosuppressant drugs that transplant recipients must take for life, at costs of US$1,000 to US$3,000 a month ... Bills have been introduced in Congress since 2000 to lift the 36-month limit and extend coverage of immunosuppressant drugs indefinitely. (Taipei Times, Taiwan -- World Business)
Medicare covers transplants, but limits drugs to 36 months Sep 15, 2009
Despite that heavy investment, federal law limits Medicare reimbursement for the immunosuppressant drugs that transplant recipients must take for life, at costs of $1,000 to $3,000 a month ... The Medicare program is not sure how many of the country's 100,000 transplant recipients are without insurance for their immunosuppressant drugs ... Bills have been introduced in Congress since 2000 to lift the 36-month limit and extend coverage of immunosuppressant drugs indefinitely. (Honolulu Star-Bulletin)
Farmer: Vaccination vital in fighting H1N1 Aug 30, 2009
It may be the young woman who by all outward appearances seems the picture of health, but whose immune system is teetering on the verge of collapse because of the cancer therapy she is receiving, or the immunosuppressant drugs needed to maintain the donor kidney inside her. For many of these people, the option of receiving the H1N1 vaccine may not be available, and you are their only real hope of getting through this thing unscathed. (Athens Banner-Herald)
Health care reform needed Aug 25, 2009
The insurance company decided my daughter needed to take a generic form of her immunosuppressant. We argued with them with no success. (Logan Herald Journal, UT)
Watching Stem Cells Repair The Human Brain Aug 21, 2009
"Bone marrow-derived MSCs bypass ethical and production complications," says Dr. Cohen, "and in the long run, the cells are less likely to be rejected because they come from the patients themselves. This means you don't need immunosuppressant therapy.". Working towards a real-life therapy. (Science Daily)
New Strategy For Inhibiting Virus Replication Aug 20, 2009
Cyclophilin can be inhibited very efficiently by a drug used primarily in the context of organ transplantation the immunosuppressant cyclosporin. In search for better tolerated drugs to trea chronic hepatitis C, derivatives of cyclosporin were developed that no longer suppress the immune system, but still effectively inhibit cyclophilin. (Science Daily)
Astellas Seeks Rigorous Testing and Safety-Related Labeling for Anti-Rejection Medications Aug 11, 2009
Aug. 10 /PRNewswire/ -- Astellas Pharma US, Inc. ("Astellas") announced today that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has substantially denied the company's Citizen Petition to ensure the safe and effective use of immunosuppressants (also called anti-rejection medications) used to prevent rejection in organ transplant patients. In their petition, Astellas requested that the FDA take additional measures to protect transplant recipients, a unique and vulnerable patient population, from... (PR Newswire)
14-person kidney transplant chain a success Aug 6, 2009
Because of their heightened immune systems, the patients were started on immunosuppressant drugs about a week before the surgeries, Melancon said. Transplant patients typically start on immunosuppressant therapy on the day of surgery, he said ... Because of the need for heightened immunosuppressant therapy and plasmapheresis, the patients in the Washington surgeries also were hospitalized for a week before the transplants. (CNN -- Health)
New Zealand researchers to implant pig cells in diabetics Jul 23, 2009
Because of the coating, the participants will not use immunosuppressant drugs, he said. The eight trial patients suffer from a very unstable, severe or "brittle" form of diabetes and were chosen from a pool of 1,000 volunteers, he said. (Honolulu Advertiser)
U.S. Face Transplant Patient Is Reportedly Doing Fine Jul 16, 2009
Immediately after the procedure, Culp was given immunosuppressant drugs to prevent rejection -- drugs she will have to take for the rest of her life, Siemionow noted. One episode of rejection 47 days after surgery was reversed, according to the report. (MEDLINEplus)
The 'piggy-back heart' that helped save a little girl's life Jul 14, 2009
But 10 years later, at the age of 12, Hannah, from Mountain Ash, in Rhondda Cynon Taf, was experiencing serious health problems as a side effect of the immunosuppressant drugs she was taking to prevent rejection of the donor organ ... For this to work, the doctors had to reduce Hannah's immunosuppressants. (BBC News -- UK)
What Does a Drug That Extends Life in Mice Mean for Humans? Jul 9, 2009
A natural compound, used as an immunosuppressant in organ-transplant patients, has been found to extend life in mice, according to a study published Wednesday by the journal Nature. Aging mice that were given the substance, rapamycin, lived significantly longer than mice that didn't get the drug: females that received rapamycin were 13% older at death, and males 9% older. (Time.com)
Hungry Cells: Tumor Metabolism Discovery Opens New Detection And Treatment Possibilities For Rare Form Of Colon Cancer Jul 2, 2009
AMPK exerts its power via the mTOR pathway, which centers on the protein kinase mTOR named after the powerful immunosuppressant rapamycin, which binds and inactivates mTOR (short for "mammalian target of rapamycin). "Since a loss of LKB1 results in a hyperactive mTOR signal, we wondered whether we could use rapamycin as a targeted drug to treat the tumors that arise as a result of Peutz-Jeghers," says postdoctoral researcher and lead author David Shackelford, Ph.D. "It sounded great in theory... (Science Daily)
The Promise of Low Dose Naltrexone ... Jun 23, 2009
Unlike most treatments for autoimmune disease, it is not an immunosuppressant. While there have only been a handful of clinical trials, the scientific evidence behind the mechanisms of the therapy is vast. (Suite101.com)
Study May Redefine How A Chronic Auto-immune Disease Is Diagnosed Jun 19, 2009
Immunosuppressant drug therapy may be effective in patients who fail standard therapy. Physiotherapy may improve muscle strength, balance, function and mobility, and minimize the shrinkage of muscles and tendons and distortions of the joints. (Science Daily)
From tragedy to a renewalfor first transplant patient May 21, 2009
At that time, Maki did not qualify for the program; it was initially intended for a very narrow group of patients who were already taking immunosuppressant drugs. But soon after, Pomahac and Maki began talking about the possibility, and the Brigham later expanded the protocol with Maki and several other patients in mind to include very deformed patients. (Boston Globe)
Step by Step May 3, 2009
But I had to take immunosuppressant medicines, and they had a lot of side effects ... The doctors decreased the immunosuppressant drugs to try to lessen the warts, and my kidney went into chronic rejection ... The bone marrow could trick a person's body into accepting the kidney without immunosuppressants. (Boston Globe)
Leukemia Risk from Multiple Sclerosis Drug May Be Up May 2, 2009
Mitoxantrone is an immunosuppressant approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for treatment of secondary progressive MS.. In the study, about 0. (MEDLINEplus)
How can we avoid a swine flu pandemic? May 1, 2009
I am a recipient of a double transplant and my immune system is restricted through immunosuppressant drug therapy. Yearly flu vaccinations have limited effectiveness against the predominant virus. (BBC News)
Face Transplant Patient Recovering Well Apr 14, 2009
" The surgery, which took place Thursday at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, is the and the seventh in the world. There are hints that Brigham and Women's Hospital may have bent its previous rules on who could be considered a viable patient for the procedure -- but doctors and say the move was likely justified. The patient was a man who required facial reconstruction after injuries he suffered in a severe traumatic accident, a Hospital spokesman said. At a Friday press conference, Pomahac... (ABC News)
Stem Cells Repair Damaged Corneas in Mice Apr 14, 2009
Transplanted corneas have a low risk of rejection, and patients don't even need to take immunosuppressant drugs, Bensinger said. But because of the characteristics of scar tissue, people with corneal injuries are often not good candidates for corneal transplants, and rejection rates among them are higher, he said. (MEDLINEplus)
I, and others, know firsthand the need to study stem cells Apr 10, 2009
A donated trachea was re-engineered using the woman s own stem cells extracted from her bone marrow thus eliminating the need for immunosuppressant drugs. This biological and transformative structure renewed hopes that manufactured organs might revolutionize the concept of traditional transplantation. (Atlanta Journal-Constitution -- Opinion)
S.F. police officer in the fight of her life Apr 8, 2009
Dicroce already has been through three treatment regimens, all covered by Blue Shield, including high doses of the steroid prednisone that left her unable to sleep or function, and other immunosuppressant therapies. She takes Vicodin regularly in an attempt to control her constant pain. (San Francisco Chronicle -- Business)
French claim full face transplant Apr 8, 2009
"But we have to remember that there are significant hazards attached to this - the side effects of the immunosuppressant drugs patients must take for the rest of their lives for instance. "The issue here remains that this is a huge operation - but not a life-saving one. " Bookmark with: Print Sponsor SEE ALSO 23 Jan 07 | Health 04 Mar 08 | Health RELATED INTERNET LINKS The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites SHARED Chimpanzees exchange meat for sex Oral sex linked... (BBC News -- Europe)
Discovery may stop transplant rejection Apr 7, 2009
SYDNEY researchers have discovered a way to alter the immune system long enough to prevent the rejection of donor tissue in a breakthrough that may remove the need for lifelong, immunosuppressant drugs in organ transplant patients ... Chris Thomas, the chief executive of Transplant Australia, which represents 4000 transplant recipients, said removing the need for immunosuppressants would be "a major breakthrough" ... To prevent rejection, transplant recipients have to take strong... (Sydney Morning Herald -- Australia)
Determination fuels his recovery Apr 3, 2009
" Those traits are coming in quite handy these days as he recovers from what was the nation's sixth hand transplant and the first by the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center on March 14. What distinguishes the UPMC transplant from the previous five, all done in Louisville, Ky., is a new protocol designed to reduce the amount of antirejection drugs typically required after any kind of transplant. It comprises initial antibody treatment, injection of bone marrow from the hand donor and then... (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, PA)
Licorice May Block Effectiveness Of Drug Widely Used By Transplant Patients Apr 1, 2009
Researchers have known for years that certain medications, foods, and herbs can reduce levels of cyclosporine in the body and should be avoided when taking that immunosuppressant drug ... 23, 2005) A new study on the incidence of liver cancer after transplant found that high levels of the immunosuppressant cyclosporine favored tumor recurrence and identified blood levels of the drug that should. (Science Daily)
Licorice May Block Transplant Drug Mar 26, 2009
Researchers have known for years that certain medications, foods, and herbs can reduce levels of cyclosporine in the body and should be avoided when taking that immunosuppressant drug. These include St. Johns wort, quercetin (an ingredient found in onions and other plants thats also a dietary supplement), onions, ginger, and ginkgo. (Newsmax)
Scientists Create Mouse Model Of Melanoma That Generates Hope For The Use Of Targeted Therapies Mar 20, 2009
The other drug, Rapamycin, is an immunosuppressant drug already in clinical trials for cancer. As single agents, these drugs could prevent the onset of melanoma but, more importantly, when administered in combination to mice with pre-existing melanoma, there was a modest but statistically important level of regression in cancerous cells, according to McMahon. (Science Daily)
First Reported Case In The World: 7-Year-Old Girl Has Six Organs Removed For Tumor Surgery Mar 19, 2009
"Dr. Kato's approach, known as auto-transplantation, can also be used in place of traditional transplantation for some patients, precluding the need for a donor organ. This could save lives and make lifelong immunosuppressant drugs that are required after transplantation unnecessary," says Dr. Jean Emond, chief of transplantation at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia University Medical Center, and vice chairman of the Department of Surgery and the Thomas S. Zimmer Professor of Surgery at... (Science Daily)
Promising Data: Saving Limbs With Drug-eluting Stents Mar 18, 2009
Researchers from a single center studied 103 patients in a double-arm prospective registry who had critical limb ischemia and who underwent infrapopliteal revascularization with angioplasty and placement of either a drug-eluting stent (with sirolimus, an immunosuppressant drug) or a bare-metal stent (without a drug coating). The patients had regular follow-ups up to three years, and researchers studied how they did by stent type. (Science Daily)
Discovery May Lead To Development Of Safer Immunosuppressants Mar 16, 2009
However, currently available immunosuppressant drugs can pose serious health risks, restricting their long-term use. Now, new research findings may lead to the development of immunosuppressant drugs that have fewer adverse side effects ... CN is the target of the immunosuppressant drugs cyclosporine A (CsA) and FK506 which are used to prevent rejection after a transplant. (Science Daily)
Drug-Eluting Stents Show Promise for Leg Arteries Mar 12, 2009
A normal stent -- a wire mesh tube used to prop open an artery -- was placed in an artery in 41 participants, and 62 were given drug-eluting stents, which were stents coated with sirolimus, an immunosuppressant. After three years, the researchers found that people with drug-eluting stents had more open arteries (higher primary patency) and less renarrowing (binary restenosis), and they were less likely to need a repeat procedure. (MEDLINEplus)
A New Hope to Prolong Fertility: Ovarian Transplants Mar 10, 2009
"We all thought we didn't have to immunosuppress her." Yet with the use of immunosuppressant drugs, he says, the technique could work between sisters or even strangers. "We know that's a safe thing to do," Silber says, citing the many published cases of babies born to women on long-term immunosuppressants ... And because ovaries are not vital organs, he says the immunosuppressant regimen for ovary-transplant patients would be much more modest than average. (Time.com)
Tuberculosis and Infection Control Mar 8, 2009
After this primary infection, TB can be reactivated under conditions of weakened immunity, including but not limited to HIV infection, chemotherapy, immunosuppressant drugs, and advancing age. During active disease, TB destroys lung tissue through a delayed hypersensitivity reaction, producing cavitary lung lesions. (Suite101.com)
Heart transplant survivor marks 25 years Feb 24, 2009
Now 39, she attributes her prolonged well-being to daily immunosuppressant medication as well as a good diet, exercise and a healthy lifestyle. She works as a physiotherapist's assistant, saying: "Having my chest opened so many times has been very handy.". (Sydney Morning Herald -- Australia)
New Therapy With Stem Cells To Treat Crohn's Disease Feb 22, 2009
Firstly, doctors choose to use corticosteroids and immunosuppressant and biological drugs to control the inflammatory process and prevent complications of the disease such as stenosis (narrowing of the intestinal lumen) or fistulas (openings from the intestinal lumen to other organs, such as the intestine, bladder, vagina, or skin). However, over the course of the disease, as much as 70% of severe patients require surgery to remove segments affected by the disease, due to failure of the... (Science Daily)
Amputee is in line for double transplant Feb 22, 2009
Mr. Kepner would also be the first hand transplant recipient to undergo a new immunosuppressant protocol. It replaces the traditional three drugs (and their serious side effects) with a bone marrow transplant and a single drug with potentially fewer complications, surgeons at the Pittsburgh center said. (The Augusta Chronicle)
Immunosuppressant Medication May Be Cost-effective For Dry Eye Syndrome Feb 20, 2009
19, 2009) A topical eye emulsion consisting of cyclosporine (a medication used to reduce transplant rejections or to treat arthritis and psoriasis) may be a cost-effective treatment for dry eye syndrome that does not respond to other therapies, according to a report in the February issue of Archives of Ophthalmology, one of the JAMA/Archives journals. Published reports suggest that the prevalence of dry eye syndrome in older patients ranges from about 15 percent to 34 percent, according to... (Science Daily)
Airway Transplant Aided by Stem Cells a Medical First Feb 7, 2009
Dr. Ronald Kuppersmith, clinical assistant professor of surgery with the Texas Ath Science Center College of Medicine, called the new procedure "exciting" because the "patient didn't have to take immunosuppressant medication.". This approach could eventually have a role in patients who are dealing with weakened immune systems, such as lung cancer patients, he said. (MEDLINEplus)
