Posted on 01/03/2024 9:37:50 AM PST by Red Badger
A new study has confirmed the effectiveness of JAK inhibitors in treating rheumatoid arthritis. The Japanese multicenter, retrospective study found high remission and low disease activity rates among patients, with the majority continuing treatment. This success highlights the potential of JAK inhibitors as a favorable alternative to conventional treatments, which often lead to reduced effectiveness and discomfort over time.
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A new study published in the journal Rheumatology reveals that JAK inhibitors, commonly used to treat arthritis patients, are indeed effective. Despite initial concerns about their effectiveness, this multicenter, retrospective study conducted by Japanese researchers has shown impressive remission rates in patients, with most opting to continue the treatment
Understanding Rheumatoid Arthritis and Current Treatments Rheumatoid arthritis is a common autoimmune disease characterized by chronic inflammation of joint linings and results in progressive joint destruction and other systemic complications. The use of biological disease-modifying drugs enables patients to enjoy the achievement of low disease activity and remission. But clinics must administer such drugs through subcutaneous or intravenous routes, which is unpleasant for patients, and over time these drugs commonly become less effective.
Recently scientists have developed Janus kinase (JAK) inhibitors for arthritis treatment. Patients take such drugs orally. Previous research has demonstrated the efficacy and safety of JAK inhibitors in randomized controlled trials.
However, some researchers have questioned the potential efficacy of JAK inhibitors for widespread patient use. In practice, doctors mostly treat patients with JAK inhibitors precisely because those patients have other health problems and so conventional drugs like methotrexate are less effective on them. Real-world patients have distinctive characteristics compared with the patients recruited in randomized controlled trials.
The Japanese Study on JAK Inhibitors
In the present multicenter, retrospective study, researchers using data from 622 patients treated at seven major university hospitals in Japan compared the efficacy and safety of four common JAK inhibitors: tofacitinib, baricitinib, peficitinib, and upadacitinib.
The researchers here found that approximately one in three patients reached remission, three in four reached at least low disease activity, with both numbers representing impressive efficacy. They noted that more than 80% of the patients were still on the JAK inhibitor drugs after six months.
They believe that this is particularly relevant given that immunological secondary treatment failure, where drugs cease to be effective because they produce adverse immune system responses in patients, cannot occur with these oral medications. Immunological secondary treatment failure is common in patients who treat their arthritis with drugs like methotrexate.
Reference:
“Real-world comparative study of the efficacy of Janus kinase inhibitors in patients with rheumatoid arthritis: the ANSWER cohort study” by Shinya Hayashi, Shotaro Tachibana, Toshihisa Maeda, Mai Yamashita, Iku Shirasugi, Yuzuru Yamamoto, Hirotaka Yamada, Takaichi Okano, Keisuke Nishimura, Yo Ueda, Sadao Jinnno, Jun Saegusa, Wataru Yamamoto, Koichi Murata, Takayuki Fujii, Kenichiro Hata, Ayaka Yoshikawa, Kosuke Ebina, Yuki Etani, Naofumi Yoshida, Hideki Amuro, Motomu Hashimoto, Ryota Hara, Masaki Katayama, Tadashi Okano and Ryosuke Kuroda, 01 November 2023, Rheumatology.
DOI: 10.1093/rheumatology/kead543
So my two questions are 1) How long do they work, and 2) what is the cost per month?
Gin soaked golden raisins.
Sans raisins...................
She’s been on Xeljanz, and I believe she’s currently on Rinvoq.
This was my dad’s choice, back in the 60’s.
Thanks for that, I’m going to try it! My arthritis is not painful enough to warrant pharmaceuticals yet, but this sounds promising.
From what I am reading, some believe the juniper in gin (make sure gin is made with juniper berries) and sulfur dioxide in the raisins are what is helping 🤷♀️.
Copy the drug names over to:
To get the current prices if any...............
Rinvoq is around $6K for 30 day supply. I have no idea what our insurance pays, but all we pay is our standard copay.
It absolutely blows me away that so many folks completely overlook the horrendous KNOWN side effects of these drugs. I was diagnosed with Rheumatoid in 2005, prescribed with methotrexate. I took it for 4 months with typical chemotherapy side effects of nausea, diarrhea, extreme fatigue and flu-like symptoms that only subsided a day or two before time for the next dose. I put an end to it when I met another woman who’d been on this drug for a year and was diagnosed with Lymphoma. It was only then that I became fully informed of the full range of catastrophic side effects these drugs can produce. For me, the risk of cancers, stroke, and the risk of death was far too great. I refused all the modified biologics in favor of Hydroxychloroquine (essentially quinine). I still suffer the occasional painful flare, but not the severe crippling effects of the disease. I’m not battling cancer or other life threatening disease, either. Only you can decide the risks you will take with no guarantee of benefit. For me, this was a no-brainer choice. You are concerned about cost? My insurance covers the HCQ with no co-pay. Pay out of pocket and the cost is less than $10/mo.
I rub THC oil on mine. The same thing you use to make edibles. It gets rid of the dull ache that can come with weather changes. Glucosamine also helps.
I like what you’ve been reading. Didn’t know about the chemistry.
..don’t know much about chemistry.. don’t know much about biology..
Good to know, thanks! I do use glucosamine and turmeric which I think is what is helping keep me from needing pain meds so far. Also,I move, a LOT. If I sit for more than 20 or so minutes, everything starts “locking up”. And when I’m sitting, I’m knitting.
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