Due to start mtx soon but do I really need it

[Elaine1]

on 20th I'm should start taking mtx but at the moment my joints are not to painful and the swelling going down maybe I don't need this drug that can do so much damage to your body

[LavendarLady]

Hi Elaine, if your consultant has said you need it, then you do. Just because the swelling and inflammation are going down for the moment, doesn't mean it won't return! I have been on MTX for 3 1/2 years and apart from a bit of hair loss, I haven't had any problems with it. The dosages we are on (maximum 25mg) are designed to keep this wretched disease under control and lessen the damage caused to your joints by it. I still get flare ups even with MTX and anti TNF but much less than they would be without it. I would still be in a wheelchair without these treatments!

On much higher dosages (way above what we would receive) it is used as an anti cancer drug and it was the side effect of that which resulted in it being used to calm down inflammation in RA sufferers. You don't say what dosage you are starting on but it is bound to be low. If you are on the tablets, you may experience some nausea and sickness until your body learns to tolerate it. If that happens, you can get anti sickness stuff from the GP but when I was on the tablets, I found that spacing them out during the day rather than taking them all at once helped.

You can then go onto the injections if the nausea becomes too bad and the nurse at your surgery or the hospital will show you how to do the injections. They really are a doddle once you have done them a couple of times and the nausea is much less - in fact almost non existent.

Good luck with it and any problems, speak to your consultant or GP.

LavendarLady

[cathie]

I agree with a lot of what LL says - it does help, but I was at the liver specialist last week and they have detected the beginning of hardening of my liver. They said that the best thing I could do, apart from losing weight, I should stop taking mtxate. Liver specialists don't like it even at our doses especially over a long period.

I'm going for a reappraisal of my meds and will feed anything useful back into this site.

Best,

Cathie

[Gina_K]

Hi Cathie,

Can I just ask how long you are on Mtx? Also, how did they test your liver, was it a blood test or a scan that showed hardening?

Regards, Gina.

[Elaine1]

I start on 20th may starting on low dose until I get to 12.5mg because I was I'll last month and was told to leave it for 4 weeks. Thanks LL was feeling a little sorry for myself it so hard to accept it when you go to bed then the next morning you can't move. O yes got to take tablet everyday except on the day I take mtx. Thanks once again for the advice.

[helixhelix]

It's a personal choice of course whether you decide to take these strong drugs or not, and it's good to question things. All I'd add is that everything I've read tells me that the more aggressive you are about treating this disease in the early years then the better the result is likely to be for you. Once your joints are damaged then they're damaged. And you'll be very well monitored so that if it does start to affect your liver then they'll stop the tablets (and livers are able to improve if damaged). 12.5mg is not a high dose, but could well be enough to stop the RA in its tracks and means that you stay painfree and mobile for years and years. And with luck you can even stop taking them later on.

Good luck with making your decision. Polly

[abannister]

i started methotrexate 10mg just over 2 weeks ago the day after i was diagnosed with RA, i have just had 3 lots. I took them just before bed so I slept through any nausea. luckly have not noticed anything. Only thing i feel like a pin cushion with the blood tests. I feel the benefits of this drug out weigh the negative. stick with it. Arthur (44)