Hey UC’ers,
I wanted to take a quick moment and share some news regarding a new medication called Simponi that was just recently cleared for the treatment of Ulcerative Colitis. Just yesterday, the Food and Drug Administration, which is the “governing board” in the United States gave its formal approval for this medication.
What is interesting to me, is that like many other recently approved medications, Simponi is another immunesuppresant type of medication. It is also a TNF blocker type of medication. Tumor necrosis factor (TNF) is a huge part of the body’s natural immune response, and is also much involved in the inflammatory response of our immune systems. And the general idea with these types of medications is that by blocking some parts of our body’s immune response with medications, the nasty symptoms that we all deal with when our colitis is active can be relieved.
There are some side effects from use of this medication (like all other medications), so you should definitely consult with your physician or GI doctors if you have any interest in looking into this as a possible new treatment if you are not having any luck with other medications or therapies.
Also, if you’d like to read through the general news blast from the FDA, here is the link to their news release from yesterday:
“FDA approves Simponi to treat Ulcerative Colitis “
And, here is a link to Johnson and Johnson’s (Janssen’s) webpage regarding this new medication: http://www.simponi.com/
Thank you to all of you who sent me emails yesterday with this news update, and I wish the very best to anybody who moves forward with this medication.
NOTE** As with all “newly approved” medications, longrun outcomes and efficacy is very hard to fully understand. The long run data is just not available yet. So please read up on as many PubMed articles as you can. There is quite a bit of research regarding “Golimumab” (the scientific name for Simponi) within PubMed, and here is just one study related to this medication. Effectiveness of Golimumab in Clinical Management of Patients with Rheumatoid Arthritis
If you have any personal experience already with SIMPONI (it was approved previously for some other autoimmune disease such as rheumatoid arthritis, psoriatic arthritis and ankylosing spondylitis, so maybe some of you with crafty GI docs may have already had a go with it), PLEASE fill out a review of your experience with this medication via the review button below:
Submit your review | |
I’ve been on Simponi for 3-4 years. The injections are easy and the drug has generally controlled my U.C. symptoms but my doctor is not satisfied with colonoscopy results and number of flares each year. Also I’ve been able to get this expensive medicine through the J&J Foundation but had too much income to qualify this year
I used remicade for 4 yrs and created antibodies.
They switched me over to simponi 5 yrs ago and it is SO much easier to administer (auto injectable at home) delivered to my home (no visit to hospitals) and i find it easier on my body to accept.
I have been on Simponi for 4 1/2 years now and it has saved my life. I have had UC for over 30 years and was circling the drain. Within 2 weeks of starting treatment with Simponi I went into remission and have been healthy ever since. My only issue now is that it’s not available on any Medicare plan, so I’ll have to keep working at my physical job no matter what.
I was on it from December 15 to July 2016. It didn't make enough of a difference to me until roughly about June around the same time I began a major uplift in my diet of fiber. Before that still had urgency & diarrhoea. No side effects but although I started to feel better a colonoscopy revealed to improvement to my inflammation so I switched to an infusion.
****Worth noting that I was switched onto Entyvio rather than Infliximab as Infliximab has the same action as Golimumab (Simponi). A wise decision in my treatment I think as Entyvio+VSL#3 seem to have helped me. Sorry Entyvio but yer not the one fer me & my bowel. Good luck to all who try this one!
I have been on simponi for 5 months dose after loading dose 100cc per 28 days first 2 months noted improvement then back to normal regular flares treated with predislone talking to specialist nurse she believes the dosages aren't accurate enough 50 cc if under 80kg or 100cc if over maybe some truth in this when I see my consultant I am going to ask if any point in carrying on with this especially with the cost
I've been on Simponi for 3 months (1dose/mo) and just took dose 4 today. I have SEVERE pancolitis, the worst my GI doc has seen in his practice in 20 years. I have never tried another drug and have been on Prednisone on and off for 2 years to control UC. Moved to this drug since we wanted to stop the high dose of Pred bc of fears of long terms side effects. After week 3 of the very first dose I felt amazing. Down from 4-6 BMs a day to 2. The biggest benefit to me was NO urgency. This was my biggest problem raising 4 little children. Stopping to handle my business is NEVER EVER convenient. The last week of every 4 week dosing schedule I saw an increase in BMs to 4, but them it returned to 1-2 for the next three weeks again. At month 3, week 2 I was hit with an increase in urgency that I thought I left behind. Ugh. BMs increased to 4-6 and by month 3 week 4 I was at 6-8BMs. I just injected my 4th shot and we'll see what this does for me. I was off to such a great start. Being the first patient in my docs large GI practice all the docs were so excited about the initial results. Now they are a little disappointed. Will go in to evaluate in 2 weeks time next steps.
I read about this drug and hope it works for some! I had surgery because I got tired of all these drugs. Nothing helped. I might have been in remission for a year once. I am glad I had the surgery and I feel so darn healthy and great. Hiking and doing all the things love. Everyone is different about this.
I have been on simponi since 31st July 2014 after a terrible few years of constant UC flare ups. Everything else had stopped working including prednisone. I had the initial loading doses and now the 50mg once a month.
I am so far pretty happy with the way it has controlled my UC. Did experience some joint pain and muscle cramps but after adding bananas to my diet I am much better.
Simponi is my first experience of a biologic and so far it is good. I do not think that it is a license to eat/drink what you like and not look after yourself. And as with any pharmaceutical medication it does come with side effects so I'm sure it won't be a life long medication for me. But I would for sure be dead without right now.
Started Simponi Sept 2014 @ 200 ml two weeks later @ 100ml - one month later - Oct 2014 @ 50 ml - another month later - Nov 2014 @ 50 ml. Found it started to work for the first week then after that nothing. After injections I was very achy, tired and teeth severely sore. Two stars for ease of injection with Pen. Resorted back to smoking - only 4 or 5 a day and within days started to get better. Dec 30 - almost in full remission. Don't want to take the Simponi due to the unknown long term effects - Choice of two evils - chose smoking.
I've been in Simpson 6months also taking 4 llaidas daily can not achieve remission.Dr put me on every 2weeks.let's see. Anyone talking Simpson every 2 weeks
I started site shortly after being diagnosed in October of 2008 with severe pancolitis (when my whole colon was inflamed).
For me, it was a very rough start with severe symptoms. Getting bounced from medication to medication was not easy or too helpful. But, I did meet another UC’er, changes several parts of my diet, and of course the rest is history.
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