At a glance: Multiple Sclerosis patients have the disease because of
a immune system. Yet the Tysabri drug manufacturer states their most serious
side effect creates a brain infection which can be fatal - a fatality
which can be caused by an opportunistic infection the same drug allows
to happen. I am not implying the drug is worthless and does not work for
some MS patients, but it certainly is dangerous.
Recently an invitation came in the mail announcing a meeting. It is sponsored
by Biogen to promote the drug Tysabri for treating Multiple Sclerosis
patients. Due to federal regulations, manufacturers must include all warnings
for the drug whenever the name of the drug is mentioned. Note that as
of the date this article was written, NO drug on the market will cure
MS. All the drugs on the market at this time only control the progression
of the disease, if they work at all. Drugs taken by MS patients either
work, don't work at all or have extremely bad side effects. A neurologist
told me the above information and it is based in fact. I am not giving
out medical advice here; MS patients must see their own doctor providing
them care for proper advice as to which drug is best for their type of
MS.
Brain infections are known by doctors as one of the most difficult infections
to treat. Some are virtually impossible to treat, and many patients have
to live out their lives taking maintenance drugs to keep a infection of
the brain under control. Required statements by the manufacturer look
quite bad, and are even worse since they leave out this important fact.
Biogen states that Tysabri can cause a fatal brain infection. More on
that later.
It is also important to note that all MS patients have MS because of a
immune system disorder. MS patients immune systems attack the myelin which
provides electrical insulation for nerves. Myelin is the biological equivalent
of plastic insulation on an electrical wire. It is thought by modern medicine
that an immune system disorder is how MS gets started in the body. So
here we have a drug that can create a fatal infection, which could be
very difficult even for a healthy patient under doctor care to deal with.
Older drugs for MS like Copaxone do not have these serious side effects.
I have a relative who has taken Copaxone for 16 years and never once had
a bad side effect. Not even once. Yet many neurologists, which are constantly
barraged by drug company salesman, will talk down older MS drugs.
How long will it be before drug manufacturers no longer have to give patient
warnings or side effects? What then? While the warning below states drug
availability is restricted, I know a disabled physician who is STILL taking
this drug for his MS for over a year. He is not part of a test or trial,
but was prescribed the drug as a typical patient by a neurologist.
NOTE: Neurologists and other physicians rarely inform patients of serious
drug side-effects like this one has
Please read text on an article update below the following image:
A follow-up article may be written about this drug to include actual
patient experiences. If you would like to include your drug
experience, or that of a patient I will include it in the article.
No editing of your text will be made, except to delete all patient
identification to protect privacy. Or, if you want to share your
experience with me without your email being published, please state
that in your email.
With your help we may save at least one patient's life.
Nothing in this article is intended to treat, cure or diagnose any
disease. Only a qualified physician can do that.
Ted Twietmeyer
tedtw@frontiernet.net |
