Psoriasis support - Raptiva (Efalizmab)

Author

Raptiva (Efalizmab)

NMP

2005-08-14, 11:54 am

My doctor is recommending me to take the Raptiva shot weekly as my P is very
persistent last few months. My dr also says this drug does not have as much
side effects and i can give myself the shots at home but may need to take it
for a long while. However, the shots are very expensive.

Has anyone use this drug before and has it been effective? How long does it
take before you ee any improvement to P. Can you also advise approximately
how much it cost per shot and is it easy to do it at home by myself.

any advice to this drug is most appreciated. Thank you very much.
regards,
R

Domi Loorie

2005-08-18, 5:54 pm

Hi NMP

I use Raptiva once a week and it's working well. It's easy to do at home
(You need some help to manage this with the injection one or two times).
It tooks about 8-9 weeks to see any improvements. In the beginning I had
a little bit headache for some days as a side effect. There is also a
problem when reacting with infections like fever. Then you have to stop
with the treatment for a while. There could be also a rebound effect
because of this. About the costs I can say not so much, one package
comes with four doses. In the moment I'm allmost happy. The P is stable,
about 10% ( I had 80-90% P covering last year).
I wish you all the best

Domi

Aim

2005-08-20, 6:04 pm

Hi there,

I've been on Raptiva for 8 weeks now, and am still waiting to see
improvement. Most of the plaques are stable but the largest one on my
lower left calf is very stubborn, and has gotten worse over my course
of treatment. I saw my derm yesterday who told me I'm a "tough nut to
crack" and prescribed me Diprolene for that one spot - he's telling me
that sometimes flares can happen in the first month or so and that some
people have to wait 3-4 months to see improvement. I'm still waiting,
and still fighting past what I guess is a prolonged flare. Either
that, or I'll always be a tough nut!

Best of luck to you.
Aim