methotrexate.what can expect.

[scubadood]

Hello All.
I have recently been prescribed Methotrexate for the first time. I take one 10mg tablet once a week, and a Folic acid tablet the following day. I also have a blood test once week. I have just taken my third dose. So far i havent experienced any side effects whatsoever. I dont see a dramatic difference in my P although it has been good for the last couple of months anyway.
I appreciate that everyone  reacts differently to different treatment, but in other users experience, what can i expect?
Will i see a dramatic improvement, and if so when?
If i do respond positively to metho, will i be taking it for life?
I would of course ask my Dermo these questions but im not due to see him again for another 6wks and trying to get to speak him in the meantime is nigh on impossible.
Cheers,
Ian.

[GSC]

I have been on metho for 10 weeks now and i am really happy with the results, on 12.5 per week now and the psoriasis is around 80-90% better, there is like a bruising appearance where the p used to be but there is no scale, this drug has been great for me, no side effects really either, i just hope my body doesn't get resistant to it and the awful p comes back, be patient with it it took about 7 weeks to start working for me, i hope i can take this drug for a very very long time.

[seeshell1978]

I've had two bouts of methotrexate...once for close to 8 months and then another time for almost a year. (Note, I have a severe case of head to toe psoriasis.)

Both times I had a lot of success and both times I had the maximum allowable dose. For me, I started to get used to it after 6-8 months and started to notice at that point that it would start to come back a bit.

As for any side effects, I experienced none.

I flared up significantly when I recently went off methotrexate. This is to be expected though...for good or bad I went off all of these meds "cold turkey" and so no doubt my system was in serious shock. My doctor had told me when I first started using methotrexate though that this would likely happen when I stopped. (The first time I stopped using methotrexate I was transitioning to a stronger drug, which is why I didn't flare as much as this time.)

Good luck to you!

[TrishR]

Hi Ian,  I noticed a great improvement with in 6 weeks,  but not much in the first few weeks.  I've been on it a few years now and have never had any side effects,  my derm reckons I can stay on it indefinitely, as long as my regular blood test don't show any problems.

Good luck with it all.

I will say I am surprised you are on one 10mg tab instead of 4 2.5mg tabs.  I was under the impression they very rarely use the 10mg tabs.

[slumberlion]

Hi 

I have been taking mtx since June this year and am now up to 25mg (got PA too). I was just saying to hubby earlier (having been swimming this morning) that I realised this evening, that I have been out in my swimming cossie for the first time in years without even thinking about what my skin looks like -it's a great feeling!

So for me, it's been a slow process but we've got there eventually. I'm not really sure how it's working for my pa, as I'm only recently diagnosed with that, but it has certainly helped my skin. So far, my bloods have all been ok, but I have and still am, suffering with tiredness. It's very difficult to know what to assign this to though.... the mtx, the pa, or the 2 young children who constantly have me up in the night.

Good luck 

[John Boy]

Hi Ian,  I noticed a great improvement with in 6 weeks,  but not much in the first few weeks.  I've been on it a few years now and have never had any side effects,  my derm reckons I can stay on it indefinitely, as long as my regular blood test don't show any problems.

Good luck with it all.

I will say I am surprised you are on one 10mg tab instead of 4 2.5mg tabs.  I was under the impression they very rarely use the 10mg tabs.

as Trish say's thought all Mtx tab's are 2.5mgs due to some people getting mixed up with taking there meds and overdosing could be fatal

[tunkkari]

I have now been on it since march mainly for severe PPP on my feet, within 6 weeks I saw a great improvement particularly on my plaque psoriasis. Side affects at first were not too nice, nausea etc but now I only really feel tired the day I take it and about 2 after but I have 6 children 4 of which are 6 and under and 2 teenagers so I dont get much chance to rest, and I have a slight thinning of the hair. I have been on 15 mg now for about 5 months and my PPP is greatly improved. I am now on it for a further 7 months at this dose to get me over the Finnish winter and then they will begin to reduce it and see what happens. GOOD LUCK with your journey on it, It can be a life changer, for me it was a godsend, I couldnt walk before because of the PPP.

[Mimz]

I've been on 10mg/week MTX for about five months now. Similarly to others, I noticed a change in my P after about six weeks. The P on my face and neck disappeared really quickly, but the rest still hasn't completely cleared yet, and I suspect that it's coming back on my neck now. (I'm taking the MTX for morphea too, which has only just started to soften.)

I suffered horribly with nausea for about three months, but that's settled now. I'm still incredibly tired every day though. My hair is falling out, but not yet badly enough to notice (and I'm used to that anyway - I have trichotillomania), but it's also almost stopped growing. It's only grown about an inch since I started MTX, which is weird. I don't know if I'm just different, but I haven't heard anyone else mention that as a side effect.

By the way, my derm told me that chemists aren't supposed to use the 10mg tablets, and that I was to ask for the 2.5mg tabs and not accept the 10mg ones.

Mimz

[scubadood]

Hi,
Thanks for all your feedback(keep it coming please )
Its interesting what you have to say about the 10mg tablets and will ask my GP about it, although i would have thought it easier to stay within the prescribed limit if you only have to remember to take one tablet.
ian

[slumberlion]

I have bottles of the 10mg ones and the 2.5mg ones to get to my 25mg total. Don't fancy taking 10 tabs of 2.5mgs in order to reach desired dose. Both my hospital and local chemists have been happy to dispense these, asking me what I would prefer