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Permalink Reply by Sickle Cell Warrior on August 29, 2009 at 4:13am

No. Did some research for you however....

A new drug, deferasirox (Exjade), was approved in 2005 for children and adults as a once-daily treatment for iron overload due to blood transfusions. It does not require injections. Patients mix the deferasirox tablets in liquid and drink the medicine. However, deferoxamine can cause gastrointestinal tract ulcerations and hemorrhage and patients should be carefully monitored. Deferoxamine can interact with certain types of medications such as nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, corticosteroids, bisphosphonates, and anticoagulants.

Read the full article in the New York Times, HERE

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Permalink Reply by Marcus McKinley on August 30, 2009 at 8:34pm

thank you very much SC Warrior. I have been on this for about 2 months now just wondering if anyone else was taking it. wanted to ask some questions. It is very expensive for me as well over &5000 a month.

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Permalink Reply by AD on November 2, 2009 at 6:06pm

Hey Marcus, I saw this discussion about Exjade I have been on Exjade for about 4 months now and I was very hesitant about taking this drug. My family and I did alot of homework on Exjade before I agreed to take the medication. Don't get me wrong I trust my Hemotologist, but since Exjade was so difficult to get I questioned if it was worth it. My first question was what is my other option? Desferal injections every night? NO!

I take Exjade in the middle of the night, I let the tablets disolve in a jar of water then I go to bed. When I wake up to use the restroom I shake the contents up in the jar, drink and go back to sleep. Do I have any side effects? No, I used to take Exjade in the middle of the day, that didn't work for me because I got real bad hunger pains. You have to have an empty stomach for at least 2 hours before taking Exjade. This caused my stomach to be very raw and I didn't like that. Now I take it in the middle of the night and all is well. My Iron levels have gone down some, not enough for my Dr. to be happy but they are going down. One side note: Because of Exjade I do not take any over the counter pain medicine even in combination with my stronger prescribed pain medicines.

Sickle Cell Warrior is our in house RN as far as SCD goes on the web, so I listen to her and I trust her. I personally chose Exjade as the lesser of two evils, Desferal shots everynight..... that's just not for me!

If you have any questions talk to me bruh...

-A.D.

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Permalink Reply by Marcus McKinley on November 3, 2009 at 7:30pm

Hey A.D., thanks for your reply bruh.... I thought I was the only one taking this stuff, lol. I take mine every morning with OJ, every morning before I go to class. But I think I will start doing like you and take it in the middle of the night. That would be more convenient for me. That is a great idea. What company or phamarcy do you use for your Exjade? I know, SCW is great isn't she? She helps me with alot.

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Permalink Reply by Sickle Cell Warrior on November 6, 2009 at 9:00pm

Awwww. thanks guys:) I'm just doing my part!

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