Tecfidera and Psoriasis

Discuss Tecfidera (BG-12, dimethyl fumarate) as an oral treatment for multiple sclerosis.
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pballer76
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Tecfidera and Psoriasis

Post by pballer76 »

I was on Tysabri for 6 years. I stopped and started Tecfidera. I was on Tec for 4 months and then I had two low white blood cell counts.
The week of the last WBC lab the skin on my hands and feet started peeling. My neuro had me stop taking carbamazepine and Tec. That was over a month ago. Last week after a skin biopsy it was diagnosed as Psoriasis. In Germany they treat Psoriasis with fumaderm.
I see neuro next week and hopefully I can get started on some DMT. I am JCV+. But now they can determine the amount (tither number)
I also read about a test of spinal fluid for JCV.
The strangest thing about all of this is the Psoriasis, I never had skin problems until Tecfidera.
DanaL
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Re: Tecfidera and Psoriasis

Post by DanaL »

That does sound strange. I have psoriasis - have had it for 3 or 4 years now. I was really hoping tecfidera would cure mine, but so far, no luck. I'm on a slow titration. 1 120 mg for 28 days, 2 120s for the next 28 days. In about 10 days I'll move to 1 120 and 1 240. That is, assuming I make it that long. There are no more gi issues but the flushing is extreme and I'm gaining weight, but I'm going to try eating less starchy carbs with it, and getting better exercise to reverse the weight gain.
pballer76
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Re: Tecfidera and Psoriasis

Post by pballer76 »

I went to see a ms specialist and he doesn't think the tecfidera caused the psoriasis. He did say he thought it would be the best for me to go back on it. I have been on copaxone for the last couple months and I can't stand the lumps and itching. The specialist also talked about gilenya and said he believes gilenya is a stronger drug. So I guess it's up to my local neuro and I to decide. It's sounds like gilenya has more side effects and will require more monitoring. So I am leaning towards tecfidera. I tolerated the flushing and never really had any GI problems.
DanaL
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Re: Tecfidera and Psoriasis

Post by DanaL »

I did not like those Copaxone lumps either. I was on it for 2.5 years before switching but I didn't always take it every day. 5x a week was good for me . Lumps sometimes lasted a week. If you can handle tecfidera, I'd go for it.

Hopefully your posarisis is just a random thing. Do you get much sun exposure? That is the cure but I can rarely get enough. Summer before last we went to Colorado and that high-elevation sun cured my psoarisis for about 3 months. I hope to take more midday walks this Winter to get the best sunlight. We have had so much rain this fall, it has been hard to get any sunlight at all. My doc says she can send me for light treatments but they will be time consuming with the parking and so forth at the hospital. My spots are not that large, just very annoying (and my scalp itches quite a bit). I use medicated shampoo, special ear drops and steroid creams already.
pballer76
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Re: Tecfidera and Psoriasis

Post by pballer76 »

I have it on the soles of my feet and the palms of my hands. The dermatologist has given me steroid. I just started the Xtrac laser treatment. This is working. Sunlight does work but I am not outside with my shoes off to often. I'm in Illinois it is cold outside. I really want to be on 1 ms med for awhile. I've been on 3 this year.
DanaL
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Re: Tecfidera and Psoriasis

Post by DanaL »

Ha! I know what you mean - i can't get sun on my scalp either because my hair is too thick -- I would need to shave my head! And in the Winter I need to wear a hat anyway, and in the Summer, when I bike ride, I wear a helmet. In fact, I will only be able to get sun on my face through the Winter, but hopefully that will help the spots there.

Hope yours improves with the steroids and laser treatments! And if you go back on Tecfidera that it continues to go well for you!
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msmything
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Re: Tecfidera and Psoriasis

Post by msmything »

I had bad skin reactions to copaxone as well, AND, within a few months i started with the lipolysis. That has remained and is VERY ugly. So I wound up with lumps and bumps all over, it was quite embarrassing as swimming was/is my choice of exercise.
As far as the Psoriasis, does the Doc feel it's a type of autoimmune reaction? I stopped using Betaseron while working because I got so confused with the days and flu symptoms. I was under so much stress there, my boss was so evil. She actually put her hand on her hip and said why didn't you tell us you had MS before you let us hire you! Unbelievable. I started breaking out in open sores front and back of my torso I just had 3000 mg of solumedrol, they are mostly gone, I don't care for them to come back, they were painful and itchy, and bloody! If I ever get back to swimming (I'm so weak) I'll have to wear a wet suit to cover up.

Colleen
Be kinder than necessary, for everyone you meet is fighting some kind of battle..
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lyndacarol
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Re: Tecfidera and Psoriasis

Post by lyndacarol »

msmything wrote:I had bad skin reactions to copaxone as well, AND, within a few months i started with the lipolysis. That has remained and is VERY ugly. So I wound up with lumps and bumps all over, it was quite embarrassing as swimming was/is my choice of exercise.
As far as the Psoriasis, does the Doc feel it's a type of autoimmune reaction? I stopped using Betaseron while working because I got so confused with the days and flu symptoms. I was under so much stress there, my boss was so evil. She actually put her hand on her hip and said why didn't you tell us you had MS before you let us hire you! Unbelievable. I started breaking out in open sores front and back of my torso I just had 3000 mg of solumedrol, they are mostly gone, I don't care for them to come back, they were painful and itchy, and bloody! If I ever get back to swimming (I'm so weak) I'll have to wear a wet suit to cover up.

Colleen
Did you see your doctor about the open sores? Could this be dermatitis herpetiformis? The painful, itchy, bloody description sounds like this problem.

In part 2 of his 7-part presentation on celiac disease, Gary Kaplan, D.O.,described the 4 forms of the disease:


At 0:30 he says that the atypical/extraintestinal form includes minimal gastrointestinal symptoms AND may include:
iron deficiency/anemia
dermatitis herpetiformis
chronic fatigue
joint pain
infertility
neurologic symptoms (ataxia, neuropathies)
vitamin deficiencies
ADD
osteoporosis/osteopenia
autoimmune disorders - list available at <http://www.aarda.org/>
migraines
My hypothesis: excess insulin (hyperinsulinemia) plays a major role in MS, as developed in my initial post: http://www.thisisms.com/forum/general-discussion-f1/topic1878.html "Insulin – Could This Be the Key?"
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