Lupus

[Nikola]

Hello everyone:)

 

I am not sure if anyone can help me, but I have a few questions that I thought I would throw out there since I have pretty much reached a dead end in my own research.

 

My little sister has recently been diagnosed with Stage 4 Lupus. Don't ask me how it got as far as it did without being diagnosed. She simply slipped through the cracks of the medical system and was misdiagnosed for many years until I was browsing the internet one day and found the connection between Reynaud’s Syndrome (which she has had since she was a young child) and Lupus. After consulting her doctor on this he ran some tests and found that she indeed has Lupus and it was in an advanced stage where it was effecting her kidneys and heart.

 

They immediately put her on a drug called Prednisone to remove a protein buildup around the heart, which in return relieved pressure and stress on the cardiovascular system. She is having side effects from the drug, but at least she can sleep now without feeling like someone is sitting on her chest.

 

To control the Lupus they began IV treatments with a drug called Cyclophosphamide. Now I have researched this drug and found that it has some pretty nasty side effects, including liver failure and am concerned about this, but her doctor assures her that the need is sufficiently dire. I, however, have discovered that the standard treatment for advanced stages of Lupus changed to Mycophenolic Acid in 2005 and has shown better results and less side effects. Her doctor says that Cyclophosphamide works better and that the Mycophenolic Acid will show no results and just waste time. I am wondering if any of you have any experience with either of these drugs, or if perhaps you have some alternative treatments for Lupus that have shown positive results? Any help would be greatly appreciated and I will be checking in to see if you all have any input. Thank you...

[ydoaPs]

Asking internet forums for medical advice isn't really a good idea.