newly diagnosed & pregnant

Liz · Post by **Liz** » Sat Dec 29, 2007 5:11 pm

to the board from down here as well. Everyone here is very supportive & I am sure you will find plenty of helpful advice.

That part about giving up smoking is interesting. I gave up about 12-14 years ago & was diagnosed CC in 2001. Have had bowel problems for many years though which until then was put down to 'Spastic Colon" or IBD. Maybe there is a link there with the smoking. Would be interesting to hear of others history in this area.

Good luck with your pregnancy. Your doctor seems to be a caring & informed one so I am sure that you will produce a beautiful healthy little girl in May.

Love

Liz

Peggy · Post by **Peggy** » Sat Dec 29, 2007 5:23 pm

aboard Zoolio, and congrats on the pregnancy.

I take Asacol and have for a number of years with no side effects. Although...I've never been pregnant so can't comment on that.

As you can see (read) you'll get a lot of support here and many of us can share our experiences with you.

On the smoking issue, I smoke and have no desire to quit. We had an interesting discussion quite some time ago about it, and nicotine might well soothe the bowels, but if I were pregnant I'd quit in a heartbeat. Good on you for that incredible accomplishment.

Peggy
45 dx'd with collagenous colitis Jan. '03

zoolio · Post by **zoolio** » Fri Jan 18, 2008 2:23 pm

A quick update. After taking the Asacol for a few weeks, I decided that 1) it wasn't working and 2) I was mildly allergic. I contacted my Dr, who advised me to stop taking it. She said that Asacol isn't really that effective for many people, but that it is pretty much the only safe drug during pregnancy, which is why she recommended it. So, no drugs for me until at least after the baby is born.

The good news is that things seem to be getting better and better the longer the pregnancy goes on. Of course, I woke up this morning with horrible cramping, but when I compare how I'm doing most days now to how things were a few months ago, I am quite happy!

zoolio · Post by **zoolio** » Wed Jan 30, 2008 9:04 pm

Quick update - after taking the Asacol for a few weeks I decided that a) it wasn't working & b) I was mildly allergic to it. The Dr said she wasn't surprised that it didn't really work but that she was hoping it would since it's pretty much the only drug that's safe during pregnancy - the more effective ones aren't. So, no more drugs for me.

But then I started eating yogurt with live cultures every day, and my symptoms got better. I noticed that when I didn't eat the yogurt for a couple of days, my symptoms returned. But when I eat it EVERY DAY, almost no symptoms. Woo-hoo! Unfortunately, I have to travel a bunch next month & it won't be possible to do this, but I went to Whole Foods & bought some "Probifidia pearls" that have some of the same stuff in them as the yogurt. I'm hoping they'll work, too!

starfire · Post by **starfire** » Thu Jan 31, 2008 7:34 am

Glad to hear you got some relief and I hope the pills work at least as well.

Love, Shirley

Post by **tex** » Thu Jan 31, 2008 10:45 am

Several members here have had problems with Asacol. With MC, whatever works is fair game, (as long as it's safe, of course), as far as treatments are concerned, so if yogurt, (or probiotics), gives you control, then there's no reason not to use it.

FYI, Asacol is a 5-aminosalicalycate, a group that also includes Pentasa, Rowasa, Colazal, and a few others. These drugs are encapsulated, so that they are primarily inactive until the reach the lower part of the small intestines and the colon, where they are needed. The most effective way to deliver this medication is found in two main types of delayed release formulations:

* The mesalamine (mesalazine) group of drugs (including Asacol, Pentasa, and Salofalk) is formed by coating 5-ASA with acrylic resins or by encapsulation in ethylcellulose microgranules. This results in drug delivery to the distal small bowel and colon. The acrylic-base resin (eudragit) dissolves at a pH greater than 6, while ethylcellulose serves as a semipermeable membrane allowing the release of 5-ASA, also in a pH-dependent fashion, as it traverses the small bowel.

* Dimerization of 5-ASA has also been used to prepare delayed release compounds. Olsalazine (Dipentum) consist of two 5-ASAs joined together, while balsalazide (Colazal) is one 5-ASA linked to an inert unabsorbed carrier molecule. These formulations are similar to sulfasalazine in that colonic bacteria are required to cleave the azo bond and release the 5-ASA moiety. Thus, they are also mainly active in the colon.

My point is that Colazal, (balsalazide), contains the same active ingredient, but uses a different mechanism for delivery, so that many patients who have problems with Asacol, often find that they get good results with Colazal.

Also, many patients who have adverse reactions to Asacol are able to take Pentasa with good results. I have a hunch that this may be due to the fact that Asacol contains lactose, (and presumably casein), which is a problem for many of us. Here's a reference on the quote above:

http://www.patients.uptodate.com/topic. ... al++Cancer

Thanks for posting that information about the success with yogurt. More and more beneficial results from probiotics seem to be coming to light, in the treatment and prevention of GI issues.

Tex