The dangers of long-term use of azathioprine

Some people think that the efficacy of azathioprine is very significant, so they choose to take it for a long time, which will prevent any disease in their body. But in fact, this drug is not a health product and cannot be taken for a long time. If this is the case, it will definitely have a bad effect on your body and may even cause great harm. Therefore, if your condition improves, try not to take this drug for treatment.

harm:

Azathioprine tablets are a temporary cancer drug that can have a good effect on leukemia and organ transplantation. It is still unclear whether azathioprine tablets can be taken for a long time in clinical practice. Friends should not blindly take azathioprine tablets for a long time, otherwise it will develop dependence and drug resistance, which will not only be unhelpful to the condition, but also easily have a great impact on their own health.

Azathioprine tablets are a prescription chemical drug. Its main ingredient is azathioprine and the finished product is a light yellow tablet. The indications of azathioprine tablets include acute and chronic leukemia, chronic myeloid leukemia, hyperthyroidism, myasthenia gravis, chronic rheumatoid arthritis, chronic active hepatitis, hemolytic anemia and other diseases.

Allopurinol can inhibit the metabolism of mercaptopurine (the latter is the active metabolite of thiopurine) into inactive products, resulting in increased toxicity of mercaptopurine. When the two must be taken at the same time, the dose of thiopurine should be greatly reduced. Thiopurine can reduce the inactivation rate of 6-mercaptopurine. 6-Mercaptopurine is inactivated in the following ways: enzyme S-methylation, enzyme-independent oxidation, or conversion to thiourate by xanthine oxidase. Azathioprine can react with sulfhydryl compounds such as glutathione to slowly release 6-mercaptopurine in tissues and act as a prodrug.

Almost all of it is converted into 6-mercaptopurine in the body and takes effect. Because its transformation process is slow, its effect is slow. It can inhibit Friend leukemia, inhibit virus infection of mice, inhibit spleen enlargement, and reduce the virus titer in the spleen and plasma. It can have an immunosuppressive effect by interfering with RNA metabolism. If a small dose exists in the culture medium for a long time, it can inhibit the killing cell effect of sensitized lymphocytes in vitro.

Therefore, taking azathioprine tablets for a long time will not only fail to alleviate the disease, but will often cause certain harm to your body. If you want to use a drug for a long time, you must take it under the guidance of a doctor.