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Infusion vs injection of tocilizumab (Actmera)
Polymyalgia Rheumatica (PMR) | Last Active: Jul 20 1:07pm | Replies (23)Comment receiving replies
The more I read the more confused I get. So far, my local RA doctor wants to treat my GCA ( diagnosed in May 2025) with Acterma starting in mid August. By that time I will be down to 7.5 mg of Prednisone ( started at 40mg) .
But the tests that the Mayo Clinic doctor just sent me for before my appointment there in 7/29 appear to me that I might possibly have more than just GCA.
I’m thinking of pushing this start date back to see how low I can get on Prednisone alone before adding anything ?
Knowing no one’s body reacts the same makes it all almost a guessing game what to do
Am I crazy ???
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No ... I don't think you are crazy. I wouldn't call it a guessing game for what might work for you either. What other conditions might you have according to Mayo?
Actemra worked well for me to treat PMR. When I asked my rheumatologist before starting Actemra if he was certain Actemra would work? He said, "No guarantee that Actemra would work but I would need to try Actemra to see if it worked or not."
Afterwards ... when Actemra worked I asked my rheumatologist how he knew Actemra would work? He said, "It was an educated guess but he didn't know."
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I don't know what you should do. My rheumatologist needed to submit an authorization request to get Actemra approved for me. In the request that was submitted there was a discussion about my inability to taper off Prednisone and that all other alternatives had failed. The conclusion was that Actemra offered me my "best chance" of ever getting off Prednisone.
After all my medical records were reviewed --- The request was approved by a committee of doctors and a pharmacist. The committee offered their recommendations as well.
I was treated with Prednisone for 12 years. Other DMARD medications like methotrexate and leflunomide were tried and countless other medications for nerve pain and other conditions which mostly were caused by Prednisone side effects.
Now I only take Actemra. Most of my other medications were stopped within a couple of years after Prednisone was discontinued.