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Discontinuing MAC antibiotics

MAC & Bronchiectasis | Last Active: Nov 27, 2023 | Replies (73)

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@rits

They can be stopped all at once but are you sure this is a good idea? My protocol was to stay on the antibiotics for one year following the first negative sample after three negatives in a row. In my case, I had my first negative in June 2019. I was negative in July and August so I stayed on the antibiotics until June 2020 when my doctor told me I could stop. Your husband already has months of negative samples. The idea of staying on the antibiotics after 3 negative samples is to kill more bacteria that may not have shown up in the samples so that there's a better chance of having no reoccurrence.

If he is taking them daily perhaps he can drop to 3x a week? Or make some other adjustment without stopping completely until the year is up. In any case make sure the doctor agrees to stopping them before you do.

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Replies to "They can be stopped all at once but are you sure this is a good idea?..."

My husband’s ID/Pulmonologist and our primary care doc agree that taking a break from the MAC drugs may give him some relief. His June CT showed some improvement.
The side effects from the drugs have overwhelmed him and are doing more damage than good with the strain of constant SOB and continuing weight loss putting him in an ever weakened state. We are hoping the break helps him to get back on track.
Melissa