Imuran, Azathioprine News

Ulcerative colitis is characterized by inflammation of the colon and the lining of the rectum.

Results from a recent retrospective cohort study presented at the American College of Gastroenterology's annual meeting has shown that people with IBD who take a class of drugs called thiopurines are at an increased risk for non-melanoma skin cancer .

A recent study in the journal The Lancet has shown that people with IBD who take a class of drugs called thiopurines are at an increased risk for lymphoproliferative disorders, including Hodgkin's lymphoma and non-Hodgkin lymphoproliferative disorder .

Some treatments for inflammatory bowel disease increase the risk of infection-related cancers, French scientists said on Monday, but the benefits of the drugs still outweigh the risks.

Azathioprine and mercaptopurine prevent postoperative recurrence in Crohn's disease, reports this month's American Journal of Gastroenterology.

Using the Vienna classification system, it has been shown in clinic-based cohorts that there can be a significant change in disease behavior over time, whereas disease location remains relatively stable.

Combined prednisolone-azathioprine immunosuppressive treatment appears effective in preventing crises in patients with myasthenia gravis, Hungarian researchers report in the July issue of the European Journal of Neurology.

Objective To prospectively determine optimal levels of 6-thioguanine nucleotide for disease remission in patients with immunobullous disease treated with azathioprine.

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Arch Dermatol. A 2009;145 :631. Azathioprine has been used by dermatologists as a corticosteroid-sparing agent for 30 years, but its mechanism and pharmacokinetics remain unclear.

Researcher Philippe Seksik, MD and colleagues presented a study at Digestive Disease Week 2009 which links thioprines to a reduced risk of advanced colon cancer in patients with ulcerative colitis .

Crohn's disease patients who received a combination of the drugs infliximab and azathioprine were more likely to have the disease go into steroid-free remission than those who received only one of the drugs, researchers say.

New long-term findings from the Phase 3b study of patients with moderately to severely active Crohn's disease having inadequate response to conventional therapies, but naive to immunomodulators and biologic therapy, were presented at Digestive Disease Week today.

Monoclonal antibodies can be safely and successfully used for the treatment of several gastroenterological disorders according to data being presented at Digestive Disease Week 2009.

Clinicians, researchers and scientists from around the world will gather for Digestive Disease Week 2009 , the largest and most prestigious gastroenterology meeting, from May 30 to June 4, 2009, at the McCormick Place Convention Center, Chicago, IL.