Hello. I’ve recently been prescribed methotrexate for arthritis caused by immunotherapy (pembrolizumab) following a diagnosis of stage 3b accral lentiginous melanoma. I’ve had joint pain since my second treatment and the pain has continued since I finished a full course of immunotherapy last July. Steroids took away the joint pain but it came back when I stopped taking them.
When I read the leaflet about possible side effects of methotrexate I was shocked by the severity of them. I know all drugs come with slightly alarmist warnings but this one was beyond anything I’ve ever seen before (possible death was mentioned several times). In contrast, when I asked the rheumatologist about side effects she only mentioned possible stomach problems and said methotrexate was a very safe medication.
I would be really interested to hear of anyone’s experience of taking methotrexate. Is it just a case of abundance of caution in the side effects leaflet? How much has it helped with joint pain? What side effects have you had?
I’ve been managing the arthritis on low dose steroids (5mg prednisolone), paying for physio treatment (which has really helped), doing lots of physio-recommended exercises, drinking lots of water, and swimming. All this has helped considerably. I know I can’t keep taking steroids, even low dose ones, so I’m thinking my other option is to slowly wean off them over the next couple of months. If that doesn’t work then I might have to try methotrexate (which the rheumatologist said I will need to take for a minimum of two years).
Thank you for reading and I’d be very grateful for any advice.
Hi Cerys30
I don't have any experience of taking methotrexate but I noticed that your post hadn't had any replies yet. Responding to you will 'bump' it back to the top of the discussion list again.
I've done a search in the group and found that dayne is the only other person to mention this drug in this group. I've 'tagged' them into my reply and hope they'll pop on and share their experiences with you.
While you're waiting for replies, it would be great if you could put something about your diagnosis and treatment into your profile as it really helps others when replying to you and also when looking for someone on a similar pathway. It also means that you don't have to keep repeating yourself. To do this click on your username and then select 'Profile'. You can amend it at any time and if you're not sure what to write you can take a look at mine by clicking on my username.
"Never regret a day in your life, good days give you happiness, bad days give you experience"
Hi dayne thanks for popping on.
Cerys30 has also been prescribed this drug for her arthritis and is looking to hear about others experiences with this drug. Would you be able to tell her how you got on with it?
Anne
"Never regret a day in your life, good days give you happiness, bad days give you experience"
