Getting pregnant after Rituxan

[Yvonnea]

Has anybody got pregnant after Rituxan?
I know it is a very new treatment for weggies so maybe there is no real research yet, but just wondering.

[drz]

Has anybody got pregnant after Rituxan?
I know it is a very new treatment for weggies so maybe there is no real research yet, but just wondering.

It is also widely used in cancer treatments too so there must be some reports some where.

[Palmyra]

I have saved this article for awhile...it is not from a scientific journal, but I am sure a quick google scholar search could pop up more info:

Pregnancy After Rituximab- Ready, or Not? (http://lymphoma.about.com/b/2011/03/18/pregnancy-after-rituximab-ready-or-not.htm)

[Sangye]

I've never heard that it affects fertility. There isn't any reason why it would. Also, unlike chemo it doesn't linger in the body.

[Palmyra]

Sangye,

The article I referenced above suggests that it may have long term affects that might affect the fetus, and recommends waiting one year before trying to conceive. If so, that might make it a bit difficult to avoid a flare during that year wait period, plus an additional 9 months of pregnancy. I have not heard that suggested by any of my daughter's physicians....it is a sore/sad subject for her.

[Sangye]

Oh, I was referring to rtx actually causing infertility or remaining as a toxin in the body for a long time the way chemo does.

It makes sense that they want women to wait a year. Hard timing though, since that's when the rtx would wear off and a flare might begin.

[Yvonnea]

Thanks for the input. Yeah hard decisions to be made. But first I have to concentrate on getting into remission :smile:

[Brooke]

My husband and I would like to have another child. I am going to ask my doc at Mayo about it. If it has to be one year after Rituxan, that means April 2012 is when I could get pregnant. I hope I am healthy enough and stay that way. I will be 31 by then.
If it is not a good idea to have another child, that is okay too. Health comes first.

[Palmyra]

Please keep us posted regarding what your specialist at Mayo advices regarding pregnancy and Rituxan. Brooke, your attitude is so very commendable. More power to you sister. I wish my daughter the same strength.:cool1:

Much love,
Palmyra Jane

[delorisdoe]

I would assume that your daughter will have that strength by 31-espeicialy dealing with this disease. I am unable to have more children due to cytoxan. I have one daughter and that makes it ok. She wishes she had a baby brother.

[gwenllian111]

Yes I got pregnant quite quickly after Ritixan. No problems whatsoever X

[Yvonnea]

Thats really positive to hear Gwenllian, do you mind me asking how long after the Rituxan? A year seems long...especially as I am not gettin' any younger!
Thanks

[NicShaf]

Before I started Cytoxan, I was offered Rituxan because it is not known to cause any problems with fertility. I don't know what the waiting time if for RTX, but for CTX it is 2 years drug free.

Gwenllian, you also have had Cytoxan before, and had healthy pregnacies, correct? You are an inspiriation to all of us who still want kids that Wegs doesn't have to stop you from living your life how you want to:)

[gwenllian111]

I got pregnant about 3 months post ritix infusion. Had lots of cyclo before that too, but as soon as my periods came back it was fine. GOOD LUCK!!! XX

[Brooke]

I asked my doc about getting pregnant - she wants me healthy for 2 solid years. She would be concerned if I were to have a flare during pregnancy - what meds they could use on me and be safe for the baby...

[NicShaf]

To be honest Brooke, I don't know if any Wegs meds are safe for the baby. When I spoke with my docs about it pre Cytoxan, they said that I would be monitored very closely, and my pregnancy would be considered "high risk".

There was an article posted here a while back about a growing trend of women who are diagnosed with cancer (in this case breast cancer) while pregnant, and decided to undergo aggressive chemo during their pregnancy. I'll try and find it to repost. But I don't understand how it is possible...but I'm not a doctor, so who am I to judge:)

[NicShaf]

I couldn't find the original article I read, but I found this one. It is something to ask your doctor about...

Pregnant with cancer - CNN.com (http://www.cnn.com/2011/HEALTH/05/16/pregnant.with.cancer/index.html)

[Sangye]

Nicole, I posted the article originally if that helps your search. The one you posted seems to have the same info, though. I think it really reflects how far apart medical and holistic doctors can be. I mean it's one thing for a doctor to say "We have no other choice but to do chemo during your pregnancy" and it's another to say "It's really not that toxic." For Pete's sake!

I'm not saying whether a woman should or shouldn't go through treatment, but I am really upset that MDs would downplay the risks.

[freakyschizogirl]

I was wondering about contraceptives whilst on the medications we are on.

Are there any interactions with say, the pill/ morning after pill and the medications we take?

[JanW]

For what it's worth, I was told that the pill was fine (and thus far has been for me). I was required to have "proof" of birth control prior to starting mtx because of the risk of harm to the fetus and accidental pregnancy is something that is mentioned often by rheumy and ENT, both because of my age (accidental pregnancy being quite common in the mid-40s age group) and because any pregnancy decision a WG patient makes should really be in consultation with her doctors.

[Sangye]

Be advised if you're using oral contraceptives that they increase the chance of blood clots. Wegs already does that.

[freakyschizogirl]

Thanks Jan and Sangye for the feedback.

Me and the pill didnt get on before diagnosis so goodness knows how we'd get on now!

[Sangye]

Yeah, it's actually a very dangerous drug. I'm not against contraception. But I treated an awful lot of women in my practice who got messed up with chemical contraceptives. Disrupting hormones and using artificial hormones is never a good idea. The worst are the long-lasting ones and the ones that interfere with menstruation, like the depoprovera shot. It's a tough situation.

[delorisdoe]

It amazes me what i was not told back then. I was not told of the increased chance of blood clots due to wegeners even after I had one. I only went off the pill because it seemed like a good choice of pill to give up. One thing I do know, 2 years of cytoxan also interferes with menstruation.

[Sangye]

The WeCLOT study came out in 2005 so if you had clots before that no one would have known Wegs was a risk factor. Even now, the tendency for Weggies to develop clots is not that well-known by regular rheumy's. When I got filled with clots in 2006 my local lousy rheumy called someone at Cleveland Clinic to ask if it was linked to Wegs.