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#15156 - 06/19/01 06:54 PM
Re: Accutane Long-term Side Effects
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Member
Registered: 07/31/08
Posts: 12
Loc: Detroit, MI
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Lisa Marie,
Did that guy at Roche ever send you the materials? What did they say?
Roche makes BOTH Accutane and Soriatane. The British Journal of Dermatology is, as far as I know, a legitimate source to publish legitimate scientific research (I wouldn't lump it in there with the rest of the stuff on the internet whose source and authenticity is unknown). According to the research published in the British Journal, there absolutely IS an issue with Soriatane, alcohol consumption, and how long it stays in your body. So I'm kind of surprised that the nurse didn't address that (it doesn't seem like much of a reach to me that there might be a similar issue with Accutane and they are the makers of both of them).
The nurse also said about Accutane that "alcohol doesn't affect the drug"? That's not my understanding. There used to be warnings all over the place recommending that you not consume alcohol at all when on Accutane, or at least significantly reduce your alcohol intake. This doesn't run toward alcohol affecting fat storage, but neither did the nurse's comment. He just said "alcohol doesn't affect the drug." I don't believe that.
I totally understand that you don't want to go off the drug before you have to, and neither do you want to endanger your future children (once you start trying to conceive), but I personally wouldn't find the information from this nurse particularly reassuring. Not to say that he was wrong, just that he didn't come off as being very expert in this area, to me.
Are you going to be in Seattle for FIRST's conference? I think that would be the best place to ask the question, of how Accutane and Soriatane differ on this issue. I'll see if I can have any luck getting it on the agenda ahead of time.
Laura
[This message has been edited by Laura Phillips (edited October 10, 2006).]
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#15157 - 06/19/01 07:08 PM
Re: Accutane Long-term Side Effects
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Member
Registered: 07/31/08
Posts: 12
Loc: Detroit, MI
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Okay, this was really buggin me, so I went out to Roche's site and read the full prescription info for both Accutane and Soriatane. Much to my wondering eyes, NO mention of alcohol was made in the Accutane materials. However, in the Soriatane materials, the following appears: "Females of reproductive potential should also be advised that they must not ingest beverages or products containing ethanol while taking Soriatane and for 2 months after Soriatane treatment has been discontinued. This allows for elimination of the acitretin which can be converted to etretinate in the presence of alcohol. " And later: "Alcohol intake can cause Soriatane to be changed into a related drug, etretinate, which may not leave the body for many years." Also, the Accutane literature said you could donate blood within a month of stopping Accutane. Soriatane says you have to wait three years. (Same for pregnancy--wait a month for Accutane, 3 years for Soriatane). So, seems to me like there must indeed be some significant chemical difference between Accutane and Soriatane (though I'm still not smart enough to have found exactly what the difference is). However, based just on the above factors, seems like I would still choose to take Accutane and not Soriatane (how is it safer when Roche's materials make it sound like alcohol effects Soriatane but not Accutane)? I think I'm more confused now than ever. [img] http://www.ichthyosis.com/ubb/rolleyes.gif[/img] Don't listen to me, Lisa Marie! I don't know what I'm talking about! [This message has been edited by Laura Phillips (edited June 19, 2001).]
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#15159 - 06/20/01 12:13 PM
Re: Accutane Long-term Side Effects
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Member
Registered: 07/31/08
Posts: 12
Loc: Detroit, MI
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Well, clearly, most lay people have a hard time distinguishing Accutane from Soriatane (count me in!). Somehow Soriatane, maybe just because it's newer, has the reputation as being "safer" than Accutane (some kind of improvement over Accutane).
I'm wondering if Soriatane isn't really meant to be an improvement over Tegison (and actually have much more in common with Tegison). Roche took Tegison off the market. Tegison was etretinate, which is fat stored in the body for ages (I don't remember what the half-life is, but the thinking was that women who ever wanted to have children shouldn't take Tegison as no one really knew for sure how many years it would take for the etretinate in your body to degrade to a low enough level not to effect your baby...if ever). Roche's materials and that study refer to Soriatane being metabolized as etretinate in the presence of alcohol (essentially, your body would convert your Soriatane into Tegison). Maybe that's what your doctor was linking together when he said that woman shouldn't take Soriatane if they ever wanted to have children (assuming that the overwhelming majority of people do consume some alcohol, however little that might be).
I'd totally trust the Roche literature and your doctor, if they say you only have to be off Accutane for a month before conceiving. Especially in our overly litigious society today, none of them could afford to make a mistake on that!
Best of luck when you try going off Accutane. You might be surprised--your skin might not be as bad off Accutane as you think it might.
Laura
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#15161 - 06/22/01 05:20 PM
Re: Accutane Long-term Side Effects
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Member
Registered: 07/31/08
Posts: 12
Loc: Detroit, MI
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5297--
Please don't be scared to death about Soriatane. Did you read the study that I posted about Soriatane and alcohol? It said if you had consumed alcohol while taking Soriatane, a two year wait would be sufficient before trying to conceive. Roche's literature says wait three years, which seems appropriately conservative (a study indicates two years is adequate, just to be safe, they recommend three years?). I've not seen anything that says you need to wait any longer than three years with Soriatane.
If you're worried about it, talk to your doctor about it, or call Roche and talk to them, or do both. Please don't rely on things that are posted here as your only source of information (I for one have already said I really don't know what the difference between Accutane and Soriatane is...I've never taken Soriatane, only Accutane).
But again, I've not seen anything authoritative that contradicts in any way the 3 year wait that you said your doctor originally advised you of.
Laura
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