| Author |
Message |
cely
Member
Username: Tcely
Post Number: 1
Registered: 03-2014
| | Posted on Wednesday, April 16, 2014 - 11:34 am: | 
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Hi! I was informed on my 4th month after transplant that I have the BK Virus. They're reducing my medication to try to get rid of it as well as switch to rapamune and cellcept from prograf and cellcept as part of a study to determine which pairing will work better. A kidney biopsy will also be done in the next few weeks. I'm quite nervous about all this. I hope my body responds well and get rid of this virus. Wish me luck!
I was wondering if you guys are on rapamune and cellcept and what side effects I should look out for. Thanks!
Cel |
Gene
Member
Username: Gene2x
Post Number: 51
Registered: 11-2011
| | Posted on Friday, April 18, 2014 - 09:21 am: |
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Cely, I was on Prograf (5 mg/day) and Cellcept (250 mg twice a day) last March (2013) when I contracted the BK virus. I was taken off the Cellcept and stayed on the Prograf. It boosted my immune system enough that the BK virus was gone in about a month. I went to weekly blood tests and the virus slowly went away. Currently I'm on 1.5 mg of Prograf twice a day and 3mg of Rapamune once a day. I'm not experiencing any different side effects than I did before. I'm also on a steroid free regimen. Good luck getting rid of the BK. It sneaks up on you. One month it was negative and the next month my creatinine jumped to 2.5 from 1.7. My nephrologist did a biopsy and found the BK virus was present.
Kidney Tx - Aug 4, 2011
VA Pittsburgh Health Care Center
Follow UPMC non-steroidal protocol
Live donor was my radio operator in Vietnam
1/6 match |
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cely
Member
Username: Tcely
Post Number: 2
Registered: 03-2014
| | Posted on Friday, April 18, 2014 - 10:29 am: |
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Hi Gene, thanks for your post. I hope that my body can get rid of it as fast as yours did. Like you, I'm not on prednisone. My creatinine level has slowly gone up that's why they want to do a biopsy (the hospital's lab was only 400 plus copies of BK virus but with Quest lab it was on 17,000). I've been so paranoid about the Bk virus but I guess it's just one of those things that can creep up on you when immunosuppressed right? Sigh... |
Gene
Member
Username: Gene2x
Post Number: 52
Registered: 11-2011
| | Posted on Saturday, April 19, 2014 - 09:57 am: |
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Yes. It crept up on me with no side effects until a blood test showed around 10,000 copies. Even at that low number the effect on my kidney was dramatic with the quick rise in creatinine. I can certainly understand your anxiety. The virus can do a lot of damage in a short period of time. I don't believe my new kidney suffered any permanent damage. Hopefully you will get rid of it before there are any consequences. Best of luck.
Kidney Tx - Aug 4, 2011
VA Pittsburgh Health Care Center
Follow UPMC non-steroidal protocol
Live donor was my radio operator in Vietnam
1/6 match |
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Gene
Member
Username: Gene2x
Post Number: 53
Registered: 11-2011
| | Posted on Saturday, April 19, 2014 - 10:21 am: |
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Yes. It crept up on me with no side effects until a blood test showed around 10,000 copies. Even at that low number the effect on my kidney was dramatic with the quick rise in creatinine. I can certainly understand your anxiety. The virus can do a lot of damage in a short period of time. I don't believe my new kidney suffered any permanent damage. Hopefully you will get rid of it before there are any consequences. Best of luck.
Kidney Tx - Aug 4, 2011
VA Pittsburgh Health Care Center
Follow UPMC non-steroidal protocol
Live donor was my radio operator in Vietnam
1/6 match |
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