Timothy, rituximab and Nplate

Tim got another round of rituximab with the nplate on top. He is now responding again to the Nplate (200k last week). The hemonc said, "I guess you were right." LOL...ya think?

Why are they treating with both Rituxan and Nplate at the same time? Usually one waits to see if one treatment works or not, before trying another.

Hi,

I was wondering how Tim was doing. Its good to hear that the dr finally listened to you - I remember that working almost the same the first time Tim tried rituximab. Hope it continues working for a while
Ali

Dean,
Tim is refractory to all other treatments. The only thing that brings him up is the combination of rituximab and nplate. Otherwise, either one by itself gives him extremely low counts and bleeds (like 1k or less. I reported this correlation previously and they didnt' believe me.

OK. I was wondering the need for that. Good to hear the Dr listened to you!!!

This is the same combo my son is now on. We have been in the hospital for a week so far. He has had his 3rd Nplate inject & was just started on the rituximab. How long did it take for you guys to see a response?

Meador,
He got a slow climb the first few weeks, then after that he has maintained at about 200k with the combo. I think they are very happy to see him come up. They are about to transition him to adult care since he is 19 now will be 20 in June. They just want to keep an eye on him a little longer before they send him to an adult hemonc.

Nolan's count is now 1k, 2 days now. Has had his 3rd dose of Nplate on this past Mon & started on Rituximab last Sun. Would you think we should have seen some sort of response by now? They are putting in a picc line in the morning. Thanks so much for your input.

For adults there are 10 doses of Nplate. They start with the lowest dose and higher it each week until they get a sustained response. Whether it's the same for children I wouldn't know. The doctor should be able to explain to you what they are doing with regard to dosing.

Tim has been on NPlate for three years. He only responds in tandem with rituximab. He is 19.

Hi.. Question so he has taken NPlate for 3 years straight and how often does he do the Rituximab? Aaron has been at 1K for 3 weeks and we had a little episode of bleeding that freaked me a little and I put him on the prednisone. Won't do WinRho and IVIG isn't a choice either. He has been on prednisone (120 mg a day) and after 5 days he only climbed to 8K ugh. Aaron does well with the low numbers, other than getting tired easily and some days being unfocused, but I need to know if something will work in an emergency or events. He did Rituxan when he was 8 in a Boston Childrens Hospital study but no response. SInce older kids and adults respond better, opted to try. This round of ITP is a totally different beast than last time. We are scheduled for his first Rituxan treatment on Friday. Glad to hear that Tim is doing well. Hard to believe how quickly they grow up. Man, I remember back in the day and how much this site and people's attitudes about ITP and doctors have changed so drastically in basically a relatively short time. Thanks. Peg