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Comment by tosseraccount | Hacker News Reader

Anti-TNF biologics are a thing: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TNF_inhibitor

They definitely do cause issues - higher risk of exciting cancers and a generally more sickly existence. Studies in IBD have their efficacy at 20-30% of patients in remission after a year so they're only somewhat effective (vs half that for placebo). Anecdotally (from my own experience, and from talking to my doctors) quality of life can be poor - mind crushing fatigue is fairly common. Admittedly the fatgue may be the cocktail of other crap in my body!

Something new with few side effects might help lots of people avoid surgery.

Sorry to hear of your experience, but wanted to say for others that autoimmune diseases and the associated medications are complex beasts and ymmv...

I have been on a TNF-a inhibitor for over a year and the results thus far have been literally life changing - for the better. I haven't been this healthy or had this much energy since before adulthood.

In the US anti-TNF biologics treatments can cost several thousand dollars per month. Even with patents expiring this year the industry isn't expecting dramatic price drops due to the different regulatory process for bio-similars versus a typical generic drug.

I'm sure there are many patients who would be happy for a more cost effective option.

"several thousand" is "list price" for single shots and no or fake health insurance. In practice insurance companies negotiate the price down and average patient pays much less than that. Major drug makers are ready to go the second the patents expire. Prices should drop dramatically for something like Humira (adalimumab) and biosimilars.

Major problem with generic biomimetics is that without the feedstock creating infliximab etc a generic's -mab is actually going to hit the receptor in a different way, and there is some evidence (sorry, on mobile and on holidays, don't have the resource available) that such 'generics' will actually function differently.

Interesting question is whether they then need to go through the process of FDA/similar approval. The cost savings aren't as simple as just creating the chemical structure... We are talking about immunoglobulins

No idea why you're getting down votes, this is 100% accurate.

And they also come with some unpleasant side-effects: a much higher incidence of skin cancer and all the risks that come with being immunosuppressed. (Plus the disadvantages - if you like soft cheese and deli meats, being on an anti-TNF drug will suck.)

They're also very, very expensive.

Can you expand on the soft cheese and deli meats claim?

Having a depressed immune system means you're more likely to contract things like listeria or toxo plasmosis which are commonly found in cured meats and soft cheeses. This is also the reason why pregnant women are advised against eating them.

Exactly so. (AFAIK Lysteria, Salmonella and E.Coli will be amongst the major risk factors.)

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3615849/#!po=5.9...

C diff, Lysteria, and Salmonella... Oddly, ecoli doesn't appear on the list. See table #2 & #3

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