Q 23: What side-effects can it cause?
A: In general, Azathioprine is very safe, BUT a few
people can’t break it down well, and are more liable
to the side-effects. The commonest are depression
of the liver or the blood-forming cells (in the bone
marrow): regular blood tests are needed to check
on those. In the long-term, Azathioprine can also
increase the risks of benign skin growths caused by
the warts (papilloma) virus, and of local skin cancers
caused by too much sunshine. Transplant patients
taking it seem – very rarely – to get lymphomas,
but we’re not sure if that happens in MG. In most
patients, the benefits far outweigh these low risks.
Q:它(“(硝基)咪唑硫嘌呤”)会引起什么副作用吗?
A:一般来说,“(硝基)咪唑硫嘌呤”是很安全的,但是有一些人
(服用之后)却很难停用它,便会受到一些副作用。常见的状况
是人们会很沮丧或者骭细胞(在骨髓里):这时有必要进行常规血
液检测。在长期(的服用“(硝基)咪唑硫嘌呤”)后,也会增加良
性皮肤疣(乳突淋瘤)的风险,并且当部分皮肤被过多的阳光晒过
之后会引起皮肤癌。经历过移民的患者应该注意一下―――几率很
小―――是否得了淋巴瘤,但我们还不确定这是否会发生在MG患者
身上。在大多数患者中,(“(硝基)咪唑硫嘌呤”的)好处要远远超
过这些风险(上述的一些“(硝基)咪唑硫嘌呤”带来的副作用)因素。