LDN and Auto Immune Diseases
 

LDN and Autoimmune Disease


My neighbor is challenged with RA as of a couple yrs ago. She goes to UCLA Medical and they give her the drugs that they do. The high priced damaging drugs...I just talked to her and asked her if she knew LDN and if her doctor(s) would be open to writing her LDN...btw: LDN runs about $20 a month give or take.

She didn't know about LDN and was going to do her research and present the question to her doc at that next appt. We both feel the same about the overpriced drug world and the damage that comes with them. She said she is now taking Orencia and it is costing the insurance people about $3500 a month???!!!!

She's been on Enbrel and Prednisone but not now. They are trying Orencia for her and she says she's getting old...went to the doc yesterday with issues and probably some side effect issues. She's 68.

Rheumatoid arthritis is a complex condition with auto-immune and inflammatory aspects.

As far as I can see there is no reported evidence that naltrexone is of any benefit to people with rheumatoid arthritis (a PubMed search, "naltrexone" and "arthritis", retrieves 32 papers, two of which suggest that naltrexone may help people with osteoarthritic pain but there is nothing there about rheumatoid arthritis).

People who live with rheumatoid arthritis may benefit from a referral to a specialist rheumatologist who will be able to do a detailed clinical investigation and then, in the light of that, discuss treatment/management options.

You are not going to find that much on pub med and probably never will because drug companies will never make money off of LDN. Many doctors are seeing LDN help their patients with RA and other automimmune diseases in a clinical setting. This isn't surprising given the 2 mechanims of action. And many RA patients are reporting improvements while taking LDN in my LDN groups.

Your friend might enjoy this blog and podcast.

Phoenix Helix | Reversing autoimmune disease through the paleo diet and lifestyle

The paleo autoimmune diet has helped get Eileen's RA under control. She also did a great podcast with Robb Wolf about autoimmune disease, diet, and lifestyle. I'm made a copy of it for my friend with RA who is fed up with being in so much pain despite taking all the conventional RA medications. She also wants to get on LDN but is having trouble getting her doctor to prescribe it.

Robb Wolf - Paleo Solution Podcast- Episode 321 - Eileen Laird - Autoimmune Disease

An LDN site (The Low Dose Naltrexone Homepage) claims that LDN is effective in treating these conditions:
Bladder Cancer, Breast Cancer, Carcinoid, Colon & Rectal Cancer, Liver Cancer, Glioblastoma, Lung Cancer (Non-Small Cell), Lymphocytic Leukemia (chronic), Lymphoma (Hodgkin’s and Non-Hodgkin’s), Malignant Melanoma, Multiple Myeloma, Neuroblastoma, Ovarian Cancer, Ovarian Cancer, Pancreatic Cancer, Prostate Cancer (untreated), Renal Cell Carcinoma, Throat Cancer, Uterine Cancer,ALS (Lou Gehrig’s Disease), Alzheimer’s Disease, Ankylosing Spondylitis, Autism Spectrum Disorders, Behcet’s Disease, Celiac Disease, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, CREST syndrome, Crohn’s Disease, Emphysema (COPD), Endometriosis, Fibromyalgia, HIV/AIDS, Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS), Multiple Sclerosis (MS), Parkinson’s Disease, Pemphigoid, Primary Lateral Sclerosis (PLS), Psoriasis, Rheumatoid Arthritis, Sarcoidosis, Scleroderma, Stiff Person Syndrome (SPS), Systemic Lupus (SLE), Transverse Myelitis, Ulcerative Colitis and Wegener’s Granulomatosis.

The site offers no independent support for any these claims.

In my view it is up to NT members to judge for themselves how plausible it is that Naltrexone, an opiate receptor antagonist, may be beneficial for such a vast array of health problems.

I'm a full body neuropathy patient and I've been on LDN for months now. This drug has made a difference between me not being able to cope being on this planet for one more day with this awful condition and me getting back a healthy chunk of my life. But that is just my personal experience. Mileage may vary. The side effect profile is low and this drug is cheap - about a dollar a day. It's not a panacea, but my doctor and nurse told me that it has helped many of their patients with pain and autoimmunity; therefore, I think it is worth considering.

Doctors like Pradeep Chopra are using it in their RSD patients to a very good success rate. I believe in a You Tube talk that he said 70% of his patients have a good response. He generally combines LDN with gabapentin. He has a small case study floating out on pub med.

http://www.painri.com/pradeep-chopra-md/

This paper gives a good overview of the proposed mechanisms of action (promotes T cell regulation and reduces central nervous system inflammation).

The use of low-dose naltrexone (LDN) as a novel anti-inflammatory treatment for chronic pain

This case study is behind a paywall, but it looks like they examine a patient that was prescribed LDN for SFN.

Off-Label, Low-Dose Naltrexone for Refractory Painful Diabetic Neuropathy | Pain Medicine