Part 2 · Getting treatment today · 6/22
Why there are several families of treatment, and why you can switch between them.
The gut's defences overreact, often to microbes.
Signals (TNF, IL-12, IL-23) give the order to inflame the bowel.
The message is passed on inside the white blood cells by the JAK family.
Activated white blood cells leave the lymph nodes and head for the bowel.
They use a “key” (α4β7) to get into the bowel wall.
The white blood cells damage the bowel wall: pain, diarrhoea, blood, ulcers.
It quickly puts out the whole chain, but only for the length of a flare. Budesonide acts mainly in the bowel, with fewer effects on the rest of the body.
They slow down the activation and multiplication of lymphocytes, broadly and slowly (2 to 3 months). They also help biologics stay effective.
When a treatment stops working, the next one is often chosen to cut the chain at a different point. Example: after an anti-TNF, you can move to an anti-IL-23, to Entyvio or to a JAK tablet. There is almost always another option.