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Chemotherapy Treatment of Arthritis

Treatments for arthritis are numerous, but one little known option is to use chemotherapy for arthritis therapy. While it may seem strange to use the same drugs for arthritis as are used for cancer treatment, the drugs have shown results.

  1. Type of Arthritis Benefits

    • Chemo drugs are used to treat rheumatoid arthritis, which is an autoimmune disease.

    Expert Insight

    • Melanie Haiken of Caring.com discusses treating arthritis with chemotherapy drugs, reporting that the drugs are used in much lower doses in treating arthritis than are used in cancer treatment.

    How it Works

    • The Cleveland Clinic in Ohio says that chemo drugs work on rheumatoid arthritis by decreasing the processes in the body that causes inflammation.

    Drugs Used

    • The most commonly used chemotherapy drugs used for treating arthritis include methotrexate, Imuran and cytoxan. These drugs are sometimes used in conjunction with other arthritis drugs.

    Side Effects

    • Arthritis.org reports that some people may experience the same side effects that happen in cancer treatment, although to a much lesser degree because the drugs are used in much smaller doses for arthritis treatment.

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