When it comes to prescribing safe and effective therapies for patients, doctors need to know exactly what drug is being dispensed and patients need to know exactly what they’re taking.
This is especially true in the case of biologics, complex therapies developed from living cells that have made an enormous difference for patients living with rheumatic diseases like arthritis. While biologics have been a lifeline for many patients – helping them avoid serious health complications, long-term disability, and early death – they can come with serious side effects and adverse reactions if not properly managed. Patients respond to different biologics in different ways, and so these therapies must be carefully tailored to the individual patient.
Often, biologic therapies need to be adjusted or halted in response to the patient’s evolving condition, and an alternate drug must be prescribed. Biologics are also made from living cells and cannot be reproduced exactly, further complicating patient safety.
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