Mycophenolate May Control Lupus Nephritis Better Than Azathioprine.

HealthDay  (11/17, Gordon) reports, "A newer immune-suppressing drug called mycophenolate mofetil (CellCept) is better at controlling a serious kidney complication from lupus than another commonly used therapy," according to a study in the New England Journal of Medicine. Specifically, "people taking mycophenolate were about half as likely to progress to treatment failure as were people taking azathioprine (Imuran)." Patients on both drugs "had significant side effects," but "serious adverse events were more common in people taking azathioprine compared to those on mycophenolate -- 33.3 percent versus 23.5 percent, respectively." HealthDay notes that CellCept is currently "US Food and Drug Administration-approved for people who've had an organ transplant."