Rinvoq: Your Questions Answered + Alternatives
speciality medications
Rinvoq and its active ingredient, upadacitinib, is a medication causing waves in the medical community. When used appropriately, Rinvoq can treat many different inflammatory conditions. It’s a newer medication, but one that shows great promise (especially for people who have tricky inflammatory conditions that have resisted previous treatment attempts).
The problem is, of course, that Rinvoq is expensive.
There’s also the fact that its powerful efficacy can make figuring out how to use it for your unique condition a little confusing. Here, we’ll give you the information you need to partner with your health team—which is worth the investment.
According to Dr. Brynna Connor, a board-certified family medicine physician who specializes in regenerative medicine, “Studies have found that seeking online health information can improve your satisfaction in your care, involvement in health-related decisions, communication with your healthcare team, and your quality of life.”
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First Things First: What Exactly is Rinvoq?
Rinvoq (upadacitinib) leverages an active ingredient that’s classed as a JAK inhibitor, or a Janus kinase inhibitor.
JAK inhibitors, once taken by a patient, target specific parts of a person’s immune system that boost the inflammation and immune response–in this case, the JAK1 enzyme.
Your immune response is wildly helpful at keeping you alive, healthy, and safe, but when your body gets too inflamed you risk adverse health outcomes. If your immune system is overacting and you’re ill as a result, a JAK inhibitor may be able to help you keep your systems in check.
As a result of this process, patients who take Rinvoq should notice reduced inflammation and reduced symptoms for their autoimmune conditions.
Is Rinvoq a Biologic?
No, Rinvoq is not a biologic.
A biologic is a type of medication that is derived from living organisms—hence the name. This class of medication targets immune system proteins, too, but does so in a slightly different way, and requires specific care and administration procedures.
Rinvoq is a small molecule drug, not a biologic. After administration, it makes its way inside human cells to find and shut down the JAK1 enzyme.
One of the key benefits Rinvoq provides over a biologic is its ease of dosage. Rinvoq is a tablet that can be taken orally. Many biologics need to be injected (or administered intravenously), which increases both the hassle and expense of taking them.
Is Rinvoq an Immunosuppressant?
Yes! Rinvoq does in fact act as an immunosuppressant.
When Rinvoq’s active ingredient inhibits the JAK1 enzyme, it shuts down specific parts of your immune system. This helps reduce unwanted inflammation.
If you’re working hard to manage an autoimmune disease, for yourself or for a loved one, this can be very helpful.
However, as you might imagine, when you shut down part of your immune system you can be at heightened risk for infections and other immune-related issues. If you go on Rinvoq or any other immunosuppressant, your doctor will want to monitor you consistently to help keep your health as robust as possible.
How Much Does Rinvoq Cost?
In the United States, patients who are prescribed Rinvoq may end up paying as much as $6,200.00 for a set of 30 tablets.
That’s a lot of money–especially when you realize that you’ll need to take one tablet on a daily basis. This puts the yearly cost of Rinvoq at over $70,000.00, which isn’t something that’s going to fit easily in anyone’s budget.
We’ll get to why Rinvoq is so expensive in a moment (as well as other relevant questions, like whether your insurance plan will help with that cost), but we’ll answer your most important question first:
Is there anything you can do to get Rinvoq for (way) less money?
By choosing an online and international Canadian drug pharmacy, yes, you can.
Through NorthWestPharmacy.com, you can save significantly on this medication. Here, you can buy 30 tablets of Rinvoq for about $1,700.00—savings of up to 72% when compared to the American retail price.
Are There Other Ways to Save on Rinvoq?
Depending on your circumstances, you may be able to think outside the box to avoid spending $70,000.00 per year on this medication. Some of the more popular options include:
Patient assistant programs. Rinvoq’s manufacturer, AbbVie, may offer patient assistant programs or savings cards from time to time.
These options may be able to reduce the cost of Rinvoq significantly, but the amount of financial assistance available is usually limited (and you need to be eligible for this support in the first place).
Comparison shopping. Different pharmacies in your area may offer Rinvoq for widely differing prices. It may be worth your time to drive around to the pharmacies in your area to see if one is offering the drug at a markedly lower price.
Of course, this does require an upfront investment from you in the form of your time, mileage on your car, gas prices, and the energy you’ll spend talking to pharmacists about medication costs.
To make this easier for you, take your shopping online. The best online pharmacies should have their Rinvoq pricing structures easily accessible, which can make your comparison shopping experience much faster.
While many people are leery of buying their prescription drugs online, there are high-quality pharmacies out there that offer stellar experiences, trusted processes, and reliably low prices.
Which ties neatly into our third strategy:
Think outside (the country’s) borders. Many of the specific reasons Rinvoq is so expensive are relatively unique to the United States–e.g., the prevalence of direct-to-consumer advertising, and the lack of government regulation on price and profit ceilings for drug manufacturers.
Pharmacies that operate outside of the United States may have lower prices in the first place because of the lack of these pressures. International pharmacies and Canada’s pharmacies may also be able to source their medications from more cost-effective global markets, connecting you with still-lower prices.
We understand that buying your medication online, internationally, and at a steep cost savings may make you wonder about the safety and authenticity of the drugs you’re buying.
That’s a good instinct. Fortunately, you don’t have to worry about the safety of your chosen international and online Canadian pharmacy as long as you choose one that’s been carefully vetted by a trusted third-party pharmacy association, like CIPA (the Canadian International Pharmacy Association).
When vetting a pharmacy, CIPA…
…requires all its member pharmacies to demonstrate that they meet very high standards for quality and safety.
…ensures that all pharmacies have all the required licenses, and that they operate under the supervision of licensed pharmacists.
…enforces strict policies for Internet safety and customer data protection, to make sure that all CIPA-approved pharmacies are worth trusting for safe medication and for secure data handling.
And that’s why, if you’re buying medications from a pharmacy that’s on CIPA’s list of approved pharmacies, you can enjoy knowing that you’re going to get the authentic brand-name medication you need (just at prices that are much more affordable than what you’ll see in the States!).
Taking Rinvoq Effectively: Dosage, Administration, and More
Once you’ve safely gotten Rinvoq, you need to know how to use it and work with it to build the best possible outcome for your body.
To a certain extent, you have one golden rule to follow: Do what your doctor says. The basic instructions for taking your medication should be printed on your medication bottle.
It’s a good idea to be an informed patient and understand why your doctor’s giving you certain instructions. Here’s an overview of general Rinvoq dosing strategies, administration tips, and some Rinvoq alternatives to discover if Rinvoq doesn’t work for you.
What Are Typical Rinvoq Dosages?
For most of Rinvoq’s applications, the recommended maintenance dose is 15 mg, taken once per day, orally.
This can vary. For example, for some indications, doctors may recommend an “induction phase,” where patients take a much higher (e.g., 45 mg) dose for a higher-intensity ramp-up period before using the lower dose to maintain results.
And, of course, in other circumstances, a doctor may recommend starting with a lower dose and ramping up to 15 mg—for example, if a patient has a history of being sensitive to treatment.
Children, too, may have different doses based on their weight. Your doctor may also adjust your dose up or down on an ongoing basis to help you accomplish your health goals and avoid undue side effects.
The important thing is to be open to your doctor about those goals and about your experiences. Don’t try to adjust your dose by doubling up on or halving pills by yourself, as that can be dangerous.
What Are Rinvoq Side Effects?
What are Rinvoq’s most common side effects—and what can you do to mitigate them?
All medications may cause side effects, especially as a patient is still getting used to the new drug.
With Rinvoq, the most common side effects to keep an eye out for include:
- Infections, particularly of the urinary tract and upper respiratory tract
- Nausea
- Headache
- Elevated liver enzymes (demonstrating that the liver is overworked)
Long-term or more serious side effects associated with Rinvoq may include:
- Increased susceptibility to infections, including more serious infections
- Some risk of developing certain types of cancer, including both lung cancer and lymphoma
- Cardiovascular events including stroke and myocardial infarction (or heart attacks)
- Thrombosis, including both pulmonary embolisms and deep vein thrombosis
These more serious side effects may sound scary, but they don’t happen to everyone who takes Rinvoq.
It’s a good idea to know about these potential risks, though, just in case you do start developing symptoms. That way, when you talk to your doctor about any odd symptoms that you’re experiencing, you’ll already have a lead on what may be causing them.
Does Rinvoq Cause Weight Gain?
Rinvoq does not necessarily or directly cause weight gain for everyone who takes it.
However, your mileage may vary—and, if you’re realizing that you’ve started gaining weight since you first started taking Rinvoq, that may be a side effect to talk to your doctor about.
Don’t discontinue your use of Rinvoq before talking to your healthcare provider, though, as suddenly stopping the medication may have additional side effects.
Safety Precautions for Taking Rinvoq
Want to have the safest possible experience while taking Rinvoq?
Take these precautions, along with any others that your healthcare team recommends:
- Undergo screening for any possible infections before taking Rinvoq, particularly severe infections such as tuberculosis.
- Regularly get your relevant health markers checked out. Your doctor will determine what, specifically, you need to look at, but lipid levels, liver enzymes, and blood counts are a good starting point.
- If you know that you have any contraindications, or reasons that you shouldn’t be taking Rinvoq, don’t decide to take it anyway—those rules are in place for a reason, and that reason is your safety.
How Long Does Rinvoq Stay in Your System?
Rinvoq can stay in your system for several days.
Rinvoq’s half-life, or the amount of time it takes for the concentration of the drug in your bloodstream to go down by 50%, is 8-14 hours.
Depending on how high your dose was, it can take several iterations of that half-life to bring your blood concentration of the drug down to zero.
Are There Alternatives to Rinvoq?
Three of the most common alternatives to Rinvoq are Dupixent, Humira, Cibinqo, and Xeljanz—but how do they compare to Rinvoq?
Rinvoq vs. Dupixent
While Rinvoq is a JAK inhibitor, Dupixent, a biologic medication that is often prescribed to help treat eczema, affects another part of the inflammatory response (interleukins 4 and 13).
Both of these medications can treat atopic dermatitis, albeit with differing results per patient. In some clinical trials, Rinvoq does seem to provide superior results, but that does depend on your unique circumstances.
As a biologic, Dupixent can be a little tricky logistically to find and administer, and, in some cases, it may be even more expensive than Rinvoq.
Rinvoq vs. Humira
Humira (adalimumab) is a medication that blocks the activity of something called “TNF-alpha”—a cytokine that plays a key role in the inflammatory response.
One of the main differences between Rinvoq and Humira is their route of administration: while Rinvoq is an oral tablet, Humira does require injection.
Rinvoq vs. Xeljanz
Xeljanz (tofacitinib) is a JAK inhibitor, just like Rinvoq, but with one critical distinction: While Rinvoq inhibits the action of the JAK1 enzyme, Xeljanz inhibits JAK1 and JAK3.
More inhibition is not necessarily better, but if you’re not experiencing good results with Rinvoq, it may be worth trying Xeljanz to see if your symptoms improve. Your doctor can help you assess which of these two meds is the best fit for you.
You can buy Xeljanz through NorthWestPharmacy.com for about $8.30 per dose and the generic for even less!
Cibinqo vs. Rinvoq
Both Cibinqo (abrocitinib) and Rinvoq are JAK inhibitors, but Cibinqo may have an even more targeted ability to inhibit JAK1 than Rinvoq.
They’re both effective medications, but the individual patient response to each tends to vary a little. If you take either, make sure to keep very detailed notes about the way your body responds to these medications to help you determine your best possible treatment route.
Are There Further Alternatives to Rinvoq?
Yes, there are! If you and your doctor are considering other options, your discussions may include the following Rinvoq alternatives:
No matter which medication you need to treat your inflammatory condition, whether it’s Rinvoq or one of its alternatives, NorthWestPharmacy.com is here to help being informed and buying affordable prescription medications much, much easier.
Intrigued by what we offer?
Our team is here to help: Chat with our team of customer service representatives and pharmacists to ask any questions you may have. Then, when you’re ready, place an order online or over the phone.
The team at NorthWestPharmacy.com looks forward to serving you!
