Sandimmune Uses

What Is Sandimmune Used For?

Sandimmune^® (cyclosporine) is a prescription anti-rejection medication. It is approved for the prevention of organ rejection in people who have received a kidney, liver, or heart transplant. It is always used with a corticosteroid medication, such as prednisone. Sandimmune is also approved to treat organ rejection in people who were previously treated with other anti-rejection medicines.

 

Using Sandimmune for Transplant Rejection

Organ transplantation is a surgical procedure in which a healthy organ is transferred from an organ donor into a person with a failing organ. A person may need an organ transplant if one of their organs has stopped working or is not working as well. Not all organs can be transplanted. The most commonly transplanted organs include the:

 

People who have received an organ transplant will need to take anti-rejection medicines for the rest of their lives. Anti-rejection medicines, like Sandimmune, are used to help prevent transplant rejection from occurring. Transplant rejection occurs when the immune system, which normally defends the body against potentially harmful organisms, sees the transplanted organ as foreign and attacks it. Transplant rejection can cause a transplanted organ to fail.

 

In addition to preventing transplant rejection, Sandimmune may be given to treat chronic transplant rejection. Chronic rejection occurs over several years and is accompanied by damage to the transplanted organ. Sandimmune is used in people who have chronic transplant rejection and who have already been treated with other immunosuppressant medications.