Your Stories - Protopic

I've used Protopic for my Facial Eczema - Emma, Preston, UK

I have suffered with eczema for 35 yrs and my dermatologist prescribed protopic 4 yrs ago as I seem to have tried every treatment going. I have facial eczema which flairs up due to allergies (normally pets, dust, etc), and I only use protopic ointment in an evening as it tends to burn my skin and itch like crazy. I can't get over the fact though, that I scratch my face like crazy but when I wake up in the morning is cleared! I don't tend to have to use it very often now as my skin is a lot clearer -- touch wood. (July 2008) Contact Emma

Protopic - lack of benefit to me - Balissa, UK

I have had eczema for most of my life, flaring up now and again. At the moment it is pretty bad and I have been prescribed Protopic 0.3%. I have been using it on my forehead and scalp for about two weeks now. The initial burning has eased but I am now getting a stinging sensation on my face when I wash with even tepid water. Particularly on my cheeks (and that isn't a site where I use the ointment). Sensitivity to hot and cold is highlighted as a side effect but this facial stinging hasn't. This hadn't been pointed out to me at the time. So far, I haven't seen the benefits over other topical steroids such as Fucibet. (March 2007)

Using Protopic on my hands - Zoe, UK

I have been suffering from severe atopic dermatitis on my hands for only about a year now, it was just one of them things that appeared one day out of no where and iv had it ever since. I work in catering so it obviously isn’t very helpful for my career as it means I’m constantly having to apply creams and wear gloves at work and the frequent hand washing that you under go in food preparation irritates it and makes it worse.

I have been prescribed a whole bunch of different creams and ointments throughout the last year from my doctor and only in the last 6 months have I been appointed a specialist dermatologist and he has decided to try me on Protopic

I have been applying it for about a week now and so far it seems to have done nothing except make my hands worse. They don’t appear any worse but they ache so much more than before. My fingertips have a constant burning sensation if I touch something only moderately warm they feel like they’re on fire. Yesterday I took the dog a walk, it was only a little cold out, I wore no gloves, but when I came home into the warmth the change in temperature gave me chilblains in my fingers.

Also, I’m not entirely sure if this is connected, but another side affect I suspect is that I keep having peculiar hot/cold flushes in my face which makes around my eyes burn and my cheeks blush bright crimson. I had read that this could happen if you drink alcohol whilst using Protopic but I don’t drink and it seems to be happening anyway.

A for the long term affects of Protopic, I’m not really sure of, as I said, I’ve only been using it for about a week, but as yet, no positive results in the curing of my dermatitis. (November 2006)

Protopic; a Double Edged Sword - Kim, Hamilton, USA

My daughter who is 16 years old has had eczema for 14 years. The past four years she has been using Protopic and it works wonders. She had severe eczema and allergies and asthma. I am wondering if there is a connection between her always getting boils, infected hair follicles and staph infections related to Protopic. She has also had had herpes virus. I think the side effects of Protopic are like a double edged sword. She cannot live without the cream and she uses it everyday. If anyone else has had these problems please let me know. (February 2006) Contact Kim

Protopic and Steroids Can Work if Used Properly - Clio, London

Hello, I have had atopic eczema since six months old. I previously asthma and hayfever which I have now grown out of. I would like to say to people do not be lulled into a false sense of security with Chinese or any other herbal medicine. Remember herbs are very potent and natural does not equal "safe" Also don't rule things such as steroids or Protopic as these can be very effective when used properly by someone who knows what they're doing. Any medicine is dangerous if misused. Whatever path you choose be it conventional or complementary, above all quality of life is paramount. (February 2006)

Protopic as a treatment for eczema is excellent - Lindsay, Bristol, UK

Protopic works excellently for me. For 6 months my eczema had been growing worse and was really getting me down and stressed out, and generally affecting my life in a big way. When I was prescribed Protopic I was dubious about using it because of the unknown long-term effects, but I was also desperate to have a normal face again. My eczema cleared up within two days on my face, arms and hand. I could not believe it. I did get a spotty sort of rash for one to two days which I think was a side effect but it soon went away. I am finding, though, that I have to keep using it. I don't know if anyone else is having to do this? I am quite worried about the long-term effects of Protopic... but as a treatment for eczema, well it's just been excellent for me. (November 2005) Contact Lindsay

Protopic is my first choice - Darrell, Menlo Park, USA

I am 42 and I've had eczema for 40 years. I recently got prescribed protopic for the first time and was confounded by the fact that it was in ointment form. I told the pharmacist this must be a mistake, since this prescription was for my face and there's no way I'm putting ointment on my face. He told me I would have to contact my doctor, so I did, but to my dismay the doctor's nurse assistant told me it only comes in ointment form. This seemed absurd to me and unconvinced I later google'd "protopic cream", the first result I clicked on took me to this site and Cheryl's story, she also lives in the bay area, and this coincidence as well as her inspiring story led me to click on her contact link. Her genuinely positive response encouraged me to try it out. I've never contacted anyone like this on the web before and was surprised how motivating it is, consequently I applied protopic with unusual rigor, I say unusual because I have had eczema for 40 years and don't give much hope to any treatments, eczema comes and goes, ups, downs, yada, yada, yada. Of course protopic surpassed my expectations and I'm elated, it worked as quickly as a steroid, but without the scabbiness and scaring, sorry for the grossness, but for me, as quick as a steroid is, it's hard to just let the steroid do it's thing without trying to hasten it or make the healing less unsightly, resulting in even more scaring. So protopic's seemingly invisible healing is definitely an advantage. Not sure how effective it will be long term, but the next flare up I get, protopic will be my first choice to extinguish it. As for the risks, it's a no brainer, I want quality of life now please. (October 2005) Contact Darrell

Is this drug safe? - Meri, Argyll, UK

I am concerned, as a previous user of this drug, that there is no indication of where to find out more info about it. As you are no doubt aware strong concerns are now being raised about the safety and use of this drug in the vast majority of cases (i.e. it is supposed to be a drug of last resort and is being named as a possible carcinogen). Not complaining, just wouldn't want you to be giving an unbalanced picture. (October 2005) Contact Meri

Protopic helped me - Cheryl, San Francisco, USA

In 2002 I began struggling with a mysterious skin itching redness and chapping around my eye area and a redness burning at the corner of my mouth that was getting to be crusty looking. It made me look older and I was becoming depressed at my aging appearance at 41. At first I was prescribed cortisone ointment but that didn't help. Then a new doctor at Kaiser told me it was eczema and recommended the newest ointment out on the market, Prozac. Just in the nick of time the miracle cure was there for me. I tried it and it actually showed signs of healing within 24 hours! This was after 8 months of no real results with other cortisone treatments. Within 3 days it was completely gone and my skin looked great! Three years later, I find I no longer need Protopic but only very rarely for very minor flare-ups every 6 months. When I apply the ointment, the flare-up goes away within hours. When I read about the cancer risk recently I thought, it was worth the risk. I don't care if there is a small cancer risk because we risk our lives every day in a dangerous world. Eczema was very depressing to have and I was relieved there was something to get rid of it almost immediately. (May 2005) Contact Cheryl

Protopic helps my son - Mary Cres Atienza, Bacolod City, Philippines

My 1 year old son has severe atopic dermatitis. My husband and I are both doing our best to help him. We have tried traditional medicine however, it was not effective for our son. We even tried steroidal medicines, but after a week, it starts to flare up again. He can't sleep well at night due to itchiness. Our doctor gave us some creams for atopoic, but still it was not effective. Just last week, we went to our doctor for a check up because he had an eye allergy "allergic conjunctivitis" this pediatrician intoduced the protopic ointment .03% ointment. She told us to use it for 2 weeks. So she gave us a sample of it (10g.) and really it was so effective. We just used it for a week! So we decided to buy it. However this ointment is not available yet in all drug stores in our city. Maybe because it was so expensive that others can't afford to buy anymore. For now we don't know yet when to get this ointment because our doctor told us to use it for two weeks, but just yesterday the ointment tube was already empty. Well for those who have not yet tried the protopic cream, try it yourself it might also be effective for you... (February 2005) Contact Mary Cres

Protopic has only helped a bit - Pete, Las Vegas, USA

I am 22 yrs old, and I have suffered with eczema for about 3 years now. My dermatologist had me try Elidel. I was very excited to try it, but it did absolutely NOTHING for me!!! She then put me on Protopic and told me it works better for adults with moderate eczema than Elidel because Protopic is a little bit stronger. It has helped, but only a little bit. (January 2005) Contact Pete

Protopic controls my outbreaks - Jeanne, USA

After living in a basement apartment, I came down with a horrible case of eczema from head to toe that just wouldn't go away (even though I moved), people would make comments and it was painful for me to shower and sometimes to even walk/move around. In a nutshell, for years the eczema made me feel awful and depressed. I tried Protopic once over the summer and stopped after a week because it burned so bad. After trying everything under the sun including diets, acupuncture, Eladil (which didn't help me much), I finally tried Protopic again. Thank goodness. It had been my godsend. I am finally eczema free throughout most of my body . I use it whenever I start to flare up and it quickly controls my outbreak. Nothing compares. The burn calmed down over time and even though my skin is still slightly sensitive to heat after applying Protopic, it beats the itch, cuts, bleeding, etc anyday. My roommate from that apartment also came down with eczema and protopic is also the only thing that controls it. (November 2004)

Protopic cleared my skin - Chris, Manchester, UK

Having suffered from Seb D for the past ten years, I had tried most steroid and topical creams to reduce the itchy, flaking red skin only on my nose, cheeks and eyebrows. Nothing really worked for any length of time, until I was put onto Protopic in May 2004 by my dermatologist. Within 3 days I was my skin was clear, no more redness or sores! Wow! I use it once a day now and have not had a attack in two months. (July 2004)

Protopic and Biotique - Chandru, India

I had tried Tacrolimus ointment, which is safe and it works. Or Biotique's Morning Nectar ( from India and fully herbal) Regards Chandramoulee. (July 2004)

Protopic and E45 - Simon, West Midlands UK

I've got my seborrheic dermatitis pretty much under control, using E45 every time I wash and rubbing it in really well. Then when it looks like it's about 2 flare up I use Protopic 0.3 on the affected area, well after applying my E45 and at night (cos its shiny on the face so if I can wait til night I will) and this does the trick. At the moment I'm using the Protopic about every other night and my skin is looking and feeling very good. (April 2004)

Protopic eventually helped my eczema - Debbie, London UK

I have been using Protopic for 4 months after 35+ years of conventional steroid treatments which have left my skin very thin and damaged. Although at first I was quite miserable because my skin felt that it was on fire, now my eczema is hugely improved. I still have the occasional "itchy frenzy" at night, but gone are the days of waking up with blood on my clothes and on the bedsheets. (June 03)

My eczema has improved with Protopic - H Chan, London, UK

I am 27 and have had eczema since childhood. I had been clear for a year but after a bad flare up I started to use Protopic two weeks ago. I have already seen an improvement in my skin - it is healing more quickly and I am scratching less at night. This will sound skeptical and ungrateful but although Protopic is working for me it may well be because my skin is now immune to all other treatments! Therefore I am using it sparingly to save it for the "emergencies". It's nice to find others who are in the same situation as myself, I totally understand how it feels! (March 03)

I have suffered eczema for 28 years,12 of these were spent in hospital being bandaged from head to foot. I have tried everything imaginable from aloe plants to Chinese herbalist at £100 a throw, and at last a miracle cure. I had a routine visit to my dermatologist who prescribed me a new ointment Protopic. It doesn't contain steroids, however within 48 hours my skin was totally new. I can't tell you how happy I am - I feel like dancing in the streets naked! I had got to the point in life where I thought I could no longer go on, I found it impossible to do small things like dress my 3 year old daughter or even drive the car. If it hadn't of been for my lovely family I really think I would have ended it all, but thanks to this new ointment I'M A NEW WOMAN. Thanks Protopic Tacrolimus monohydrate. (Feb 03)

Just want to share a bit of my experience. Have suffered for two years with eczema around my eyes. After trying many creams, washes, treatments, I've finally hit on a regimen that works! I feel so grateful, I'd like to share...
I use Protopic ointment twice a day---with or without symptoms, and it's working. If it suddenly flares up, I keep a tube of cortisone on hand, but for the most part I stick to the Protopic. It didn't work at first so well, but over time has. Good luck to you all. I understand. (January 03)

Give Protopic a try - Jeff, Colorado Springs, USA

Protopic has been a Godsend for eczema on the sole of my foot. For several years I have had bleeding itchy eczema on the sole of my foot. I've tried many steroid creams and lots of other remedies and still was nearly crippled if I did much walking. I had a heart attack in 2001 so walking is a critical activity for my health. Protopic use completely healed my foot within about a month. Now I only have minor itching once or twice a month. Give it a try!
(January 2003)

Protopic has helped my daughter - Vanessa, UK

I have been using Tacrolimus Protopic on my two year old daughter for the past two months. It was prescribed by her dermatologist after she had to be hospitalised after a very bad flare up. Having been miserable from May to October, permanently red and itchy and getting no sleep at night, she became a different child as soon as we started using it. We feel nervous about using it because she is so young and they are not sure about what harm it could do to her but the difference in her enjoyment of life has been so dramatic that we feel we should continue using it for the moment. Her eczema is particularly bad on her face but as soon as we use the Protopic it clears up - and so does any damaged skin caused by her scratching. She is not cured and she still has flare-ups as do all sufferers but having had no sleep for four months (me included of course!) she is now actually sleeping through the night, and is therefore much happier because of that as well. (November 2002)

Protopic and how it has worked for me - Lacey, New York City, USA

I would like to discuss Protopic with other people on the site. Since it was released in the USA in 2001, I have been through it's short side effects over the last few months and I just want to express my opinions. Some of you may have the same side-effects that I had and you may want to stop taking Protopic but DON'T GIVE UP! Do not be surprized if it burns the skin. I tried it 3 times and gave up because it burned my skin so bad that I had to put little ice packs all over (I have very sensitive skin). I finally decided to work through it and to try it for a solid week. It was magical. My eczema hasn't felt this good in ages. I am still very sensitive to temperature though! Since I apply protopic from head to toe, when I take a shower the water temperature has to be very cool otherwise my skin burns. I am getting used to this as well though because it's so worth the slight discomfort to be less itchy. Remember to stay out of the sun. It was a hot spring day today in the city and I decided to sit outside in a T-shirt on my lunch break and now my skin aches a bit. They are not yet sure how Protopic reacts with the sun but they do know that it is bad! Also, many doctors are pushing the Protopic right now even though they don't know much about it. I had one doctor who told me I could stay on it forever but I recently read somewhere that it should be an on-off drug and that it should not be used for over 1 year consecutively .I hope to hear others talk about this new drug very soon. (April 2002)

My experience with Protopic - John, USA

My experience with Protopic - I have found that rubbing Vaseline on after
showering and before drying off and the use of Walmart Equate anti-itch
cream (Benedryl Active Ingredients) is just as good and a lot cheaper than Protopic. (March 2002)

Protopic worked for us - Julie, USA

You may already know this, but just in case you don't- we have a great dermatologist who prescribed us a compounded formula of tacrolimus (Prograf)-this medicine is usually taken by mouth by people who have had a liver or kidney transplant to help them prevent rejection- but in this compounded ointment formula, it helps people with eczema skin stop reacting like it usually does. My daughter looked like she had the measles or something most of the time, and she reacted to just about anything that touched her skin, and to heat, cold, and stress. Within 12 hours of the first application of the Prograf compound (now available as Protopic), all the redness was gone. Within a couple of days, (she applied it twice a day) all the bumps were totally gone. She still uses it about once a day, and her skin is still beautiful. If you haven't given this stuff a try, it might really be helpful to you too. Good luck. Julie. (Jan 2002)

Protopic cleared 90% of my eczema - Alicia, Universal City, USA

I wanted to post my experience with Protopic Ointment. I just wanted to tell everyone that Protopic has cleared about 90% of my eczema. I have suffered my whole life from this, inherited from my grandfather. And for some reason the past 7 years, since 1995, my rash became worse, literally from practically nothing to extremely severe. I hated it really bad and the past 3 years have been extremely hard on my skin, my self-confidence, hope, and life experience. I've been using Protopic for 4 months now, with impressive results, just when I thought there was really no hope. I have such a severe case of it the past 3 years, that the Protopic is effective but not 100%. So I imagine those with average cases it would clear up more easily. I recently had been sent home from a job and had to find a new job because one of my co-workers would see me blatantly applying my Protopic, my own fault, now that was embarrassing, it's not contagious!! Otherwise it appears to be hardly, if at all noticeable. Also drinking alot of water helps as well. So hopefully, eventually, this product will clear it up completely or I may find something else to use in combination with it. Good luck, Alicia. (December 2001)

Protopic works for me - Kristin, California, USA

I was curious to know if you have heard of a new medicine on the American market called Protopic (Tacrolimus ointment)? I suffered from eczema when I was a baby (I am told) and was revisited by this agonizing skin problem before I went off to college. Throughout college, my eyes and face were perpetually irritated. My eyes were the worst - everyday and night I would itch them and rub them continually. They were so red, I became somewhat of a makeup artist covering up my eczema. This May, upon graduation, I was informed about Protopic from my dermatologist who prescribed me the lesser degree 0.03% in conjunction with an antibiotic. Wow! My eyes cleared up and have felt great. Whenever I feel a flare-up coming on, I just dab a little bit of this on. I haven't had this much freedom from eczema in years. My hands still show signs, but I am so relieved about the improvement of my eyes that I will deal with my hands later. I have heard of (close to) miraculous clearing of the skin in both the young and the old. Protopic targets the immune system and is not a steroid cream. Its effect does not lessen the more you use it. I thought you might want to know about this knew medication. I don't know if it is available in the UK, but I hope so. (October 2001)

Protopic is the miracle we have been waiting for - Michele, San Bernardino, USA

Protopic is the miracle we have been waiting for! My son Tyler has had eczema since he was 5 weeks old (inherited from my side of the family including myself). He used to rub his hands on his crib sheets and then on the carpet when he was starting to crawl because they itched so bad. I used to sit in front of our room air condition or fan to cool off his skin so that it would stop itching because even water would burn him! All the kids in pre-school and kindergarten asked him. "What's wrong with you?" And of course all their mothers asked if it was contagious. HEARTBREAKING!! He is now 6 years old and a NEW KID! He had eczema everywhere! The corners of his mouth had been "broken-out" for a year and a half and NOTHING would help my little boy. Then... Protopic was prescribed a month after it had been on the market and within 3-4 DAYS, no more itching, no more bleeding, no more scratching, no more sleepless nights!!! Everyone tells him how wonderful his skin looks! and he is so proud! He smiles and laughs all the time and he can eat ketchup and oranges without it burning his little fingers and mouth. He runs and plays without having to stop to scratch. We are very thankful for this new cure! Please talk to your doctor... THIS REALLY WORKS!!! Good luck to everyone! (July 2001)

Protopic works for my daughter - Dawn, West Deptford, USA

My daughter is doing wonderful on the protopic. She has eczema on about 90% of her body. It would get so bad that she was not sleeping more than 3-4 hours a night. There were many meals that she needed to be fed because her hands were so cracked and sore. I applied the ointment on her for the first time before bed; the next morning she woke up so excited, her hands and feet and the rest of her body looked great!!! The first couple of days she had a slight tingle (as she put it) because of the open sores (from her constant scratching). Within just a few days her skin looked like she didn't even have eczema. She started the ointment one week before 2nd grade and she couldn't wait for school to start. When she got off the school bus that first day she was beaming. Everyone loved her new skin!! She is very close to her 1st grade teacher, she had me take her to visit her the day before school started. The teacher actually cried, she was so shocked!! I could go on forever - this stuff is so good!

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Page updated: 7 July 2008