JEANNE:
My name is Jeanne. I have Thyroid Eye Disease and this is my real story.
It was early 2019 when I started feeling… I think the word would be anxious. It turned out that I have not just hyperthyroidism, but I have Graves’ disease. I started feeling like my eyes were getting really bad. I saw a primary care physician, I saw an optometrist, I saw an ophthalmologist, I saw a neurologist. I saw a neuro‐ophthalmologist who finally diagnosed me with Thyroid Eye Disease.
My left eye was becoming fixed in my eye socket and it was bulging, and it was itchy and red. Painful. It was a hard time. It was just hard to drive, hard to take walks on the beach. It was hard to go for a hike. It was hard to just be.
A colleague that I’ve worked with for 16 years came over and she’s like, “Jeanne! What happened to your face? I don’t even recognize you!” and it was really disheartening. I knew it because I could barely recognize myself.
Along with my oculoplastic surgeon, I sat down and we made a plan, and that plan was TEPEZZA. And he told me that it was an infusion, that it was going to be 8 infusions over 24 weeks, so once every 3 weeks. I’m a nurse–I do infusions all the time–so I didn’t really think it was a big deal, but it was a little scary that I was going to put something new into my body, and I was hopeful that it was gonna work.
It was a slow process, but with each infusion, I did feel more and more relief. It was amazing. It just…each time, my eyes…the bulging became less. I woke up not having eye pain, and I woke up without double vision.
And I kind of raced to the mirror ‘cause I felt my eyes working. The tearing was gone. The redness was gone. The double vision was gone. I was–I called my husband, I’m like, “Jan, you gotta see this!”
It’s a hard diagnosis to have, it’s hard to live with. And to not have the heaviness behind your eyes…to not have the pain behind your eyes…to not have the itchiness, the bulgy red eyes…to not look weird—‘cause you look odd when you have Thyroid Eye Disease—it’s, it’s really nice.
If somebody came to me with, “I think I might have Thyroid Eye Disease,” I first of all would ask them to talk to their doctor. And I would definitely tell them about the option of TEPEZZA.
VOICE ACTOR VO:
Please keep watching to hear Important Safety Information about TEPEZZA.
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TEPEZZA is a prescription medicine used to treat Thyroid Eye Disease.
IMPORTANT SAFETY INFORMATION
What is the most important information I should know about TEPEZZA?
Infusion reactions can happen during or within 24 hours after your infusion of TEPEZZA. If you have a reaction while receiving TEPEZZA, your doctor or nurse will slow or stop your infusion and treat your reaction. If you have a severe infusion reaction, your doctor may stop your treatment completely.
Tell your doctor or nurse right away if you have any of these symptoms during or after your treatment with TEPEZZA:
- High blood pressure
- Fast heartbeat
- Redness of the face/Feeling hot
- Difficulty breathing
- Headache
- Muscle pain
If you have inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), such as Crohn’s disease or ulcerative colitis, TEPEZZA may make your IBD symptoms worse. Symptoms of worsening IBD may include: an increased number of loose stools with stomach pain or cramps, and blood in your stools. After each TEPEZZA infusion, tell your doctor right away if you have worsening IBD symptoms.
TEPEZZA may cause an increase in your blood sugar. Before starting treatment with TEPEZZA, tell your doctor if you are currently being treated for diabetes, know your blood sugar is high, or have been diagnosed with diabetes. It is important for you to take your treatments and follow an appropriate diet for glucose control as prescribed by your doctor.
Before receiving TEPEZZA, tell your doctor if you:
- Have inflammatory bowel disease (Crohn’s disease or ulcerative colitis).
- Are currently being treated for diabetes, have been diagnosed with diabetes, or know your blood sugar is high.
- Are pregnant or plan to become pregnant. TEPEZZA may harm your unborn baby. Tell your doctor if you become pregnant or suspect you are pregnant during treatment with TEPEZZA.
- Women who are able to become pregnant should use an effective form of birth control (contraception) prior to starting treatment, during treatment and for at least 6 months after the final dose of TEPEZZA.
- Are breastfeeding or plan to breastfeed. It is not known if TEPEZZA passes into your breast milk. Talk to your doctor about the best ways to feed your baby during treatment with TEPEZZA.
- Tell your doctor about all the medicines you take, including prescription and over the counter medicines, vitamins, dietary and herbal supplements. Know the medicines you take. Keep a list of them to show your doctor and pharmacist when you get a new medicine.
What are the possible side effects of TEPEZZA?
The most common side effects of TEPEZZA include muscle cramps or spasms, nausea, hair loss, diarrhea, feeling tired, high blood sugar, hearing problems, taste changes, headache, and dry skin.
This is not a complete list of all possible side effects. Tell your doctor or treatment team if you have any side effect that bothers you or that does not go away.
Please visit TEPEZZA.com for more information.
You are encouraged to report negative side effects of prescription drugs to the FDA. Visit www.fda.gov/safety/medwatch, or call the FDA at 1-800-FDA-1088.
