Getting sick more on rapamycin

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#1

I’ve been taking Rapa (6mg/wk) for ~8 months or so. I’ve noticed I’m A LOT more prone to colds and other illnesses, am I alone?

  • Sinus infection that lasted 3.5 weeks, bedridden for a week of it sweating through the sheets, etc until i went to the dr
  • Stye that lasted for a month
  • 4 respiratory illnesses that lasted ~3-7 days each that affected me to the point of taking a day off from work
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#2

It’s a “normal” reaction if you are taking too much and over suppress your immune system. Reduce the dose, have longer breaks.

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#3

Welcome to the community!
I think the quick story here is that your humoral immunity can be knocked down while until the first couple of days post Rapamycin. So bacterial infections are increased - and should be treated early.

Viral infections in general should be a bit less as your T cell immunity should usually do better, which includes fighting viral infections and identifying malignancies.

That has been my experience on this. If you’ve gotten more colds - it could simply be bad luck.

#4

Did you have any blood testing prior to starting? I would see an immunologist for an immune work up. CBC, IgG, A, M, E; MBL, flow cytometry, specific titers, delayed hypersensitivity, etc. etc.
It’s possible that you had some minor subclinical immunodeficiency like mild neutropenia or common IgA deficiency that was exacerbated by adding a systemic immunosuppressant.
I would definitely would stop rapamycin unless it was prescribed for a specific reason by a physician.

#5

Don’t r/o simple coincidence. It has been a nasty winter for viral infections.

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