Cancer Home > What Is Hecoria Used For?
If you have received a kidney, heart, or liver transplant, a healthcare provider may prescribe Hecoria to help prevent transplant rejection. This medication works by suppressing the immune system, preventing it from attacking the newly transplanted organ. There are also a number of "off-label" (unapproved) uses for Hecoria, including the treatment of Crohn's disease, rheumatoid arthritis, and psoriasis, just to name a few.
An Overview of Uses for Hecoria
Hecoria™ (tacrolimus) is a prescription medication approved to prevent organ rejection in people who have received a heart, kidney, or liver transplant. It is always used in combination with other medications.An organ transplant is a surgical procedure in which a damaged or failing organ is replaced with a healthy one. Not all organs can be transplanted. Organs that can be transplanted include the:
- Heart
- Kidney
- Liver
- Lungs
- Pancreas
- Intestines.
People who receive an organ transplant are at risk for transplant rejection. This rejection occurs when the immune system, which works to defend the body against foreign invaders, recognizes the transplanted organ as foreign and attacks it. Transplant rejection can cause a transplanted organ to fail.
Anti-rejection medicines are used after transplant surgery to reduce the risk for transplant rejection. If you have received an organ transplant, you will likely need to take an anti-rejection medicine for the rest of your life. Anti-rejection medications are also called immunosuppressants because they suppress the immune system.
Hecoria is an immunosuppressant. It is approved for use after a heart, kidney, or liver transplant, in combination with a corticosteroid (such as prednisone). It is also used with azathioprine (Imuran®) or mycophenolate (CellCept®, Myfortic®) after a kidney transplant.