# How bad are ulcerative colitis or Crohn’s disease that progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (a rare, serious brain infection that can result in death or severe disability) is an acceptable potential side effect?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-bad-are-ulcerative-colitis-or-crohn-s-disease-that-progressive-multifocal-leukoencephalopathy-a-rare-serious-brain-infection-that-can-result-in-death-or-severe-disability-is-an-acceptable-potential-side-effect/1015190>\
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion\
**Created:** [March 6, 2025, 2:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-bad-are-ulcerative-colitis-or-crohn-s-disease-that-progressive-multifocal-leukoencephalopathy-a-rare-serious-brain-infection-that-can-result-in-death-or-severe-disability-is-an-acceptable-potential-side-effect/1015190 "2025-03-06T02:58:21Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 2

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Treppenwitz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treppenwitz/32/3445_2.png) [@Treppenwitz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Treppenwitz)\
**Post date:** [March 7, 2025, 10:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-bad-are-ulcerative-colitis-or-crohn-s-disease-that-progressive-multifocal-leukoencephalopathy-a-rare-serious-brain-infection-that-can-result-in-death-or-severe-disability-is-an-acceptable-potential-side-effect/1015190/21 "2025-03-07T22:37:09Z")

</div>

Blimey. I take it back.

Makes playing the odds with mercaptopurine seem like an easy choice.

j

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\
**Post date:** [March 7, 2025, 11:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-bad-are-ulcerative-colitis-or-crohn-s-disease-that-progressive-multifocal-leukoencephalopathy-a-rare-serious-brain-infection-that-can-result-in-death-or-severe-disability-is-an-acceptable-potential-side-effect/1015190/22 "2025-03-07T23:29:25Z")

</div>

That was true even in the late 1990s when this all started, and they were advertising treatments for diseases most people have at least heard of.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\
**Post date:** [March 7, 2025, 11:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-bad-are-ulcerative-colitis-or-crohn-s-disease-that-progressive-multifocal-leukoencephalopathy-a-rare-serious-brain-infection-that-can-result-in-death-or-severe-disability-is-an-acceptable-potential-side-effect/1015190/23 "2025-03-07T23:43:06Z")

</div>

TOUCH is similar to the program followed for Accutane, an acne drug that is used only when other treatments have failed, and thalidomide, used nowadays for rare cancers like multiple myeloma. The doctor, patient, and pharmacy all have to register before the meds can be dispensed.

The lady who does “Let’s Talk IBD” has mentioned being on 6-mercaptopurine as a teenager, about 15 years ago, before she got her colostomy. This medications first use was in the 1950s for acute lymphoblastic leukemia, for which it alone caused temporary remissions in about 25% of patients.

In the late 1980s and early 1990s, the Lifetime channel had Lifetime Medical Television, continuing education for physicians and other health care professionals, and they did have prescription drug advertising but that was the place for it. Here are some commercials from 1987.

> **[1987 Lifetime Medical Television Commercials (Cardiology Update)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SXc8DCx6IBM%2F)**
>
> Fair Use, educational, you know the drill.No requests, I do not have a recording of every airing of every show in existence, alright?

And another set of commercials. Kind of funny that Seldane and Feldene were both in this video, because those were the two most commonly confused drug names at the time.

> **[Television for doctors, circa 1991 - part 1](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oAC60Bl0UrQ%2F)**
>
> Here are some show promos, openings and disclaimer-laden prescription drug ads for the trade aired during educational programming for doctors, taped off cabl...

[Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-bad-are-ulcerative-colitis-or-crohn-s-disease-that-progressive-multifocal-leukoencephalopathy-a-rare-serious-brain-infection-that-can-result-in-death-or-severe-disability-is-an-acceptable-potential-side-effect/1015190.md?page=1)