Humira for Crohn's - Refrigeration Required

[RachieLnnn]

Hi all,

My husband recently started taking Humira for Crohn's, and will be due for an injection right in the middle of our 13 week transatlantic cruise.

 

The Humira needs to be refrigerated. Our ship (the NCL Gem) has refrigerators I believe, but we are concerned about the flight over and the pre-night stay in Barcelona.

 

Has anyone ever come across this problem before? What did you do?

 

Thanks in advance for any advice! :)

[kitty9]

You will need to take one of those insulated 6 pack coolers with those cool packs inside. That will keep you for the flight. Once you get to the hotel, you can just get ice to keep it cool.

 

When you get to the ship, DO NOT attempt to keep it in those refrigerators in your cabin. Most aren't cool enough for anything. Take the meds to the medical center on the ship, and have them store it for you. When traveling on the plane, make sure you have it in the regular container, with your husband's legal name on it.

[cb at sea]

Call the manufacturer of Humira--my SIL had to use it, and she was given a small, portable cooler to carry it in by the company.

[mkjuz]

It is kind of scary the first time traveling with it since it does need to be kept cold (no preservatives) but I do it often and its not hard, just needs planning. Be sure to take the outside box with the script on it.

 

They took my Humira on HAL - all I had to do was make a call when I needed it and they delivered it to me. I bought a small "lunch sack" sized carrier with a small ice pack. I placed one of my luggage tags on the outside so they knew who it belonged to.

 

I would suggest you use ice packs vs. ice as the ice melts and destroys the box with your script on it. I've done that before and it was a mess.

 

Call your TA or the hotel and see if they can store it so your not worried about taking it with you. You can also call the airline and see if they will store it for you since you have a long flight (they may/may not due to security regulations). You may also want to check and see if you can pack it in dry ice.

"Dry Ice (frozen carbon dioxide): Up to four pounds (1.8 kg) may be carried on board for packing perishables providing the package is vented"

Good luck and enjoy your trip! Happy Anniversary!

[pungo3]

I take Humira for RA and travel with it frequently. I keep it in an insulated bag with two frozen packs while I'm flying. That will keep it cold for 2 days. I agree with the OP, I wouldn't trust it in my cabin fridge, I'd ask to keep it in the infirmary. If you aren't comfortable doing that. just take extra ziplock bags and keep them filled with ice and store on either side of the box of humira in your cabin fridge. I've been on Humira for 4 years and been to Europe 8 times during that time and never had a problem with it going bad. It is a wonderful drug (and expensive).

[paul929207]

My wife takes a different injectible drug (forteo) that also has to be refrigerated. With the first dosage, she got a small bag with two freezer packs. They worked fine going to Europe and South America.

[AmoMondo]

My sister has to carry injections and medication for MS (she injects once per week). She always lets the hotel or ship know so that she not only gets a refrigerator in the room/cabin but also gets a sharps bin to avoid cleaners accidently getting needle stick injuries. On very long flights, she always takes her medication in a small ccoler bag in her hand luggage. Not only keeps it cool but also the insulation of the bag provides adding padding for protection against breakage. She also usually takes an extra dose with her in case one gets damaged or contaminated or she is delayed on the way home

[PennyAgain]

The so-called refrigerators on the ships are only beverage coolers. They aren't even safely cold enough to keep milk.

 

A few cruise lines will actually put a real fridge in your cabin, but not all.

 

This is also true with the fridges in most hotel rooms.

[cschultz]

Go to google and type in Humira free cooler -

 

There is a patient suport program, and it says that it supplies a free sharps container and cooler for traveling.

 

There is a 1-800 number listed where you can enroll.

 

If this is no longer available, I'm sure that you could buy a travel cooler

at your local pharmacy.

[RachieLnnn]

Thanks so much for all of your ideas! You all made us feel a lot better about traveling with this prescription. Your past experience and knowledge is so very valuable!

Thanks again! :)