TOPOTECAN

(TOE poe TEE kan) Brand: Hycamtin

What is the most significant information I must know about topotecan?

• You must not use topotecan if you have severe bone marrow depression.

• Topotecan can lower blood cells that help your body fight infections and help your blood to clot. You may get an infection or bleed more easily. Call your doctor if you have unusual bruising or bleeding, or signs of infection (fever, chills, body aches).

What is topotecan?

• Topotecan is a cancer medicine that interferes with the growth and spread of cancer cells in the body.

• Topotecan is used to treat ovarian cancer, little cell lung cancer, and determined types of cervical cancer.

• Topotecan may also be used for purposes not listed in this medicine guide.

What must I discuss with my healthcare provider till using topotecan?

• You must not use topotecan if you have severe bone marrow depression.

• To create certain you can safely use topotecan, speak your doctor if you have any of these another conditions:

· kidney disease;

· lung malady or lung cancer; or

· if you have had a chest x-ray or radiation treatment of your chest area.

• FDA pregnancy category D. Do not use topotecan if you are pregnant. It could harm the unborn child. Use effective birth control, and speak your doctor if you become pregnant during treatment.

• It is not known whether topotecan passes into breast milk or if it could harm a nursing child. You must not breast-feed while you are using topotecan.

How must I use topotecan?

• Follow all directions on your prescription label. Do not use this medication in larger or less amounts or for longer than recommended.

• Topotecan is generally given once daily for 5 days in a row. This treatment is then repeated each 21 days, generally for at least 4 treatments. It may take different weeks for your body to respond to the medication.

• Topotecan capsules are taken by mouth. You may need to take two various colored capsules at one time. Create certain you know the difference between capsules because one contains 4 times as many topotecan as the another, even though they may look the same in size.

• Take the topotecan capsule with a full glass (8 ounces) of water. You may take the medication with or without food.

• If you vomit after taking a topotecan capsule, do not take other doze that same day. Call your doctor for instructions.

• Do not crush or interrupt a topotecan capsule, or use a capsule that has been accidentally broken. The medication from a broken capsule can be dangerous if it gets in your eyes or on your skin. If this occurs, wash your skin with soap and water or rinse the eyes for at least 15 minutes with plain water. Ask your doctor or pharmacist how to safely handle and dispose of a broken tablet or capsule.

• Store topotecan capsules in the refrigerator and protect them from light.

• Topotecan injection is injected into a vein through an IV. You will receive this injection in a clinic or hospital setting. Topotecan should be given slowly, and the IV infusion can take up to 30 minutes to complete.

• Speak your doctor right away if any of this medication gets on your skin during the injection. If this does happen, the exposed skin must be rinsed thoroughly with soap and warm water.

• Topotecan can lower blood cells that help your body fight infections and help your blood to clot. This can create it easier for you to bleed from an injury or get sick from being near others who are ill. Your blood may need to be tested often.

What happens if I miss a dose?

• Call your doctor for instructions if you miss any of your topotecan doses.

What happens if I overdose?

• Search abnormal medical attention or call the Poison Help line at 1-800-222-1222.

What must I avoid while using topotecan?

• Avoid being around people who are sick or have infections. Speak your doctor at once if you develop signs of infection.

• This medication can pass into body fluids (including urine, feces, vomit, semen, vaginal fluid). For at least 48 hours after you receive a doze, avoid allowing your body fluids to come into contact with your hands or another surfaces. Patients and caregivers must wear rubber gloves while cleaning up body fluids, handling contaminated trash or laundry or changing diapers. Wash hands till and after removing gloves. Wash soiled clothing and linens apart from another laundry.

• Body fluids must not be handled by a woman who is pregnant or who may become pregnant. Use condoms during sexual activity to avoid exposure to body fluids.

• Do not receive a "live" vaccine while using topotecan, and avoid coming into contact with anyone who has recently received a live vaccine. There is a chance that the virus could be passed on to you. Live vaccines include measles, mumps, rubella (MMR), rotavirus, typhoid, yellow fever, varicella (chickenpox), zoster (shingles), and nasal flu (influenza) vaccine.

• Topotecan may impair your thinking or reactions. Be careful if you drive or do anything that requires you to be alert.

What are the possible side effects of topotecan?

• Get abnormal medical help if you have any of these signs of an allergic reaction: hives; difficulty breathing; swelling of your person, lips, tongue, or throat.

• Call your doctor at once if you have:

· wheezing, feeling short of breath, chest pain, dry cough;

· fever, chills, flu symptoms, mouth and throat ulcers, rapid and shallow breathing, fainting;

· pale skin, feeling light-headed, rapid heart course, trouble concentrating;

· light bruising, unusual bleeding (nose, mouth, vagina, or rectum), purple or red pinpoint spots under your skin;

· diarrhea with fever and stomach cramps;

· pain or burning when you urinate; or

· skin changes or severe irritation where the needle is placed.

• General side effects may include:

· nausea, diarrhea, vomiting;

· weary feeling; or

· temporary hair loss.

• This is not a complete list of side effects and others may occur. Call your doctor for medical advice about side effects. You may message side effects to FDA at 1-800-FDA-1088.

What another drugs will affect topotecan?

• Speak your doctor about all medicines you use, and those you start or stop using during your treatment with topotecan, especially:

· filgrastim, pegfilgrastim, or sargramostim; or

· cisplatin, carboplatin or oxaliplatin.

• This list is not complete. Another drugs may interact with topotecan, including prescription and over-the-counter medicines, vitamins, and herbal commodity. Not all possible interactions are listed in this medicine manual.

Where can I get more information?

• Your doctor or pharmacist can provide more information about topotecan.

Remember, hold this and all another medicines out of the reach of children, never share your medicines with others, and use this medicine only for the indication prescribed.

Disclaim: Each effort has been made to ensure that the information provided by Cerner Multum, Inc. ('Multum') is accurate, up-to-date, and complete, but no guarantee is made to that effect. Drug information contained herein may be time sensitive. Multum information has been compiled for use by healthcare practitioners and consumers in the United States and therefore Multum does not warrant that uses external of the United States are appropriate, unless specifically indicated otherwise. Multum's drug information does not endorse drugs, diagnose patients or recommend therapy. Multum's drug information is an informational resource designed to assist licensed healthcare practitioners in caring for their patients and/or to serve consumers viewing this service as a supplement to, and not a substitute for, the expertise, skill, knowledge and judgment of healthcare practitioners. The absence of a warning for a given drug or drug combination in no way must be construed to indicate that the drug or drug combination is safety, effective or appropriate for any given patient. Multum does not assume any responsibility for any aspect of healthcare administered with the help of information Multum provides. The information contained herein is not intended to cover all possible uses, directions, precautions, warnings, drug interactions, allergic reactions, or adverse effects. If you have questions about the drugs you are taking, check with your doctor, nurse or pharmacist.