• Some patients experience severe reactions during the infusion. This medicine causes low blood cell counts for a long period of time. Your healthcare provider will need to monitor your blood cell counts.
• Serious infections have occurred in patients who take these types of medicines. Talk with healthcare provider.
• This medicine does not mix well with many medicines. Serious reactions may occur. Check all medicines with healthcare provider.
• If you have an allergy to alemtuzumab or any other part of this medicine.
• If you are allergic to mouse proteins, talk with healthcare provider.
• Tell healthcare provider if you are allergic to any medicine. Make sure to tell about the allergy and how it affected you. This includes telling about rash; hives; itching; shortness of breath; wheezing; cough; swelling of face, lips, tongue, or throat; or any other symptoms involved.
• If you are pregnant or may be pregnant.
• If you are breast-feeding.
• This medicine is given as a shot into a vein.
• Acetaminophen and diphenhydramine may be given before this medicine to decrease fever and chills.
• Change in condition being treated. Is it better, worse, or about the same?
• Check blood work regularly. Talk with healthcare provider.
• Watch for tarry black stools.
• Follow up with healthcare provider.
• This medicine will be given to you in a healthcare setting. You will not store it at home.
Created: 2005-04-07 16:15:59.0
Modified: 2010-03-09 08:24:48.0
Lexi-PALS TM © (1977)-(2007) Lexi-Comp, Inc. All rights reserved.
• This medicine is used to treat blood disorders.
• This medicine is used to treat leukemia.
• This medicine is used to treat lymphoma.
• This medicine is used to prevent rejection after organ transplant.
• If you have a life-threatening allergy, wear allergy identification at all times.
• Do not share your medicine with others and do not take anyone else's medicine.
• Keep all medicine out of the reach of children and pets.
• Most medicines can be thrown away in household trash after mixing with coffee grounds or kitty litter and sealing in a plastic bag.
• Keep a list of all your medicines (prescription, natural products, supplements, vitamins, over-the-counter) with you. Give this list to healthcare provider (doctor, nurse, nurse practitioner, pharmacist, physician assistant).
• Call your doctor for medical advice about side effects. You may report side effects to FDA at 1-800-FDA-1088 or in Canada to Health Canada's Canada Vigilance Program at 1-866-234-2345.
• Talk with healthcare provider before starting any new medicine, including over-the-counter, natural products, or vitamins.
• If you are 65 or older, use this medicine with caution. You could have more side effects.
• If you have heart disease, talk with healthcare provider.
• If you have high blood pressure, talk with healthcare provider.
• Check medicines with healthcare provider. This medicine may not mix well with other medicines.
• Talk with healthcare provider before receiving any vaccinations. Use with this medicine may either increase the risk of serious infection or make the vaccination less effective.
• Tell dentists, surgeons, and other healthcare providers that you use this medicine.
• Talk with healthcare provider before using aspirin, aspirin-containing products, other pain medicines, blood thinners, garlic, ginseng, ginkgo, or vitamin E.
• Use birth control that you can trust during treatment and for 6 months after treatment ends.
• If you are a male and sexually active, protect your partner from pregnancy during treatment and for 6 months after treatment ends. Use birth control that you can trust.
• Flu-like symptoms. These include headache, weakness, fever, shakes, aches, pains, and sweating. Mild pain medicine may help.
• Risk of infection. Avoid people with infections, colds, or flu.
• Feeling dizzy. Rise slowly over several minutes from sitting or lying position. Be careful climbing.
• High or low blood pressure.
• Headache.
• Belly pain.
• Cough.
• Nausea or vomiting. Small frequent meals, frequent mouth care, sucking hard, sugar-free candy, or chewing sugar-free gum may help.
• Mouth irritation. Frequent mouth care with a soft toothbrush or cotton swabs and rinsing mouth may help.
• Swelling.
• Diarrhea.
• Skin irritation.
• Anemia, low white blood cell count, and low platelet count.
• If you suspect an overdose, call your local poison control center or emergency department immediately.
• Signs of a life-threatening reaction. These include wheezing; chest tightness; fever; itching; bad cough; blue skin color; fits; or swelling of face, lips, tongue, or throat.
• Signs or symptoms of infection. These include a fever of 100.5 degrees or higher, chills, severe sore throat, ear or sinus pain, cough, increased sputum or change in color, painful urination, mouth sores, wound that will not heal, or anal itching or pain.
• Chest pain or pressure or fast heartbeat.
• Severe dizziness or passing out.
• Severe headache.
• Severe nausea or vomiting.
• Severe diarrhea.
• Unusual bruising or bleeding.
• Any rash.
• No improvement in condition or feeling worse.
