Vemurafenib Side Effects and Warnings

Vemurafenib caused a number of side effects, including diarrhea, fatigue, nausea, hair loss, rash, joint pain and squamous cell skin cancer. About 31% of the patients grew these moles, which were monitored and removed promptly. About 45% of Vemurafenib patients had to modify their dose because of these side effects. The side effects were more frequent and significant for vemurafenib than for the dacarbazine group(1).

Possible serious side effects of Zelboraf include severe allergic reactions; severe skin reactions; changes in the electrical activity of the heart called QT prolongation, which can potentially be life-threatening; abnormal liver function tests; eye problems; or new melanoma lesions.

1. “Improved survival with vemurafenib in melanoma with BRAF V600E mutation” N Engl J Med 2011; 364:2507-2516 June 30, 2011 Paul B. Chapman, MD, Axel Hauschild, MD, Caroline Robert, MD, Ph.D., et al