Keytruda

Hi Helen…I’m just checking in as you posted a little while ago….I know you posted as Keytruda but I think many of us here know it as Pembrolizumab or Pembro….I’m starting my first dose tomorrow….but as far as you question is concerned I would suggest you contact your cancer team ….I have been given a 24/7 number and I guess that you will have the same….just to be on the safe side…..if you put ‘Pembro’ in the search box above you will find quite a few conversations….sorry I can’t be of more help but I think you might be better with some specific specialist advice…

IvysMum,

Thank you for your reply. Yes they are one and the same. I thought Keytruda would be the market name and more commonly used.I will definitely check out the Prembro link. We will be calling the hospital tomorrow as he has not felt like eating or drinking much of anything today. I do wish you well.

Thank you and you too…it’s tough isn’t it!…take care x

Hi I am also on pembro , like your husband I am three doses in ( every 6 weeks for a year ). I have had very little in the way of side effects the main one for me being my hair has thinned quite a bit and I am tired come evening time. Apart from that I feel fine . Good idea to contact the specialists x 

Dear Amccl,

Thank you very much for your reply. I am very happy to hear that you are not suffering any of the side effects. It is possible that his autoimmune Graves Dx medication is helping cause these problem He has suffered with Graves and Thyroid eye dx for the previous two years. In fact we believe that that is how he ended up with the melanoma….from being on immunosuppressants for that disease. That’s when the spot on his arm (that had been there for years) suddenly went crazy and changed into a melanoma. So you see, the treatment for the melanoma is the exact opposite of what they they treated him with beforeI do hope that your treatment continues without complications.

Stay safe and have a Happy Christmas.

Thank you x I hope you all stay safe too xx sounds like you’ve got an idea of what the issue is with the pembro working against your husbands condition xx 

Hi Helen, My husband has recently had his 5th dose but after his second we did have similar problems as you have mentioned. Like Ivys mum said we contacted our cancer nurse and she arranged for a blood test immediately and it turned out my husband had developed Addisons disease as a result of the immunotherapy which means he is now steroid deficient and requires hydrocortisone tablets. Since he started taking them he is feeling fine. Might be worth talking to your allocated nurse.

Dear Tessa,

I can not thank you enough for responding! I believe that may be what we are dealing with. He did call his doctor and they gave him anti nausea pills but they really haven’t helped at all. He truly can not go on like this. He can not eat or drink. If this can’t get fixed he will have to come off the treatment. We will call again first thing tomorrow. Thank you.

Helen, have you tried phoning the hospital oncology team where he is being treated there is always an “on call” doctor. We were given emergency phone numbers when we started the Pembro. You are normally allocated a specialist nurse at the hospital in case of any problems. After the result of my husbands blood test the hospital phoned us back and asked us to go to the hospital immediately for drug treatment.

Hi Tessa,

Yes, we phoned the hospital this morning and the doctor called back right away. They had him come in for blood work. They called latter in the day to say the blood work was fine and for him to try a different anti nausea med. SO unfortunately,back to square one. The only other thing I can guess is making him so sick might be an interaction between his Thyroid blocker and replacement meds? But there is nothing to be done about that. So let’s hope the “new” anti nausea meds help.

Have a Happy Christmas…..and thanks again for your reply.