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Jenni22's avatar
Jenni22
Member
2 years ago

Abemaciclib Verezenio side effects

Hi Ladies, I have recently started on Letrizole/Hormone Therapy, and Verenio / Abemaciclib and am struggling with the side effects.  I am in the fortunate position in that both these drugs are bein...
breast-cancer-trials
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Shirley0411's avatar
Shirley0411
Member
6 months ago

Hi Jenni and everyone else interested in the Abemaciclib thread.  I have mets in the spine and have been taking Abemaciclib and Letrozole since January with ongoing diarrhoea which has worsened lately.  I am on 150mg and hoping to have either a reduction of break when I next visit my oncologist in two weeks time.  I'm very interested to hear of others experiences and wonder if anyone else would like to contribute to and renew this discussion.  Thanks in advance.

  • GorgyS's avatar
    GorgyS
    Member
    6 months ago

    Hi Shirley0411​ 

    I have been on Letrozole since August 2024 and Abemaciclib (150 mg) since November 2024. I thought I was managing the side effects well, but after having to stop Abemaciclib due to elevated liver enzymes, I’ve noticed a significant improvement. I have more energy and feel much better. It has been almost two months since I went on a break from Abemaciclib. I have another blood test coming up and will be seeing my oncologist in two weeks. 

     

    • Katie46's avatar
      Katie46
      Member
      6 months ago

      Hi GorgyS, glad to hear you are feeling better. The lower dose really helped me, although my digestive system still isn't 100% happy, it much easier to manage, lactose is an issue, so I choose lactose free these days. Are you going to try again, or have they ruled it out for you now? 

      • GorgyS's avatar
        GorgyS
        Member
        6 months ago

        hi Katie46​

        They haven't ruled it out yet. In two weeks, I will have another   blood test and will see. I will share it with the network when I find out. However, I feel so good since stopped the Abemaciclib that I am seriously thinking not to continue regardless of the blood test result. 

  • Katie46's avatar
    Katie46
    Member
    6 months ago

    Hi Shirley0411

    I've been taking abemaciclib and letrozole since the end of August last year as part of my preventative treatment.

    The initial dose of 150mg 2 times a day did not agree with me at all, the diarrhoea was pretty bad and never settled down, just kept getting worse, which then caused fatigue and I felt pretty awful. After persevering for 5 weeks my oncologist paused the treatment for 4 weeks, and then started me on a lower dose of 100mg twice a day.

    The lower dose made a big difference, I get occasional diarrhoea, which seems to happen every few weeks. I also noticed that I can't tolerate much dairy since I've been taking abemaciclib, particularly milk, and I've switched to lactose free milk. I've also reduced my coffee intake to occasional. I originally thought coffee was causing me issues, but after lots of experimenting it turned out to be the milk that caused my stomach to rebel. 

    I also get hot flushes and general muscle aches, mainly in my legs, but I'm blaming the letrozole for that. Exercise and stretching helps a lot with the muscle aches.

    I'm finding the abemaciclib manageable, but I definitely couldn't have taken it at the higher dose for any length of time.

    • Shirley0411's avatar
      Shirley0411
      Member
      6 months ago

      Hi Katie, 

      Thank you for your reply.  Your side effects are similar to mine.

      My oncologist has reduced my dose to 100mg and I think I am already feeling the benefit of that.  Here's hoping life will take on a brighter outlook each day with the change.

      It was difficult for me to determine whether it was the abemaciclib or the letrozole causing the majority of the problems for me.  

      All the best to you Katie.