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Help dealing with CML Sprycel medication side effects! Diarrhea (sorry for tmi)

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Hello, I am writing here on behalf of my husband. He is only 26 but last week we found out he has CML and he was put on Dasinitab (Sprycel).. Ever since he has horrible diarrhea and cannot keep his food down it seems from the time he takes his pill (5pm) till he goes to bed (12am). Any advice on what has helped you guys? I really fear for my husband. He is afraid to eat much when out in public around that time and it has made him have to spend so much time in the bathroom. It hurt me to see him go through this.

sorry to hear about side effects that your husband having .

during my mothers diagnosis period , not cml but use of gleevec ( imatinib)  and its side effect scared me most . espically pain but we didnt suffer from it . 

 

first according to fda sprycell tablets  page 9 @adverse reactions ....

diarrhea occured  at 21 patients of 258.  %21

it seems like %99 of side effect of sprycel 

 

it is whether medicine related or bacterial or what  other things causes diarrhea , it doesnt matter . you should tell your doctor about your situation . 

what i read in cml forums side effects will pass by time . but when this situation is effecting his quality of life so much you cant wait i guess.

 

my mother experience not with cml medicine but with iron supplements .

she is on iron supplements on and off . when diarrhea occured she had already make two rounds ( 2 month using , holiday , another 2 month ) and no side effects at all.

other medicines she had been using that time didnt change for a long time . 

ok it is suffering to writing in english , i m gonna just write dates and our hospital visits . 

15 / 08 / 2016 started iron supplement ( 2 times a day )

20  / 08 / 2016 diarrhea 

for two days she made a strict diarrhea diet . ( lots of water , banana ,potato , rice , yoghurt etc ) still diarrhia 

22 / 08 / 2016 went to gastroenterologist . they made stool and blood tests . nothing was wrong . so he prescribed just anti diarrhea drugs 2 times a day if diarrhea doesnt pass he told us to use three times . if she has still has it in 3-4 days he tought us to come again to hospital . 

27 / 08 / 2016 went to emergency room for  diarrhea + nausea . they gave iv treatment cause of her water and minerla loss . i told the doctor that drugs are not working is there any medicine we can use. our blood and stool test was still good . she started another drug.

29 / 08 / 2016 went to hematology . at that time i was sure it was because of imatinib. yes ,most of the medicines has a side effect as diarrhea but never thought of iron supplements neither the other doctors . 

we stopped iron supplements that day and diarrhea went away the day after. one week later she started at reduced dose ( once a day ) no problem since. 

 

i dont want to be pessimistic but if diarrhea is medicine related i dont think diet and anti-diarrhea medicines will work. at least it didnt for my mother . 

do not use any anti-diarrhea drugs without asking a doctor first . ( some of them has a bad effect on pancreas enzymes )

as always too much information so

 

SUMMARY 

i guess for diarrhea one week is a long time . 

you should really talk to your doctor . if there is not any other causes ( seems unlikely but can not be sure )  sprycel is not the only medicine he has to take . you have options . 

maybe tomorrow will be a new day a free diarrhea day for your husband . i hope for that . but if it is not please go to doctor . 

 

AFTER READİNG DAVİDS POST, TİME AND OTHER ADJUSTMENT MAKES SENSE . MAYBE BEFORE USİNG OTHER GUNS ( TASİGNA ETC ) İT WİLL BE MORE WİSE TO TRY.

 

ps english is not my native language . sorry for mistakes and if i my tone is rude.

That sounds terrible. Dasatinib isn't massively associatd with diarrhoea - it's usually bosutinib that causes that. However your husband wouldn't be the first to experience bowel problems on dasatinib.

Has he tried altering the time he takes it? Maybe first thing in the morning, or last thing at night would work better for him? Usually these kind of symptoms can be managed with timing - take the pills with our without food, with a lot of water or without. 

Absolutely not to be made a habit of, but to help with a night out every now and then some loperamide would help him feel confident out at a social occasion. Basically, it puts a cork in your behind!! 

If this continues, do get it seen to and ask for a referral to GI specialist. Difficulty in this department can knock the stuffing out of your personal confidence so it's important to take it seriously and get it resolved. For what it's worth, ice struggled in this area before but avoid GI doctor can really help 

David