Fludarabine Injection

Conditions Treated

Fludarabine injection is used to treat chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL; a type of cancer of the white blood cells) in adults who have already been treated with at least one other medication and have not gotten better. Fludarabine injection is in a class of medications called purine analogs. It works by slowing or stopping the growth of cancer cells in your body.

Possible Side Effects

What Side Effects Can This Cause?

Fludarabine injection may cause side effects. Tell your doctor if any of these symptoms are severe or do not go away:

• loss of appetite
• nausea
• vomiting
• constipation
• diarrhea
• mouth sores
• hair loss
• numbness, burning, pain, or tingling in the hands, arms, feet, or legs
• muscle or joint pain
• headache
• depression
• sleep problems

Some side effects can be serious. If you experience any of these symptoms or those listed in the IMPORTANT WARNING section, call your doctor immediately:

• chest pain or discomfort
• fast or irregular heartbeat
• hearing loss
• pain along the side of the body
• swelling of the arms, hands, feet, ankles, or lower legs
• rash
• hives
• difficulty breathing or swallowing
• peeling or blistering skin

Fludarabine injection may cause other side effects. Call your doctor if you have any unusual problems while receiving this medication.If you experience a serious side effect, you or your doctor may send a report to the Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) MedWatch Adverse Event Reporting program online [at http://www.fda.gov/Safety/MedWatch] or by phone [1-800-332-1088].

Usage Instructions

How Should This Medication Be Used

Fludarabine injection comes as a powder to be added to fluid and injected over 30 minutes intravenously (into a vein) by a doctor or nurse in a medical office or hospital outpatient clinic. It is usually injected once a day for 5 days in a row. This treatment period is called a cycle, and the cycle may be repeated every 28 days for several cycles. Your doctor may need to delay your treatment or adjust your dose if you experience certain side effects. Be sure to tell your doctor how you are feeling during your treatment with fludarabine injection.

What Dietary Instructions Should I Follow

Unless your doctor tells you otherwise, continue your normal diet.

Are There Any Special Instructions

Before receiving fludarabine injection, tell your doctor and pharmacist if you are allergic to fludarabine, any other medications, or any of the ingredients in fludarabine injection. Ask your pharmacist for a list of the ingredients. tell your doctor and pharmacist what other prescription and nonprescription medications, vitamins, nutritional supplements, and herbal products you are taking or plan to take. Be sure to mention the medication listed in the IMPORTANT WARNING section or cytarabine (Cytosar-U, DepoCyt). Your doctor may need to change the doses of your medications or monitor you carefully for side effects. tell your doctor if you have or have ever had kidney disease.Also tell your doctor about all the other chemotherapy medications you have received and if you have ever been treated with radiation therapy (cancer treatment that uses waves of high energy particles to kill cancer cells). Before you receive chemotherapy or radiation therapy in the future, tell your doctor that you have been treated with fludarabine. if you are having surgery, including dental surgery, tell the doctor or dentist that you are receiving fludarabine injection. you should know that fludarabine injection may cause tiredness, weakness, confusion, agitation, seizures, and vision changes. Do not drive a car or operate machinery until you know how this medication affects you. talk to your doctor before you receive any vaccinations during your treatment with fludarabine injection. you should know that you may develop a serious or life-threatening reaction if you need to receive a blood transfusion during your treatment with fludarabine injection or at any time after your treatment. Be sure to tell your doctor that you are receiving or have received fludarabine injection before you receive a blood transfusion.