Uses of Dexrazoxane

Dexrazoxane has been shown to protect the heart from the harmful effects of certain types of chemotherapy. Dexrazoxane is a potent intracellular chelating agent, which means it inactivates certain metal ions in the body such as harmful free radicals. The mechanism by which Dexrazoxane exerts cardioprotective effects is not fully understood.

Dexrazoxane belongs to the group of antidotes, the main active ingredient is Dexrazoxane. Dosage form: powder for injection, content 500mg, 250mg.

Dexrazoxane is used to prevent long-term cumulative anthracycline cardiotoxicity in patients with advanced/metastatic breast cancer who have previously received a cumulative 540 mg/m2 cumulative dose of epirubicin or a cumulative dose of epirubicin. 300 mg/m2 doxorubicin.
Do not use Dexrazoxane when starting anthracycline treatment.
Contraindications: Absolutely do not use Dexrazoxane for the following cases:
Patients with hypersensitivity to any component of Dexrazoxane Children 0-18 years old are intended to take doxorubicin with cumulative dose less than 300 mg/m2 or equivalent cumulative dose of another anthracycline Co-administered with yellow fever vaccine. Concomitant use with chemotherapy other than anthracycline Women who are breast-feeding.

Adults: 500 mg/m2 when using a doxorubicin dose of 50 mg/m2 or 600 mg/m2 when using an epirubicin dose of 60 mg/m2 (10 times doxorubicin or 10 times the epirubicin equivalent dose)
Patients with impaired moderate to severe renal impairment: reduce the dose of dexrazoxane by 50%.
Patients with hepatic impairment: the dose ratio between Dexrazoxane and anthracycline should be maintained at 10:1. This means that if the dose of anthracycline is reduced, the dose of Dexrazoxan should be reduced accordingly.
Children 0 - 18 years old: there are not enough data on safety and effectiveness, so Dexrazoxane should not be used in this population.
How to use: Use Dexrazoxane 30 minutes before (15 minutes fast intravenous infusion) when using anthracycline. Note do not use anthracycline before Dexrazoxane .
Dexrazoxane overdose and treatment: overdose symptoms you may experience such as leukopenia, thrombocytopenia, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, skin reactions and hair loss. There is no specific antidote for Dexrazoxane, treatment is mainly symptomatic.

During treatment with Dexrazoxane, you may experience the following undesirable effects:
Leukopenia: white blood cells (WBCs) play an important role in fighting infections. During treatment, you may experience leukopenia, which increases your risk of infection. You should tell your doctor right away if you have a fever above 38°C, sore throat or cold, trouble breathing, cough, burning when urinating,... Anemia: red blood cells are responsible for carrying oxygen to body tissues. When your red blood cell count is low, you often feel tired or weak. Thrombocytopenia: Platelets help with blood clotting, so when your platelet count is low, you have a higher risk of bleeding. Tell your doctor if you have any excessive bruising or bleeding, including nosebleeds, bleeding gums, or blood in your urine or stools. Hepatotoxicity: Dexrazoxane can cause hepatotoxicity, so liver function tests should be performed periodically during treatment. If you have symptoms such as yellow skin or eyes, dark or brown urine, or pain in your abdomen, you should tell your doctor. Reproductive problems: Exposure to this medicine can cause birth defects in an unborn baby, so it is not recommended to become pregnant or father a child while taking this medicine.

Pregnant women: Dexrazoxane can harm an unborn baby, fetus and cause teratogenicity. In animal studies, Dexrazoxane was found to be embryotoxic and teratogenic. Therefore, Dexrazoxane should not be used during pregnancy.
Lactation: It is not known whether dexrazoxane is excreted in human milk. Therefore, absolutely do not breast-feed while taking dexrazoxane.
Driving and operating machines: dexrazoxane affects the ability to drive vehicles and machines moderately. Therefore, patients should exercise caution while driving if taking this medicine.
Other note:
Check blood count before and during treatment, use Dexrazoxane only when hematological parameters meet the criteria because the drug can increase the side effects of bone marrow depression. Concomitant administration of Dexrazoxane with other chemotherapeutic agents may increase the risk of secondary malignancy. In patients with reduced creatinine clearance, the clearance of Dexrazoxane and its active metabolites may be reduced. Elderly patients often take many other drugs, have more comorbidities and may have impaired liver and kidney function. Therefore, caution should be exercised when using Dexrazoxan in this subject. Hopefully, sharing about Dexrazoxane will help the process of use be safe, effective and bring the best treatment effect for patients.

Source: oncolink.org