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Verzenio & side effects

mamab27
mamab27 Member Posts: 1

Well, I've been on 150 mg verzenio for 13 weeks with anastrozole. My side effects are diarrhea, fatigue, nausea, loss of appetite, weight loss & taste change. I find I can only tolerate white bread, cream cheese, apple sauce & chicken broth. I need to increase my food intake but everything taste back & brings on nausea. Pushing water intake& it his hard also. Any suggestions?

Comments

  • ann5631
    ann5631 Member Posts: 9

    I have been on anastrazole for 8 months & verzenio for 5 months.

    did your doctors office prescribe any anti nausea meds? Mine did. The first 4 months I occasionally needed to take them. I found ginger ale & ginger tea greatly helped with my stomach upset. The last month I haven’t had any nausea. So hopefully your will get better soon.

    I have D about 3 times per week & Imodium takes care of it. The frustrating part is that there doesn’t seem to be any correlation to things I eat causing it. It’s usually more of a problem in the morning, but sometimes it strikes later in the day.

    Can you tolerate yogurt? I feel like having a yogurt every day helped me with some of the stomach upset & D. But I know some people can’t tolerate dairy with the Verzenio.

    if you haven’t already, read through some of the Verzenio threads. . There are some helpful hints on there. Some people have to take Imodium every day to prevent issues. I have been taking the reg Imodium, but several people have mentioned the multi symptom Imodium has really helped them.

    I try to take my Verzenio 12 hours apart/ that seems to make a difference too.

    If you don’t have anti nausea meds, get some of those. Try ginger ale. As for foods: try mashed potatoes, pastas, chicken & rice, etc.

    I hope your body starts to adjust. The 2nd & 3rd months were the worst for me.

  • threetree
    threetree Member Posts: 1,590
    edited September 3

    You also might try a dose reduction. Fortunately I did not get the horrid diarrhea problem, but I do still have all kinds of stomach pain, digestive upset, etc. I went from 150 mg to 100 mg. It can really help with all symptoms. My worst symptoms was fatigue, not diarrhea, and that's why I got a lower dose, but those with the diarrhea problem say the dose reduction helps that too - big time. Also, for years now (way before Verzenio) I have had both plain probiotic yogurt and fresh organic sauerkraut every day. I also have a bottle of no sugar added coconut water everyday and at least one banana. All of those things can do wonders for your stomach, no matter what is causing the problem. I also second the above poster's recommendation for ginger tea. I get "just ginger tea" (Traditional Medicinals) because other teas that say they are ginger often have so many other ingredients, you don't know how much ginger you might actually be getting, plus those other ingredients might also not be good for you or necessary. Some make their own all ginger tea from scratch, but I have no energy whatsoever for that, due to the Verzenio fatigue. Most commercial ginger ale has no ginger at all in it (just artificial flavoring) and lots of sugar added, so you have to be careful with that, plus the carbonation can be a problem in itself. If you could find a real old fashioned "real" ginger ale and let it go flat before drinking it, it probably would help. Saltines/soda crackers also help, but they have to have real soda in them. Most current saltines out there do not have baking soda in them. When I keep up with most of the above, I can tolerate more than chicken broth and other bland things - I can do a lot of fruits, veggies, chicken, fish, tofu, eggs, etc.

    I also second the above poster's suggestion that you look through all of the Verzenio threads that are already here. There are lots of good suggestions and comments in them. Good luck!

  • karecope
    karecope Member Posts: 3

    They have changed my dosage 3 xs

    Diahrea is brutal

    Rash brain fog heartburn

    I'm not sure it's worh it

  • vlnrph
    vlnrph Member Posts: 508

    I had dose reductions but got 3 good years out of abemaciclib. My diarrhea was controlled by taking 2 tablets of calcium carbophil (brand name = FiberCon, found in the laxative! aisle) at noon daily. As a retired pharmacist, I noticed that Dramamine now has a commercially available ginger product. Active ingredient is probably more consistent than others.