Abarelix, commercialized as Plenaxis, is an injectable gonadotropin-releasing hormone blocker (GnRH antagonist). It is mainly used in oncology to decrease the quantity of testosterone produced in people with advanced symptomatic prostate cancer who have exhausted all other treatment choices.
Side-effects
- hot flashes,
- sleep disturbances,
- breast enlargement or pain,
- nipple tenderness,
- diarrhea,
- constipation,
- swelling of the extremities,
- nausea,
- dizziness,
- headache,
- fatigue,
- changes with or difficulty urinating,
- urinary tract infection, and
- upper respiratory tract infection
Inform your doctor if any side-effect concerns you or does not go away.
These are not the only Plenaxis adverse effects. Consult your doctor or pharmacist for more details.
Indications
Plenaxis is recommended for the palliative management of men with advanced symptomatic prostate cancer who do not respond to LHRH agonist medication and reject surgical castration, and who have one or more of the following: (1) the risk of neural impairment caused by metastases, (2) ureteral or bladder outlet blockage caused by local encroachment or metastatic disease, or (3) intense bone pain caused by skeletal metastases that persists despite narcotic analgesia.
Dosage
Plenaxis is given intramuscularly to the hip on Day 1, 15, 29, (week 4) and every 4 weeks thereafter at a dosage of 100 mg. Serum testosterone concentrations just previous to Plenaxis administration can be measured starting on Day 29 and every 8 weeks thereafter to identify treatment failure.
How To Use Abarelix?
Plenaxis must be given by a trained medical professional.
Plenaxis use has resulted in severe allergic responses in some instances. An allergic response to the medicine may appear after any injection, including, but not limited to, the first dosage. Patients should be watched in the doctor’s office for at least 30 minutes after each dosage so that an allergic response can be treated immediately if necessary.
Plenaxis treatment may become less effective in some individuals over time. Blood tests will be used on a frequent basis to measure testosterone levels in the blood, as well as the medication’s efficacy.
Plenaxis injection containers should be kept at room temperature, away from dampness and radiation.
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Reference:
- https://www.drugs.com/plenaxis.html
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abarelix
- https://www.cancer.gov/publications/dictionaries/cancer-drug/def/abarelix
- https://www.rxlist.com/plenaxis-drug.htm#indications
