cisplatin or carbo

[wiesia]

Could anyone compare for me cisplatin vs carbo as far as side effects are concerned, effectiveness etc ?

thanks

[Welthy]

I'm sure someone will be around to answer your question with experience, but our Doctor told us that carboplatin was a little easier on the body than cisplatin. That is if I remember correctly!

Good luck and God speed,

Welthy

[Muriel]

I've had both. Remember, everyone's experiences aren't the same. I had carbo with taxol and lost my hair (due to the taxol, I think). Had leg pains for a couple days, nausea - pretty much controlled with meds, and was very very tired. I had cisplatin with gemzar. No leg pains with that combo. Otherwise pretty much the same. Cisplatin, I believe, can be harder on the kidneys than carbo.

Muriel

[marym]

Hi,

I had carbo combined with gemcitibine. No problems.

Mary

[Tami]

I had both..

Like the others my carbo was in conjuction with another chemo. The cist was in conjuction with rads.

The carb combo was easier for me to tolerate. I did get the neuropathy.. didn't lose my hair (thinned) with anything. I was tired etc..

The cist is very hard on the kidneys and has a longer infusion time. drink tons of water.. I was more tired, more nausea, confusion etc.. with this stuff. I may be due to the added rads but it was harder for me..

Good luck, Tami

[dchurchi]

Alan had a tough time with Cisplatin, but effects are

different for everyone.

[wiesia]

Thank you everyone. My father has a terrible time with cisplatin. The first cycle he even fainted. A lot of vomiting etc. And his WBC is waaay down. We are searching for alternatives.

wiesia

[DrWest]

Although it may be a bit of a moot point because your dad's probably going to not get the same chemo again, I wanted to give an oncologist's perspective.

In general, they're pretty comparable in activity, although several studies show a minor advantage for cisplatin in lung cancer. It probably doesn't amount to much of a meaningful difference for stage IV NSCLC, but for stage I - III, I often recommend cisplatin for patients who can tolerate it, because it's probably a shade more active, and that difference counts for more in earlier stage disease.

However, if we favor cisplatin, it's not because it's easier to tolerate, because it generally isn't. It can cause kidney damage, worse nausea/vomiting, hearing loss, and neuropathy (damage to the nerves, typically the longest in the body, so affecting the fingers and toes first). Cisplatin does not tend to cause as much of a drop in blood counts as carboplatin, though. Otherwise, carboplatin can cause the cisplatin side effects, but generally considerably less of all of those except for blood counts dropping.

It is possible to minimize some of the side effects of cisplatin by splitting it over 2 or more days, rather than one big slug, which makes it very nausea-inducing and hard on the kidneys. I give it over two consecutive days, or split over two weeks with gemcitabine if some is getting gemcitabine IV two weeks out of three, for instance. Much less of a challenge.

Both of these drugs are usually paired with another drug like taxol or taxotere, or gemcitabine or navelbine, and the other drugs can contribute to side effects as well.