cisplatin vs carboplatin

Radioactive34

Is there a real difference between cisplatin and carboplatin? I am getting cisplating and topotecan on Monday. I read very little difference in the description beyond maybe side effects.

R34

Hissy_Fitz

Cisplatin was the first of
Cisplatin was the first of the "platinum" drugs used for OC. I don't know what the differences are, beyond that.

Is this your first line treatment, or have you had a recurrence confirmed? I know that cisplatin and topotecan are often used for second or third line treatment - not so much for initial chemo.

Carlene

Radioactive34

Hissy_Fitz said:

Cisplatin was the first of
Cisplatin was the first of the "platinum" drugs used for OC. I don't know what the differences are, beyond that.

Is this your first line treatment, or have you had a recurrence confirmed? I know that cisplatin and topotecan are often used for second or third line treatment - not so much for initial chemo.

Carlene

It is the first line
It is the first line treatment for me. There has been no confirmed reoccurrence. The PET scan show uptake only in the surgical site. Beyond the large tumor there was no other cancer in the abdominal cavity. The lymph nodes, omentum, and everything removed came back clear.

The cancer was typed as smll cell carcinoma of the hypercalcemic type. It seems to want to make doctors throw the book at it.

R34

kikz

I don't have an answer
but I had three infusions of carboplatin (along with taxol) before my debulking surgery and three infusions of cisplatin (five of taxol) after surgery. I really don't know why one or the other.

Karen

carolenk

kikz said:

I don't have an answer
but I had three infusions of carboplatin (along with taxol) before my debulking surgery and three infusions of cisplatin (five of taxol) after surgery. I really don't know why one or the other.

Karen

I know you are already
I know you are already scared to have chemo but you have a lot of questions & I don't know if it makes a difference if you get cisplatin or carboplatin.
Both chemo drugs are hard on the bone marrow & kidneys--they both cause neuropathy & can cause hearing loss.

The carboplatin is a little more gentle on the kidneys so you must have good kidneys. For sure, you should drink a lot of water before & after chemo anyway. The cisplatin leaves the body sooner than the carbo. Some doctors have a preference for using the cisplatin because they have more experience with it but you should ask the oncologist this question directly.

I did have some neuropathy during chemo with carbo and took alpha lipoic acid 600 milligrams/day for several months & the neuropathy cleared up. If you wait for a week after chemo before taking the alpha lipoid acid, there won't be interference with the chemo. Of course, always check with your oncologist regarding anything you take. My oncologist said "OK" once I asked but he never told me how to treat the neuropathy or prevent it from happening.

Carolen

kayandok

Dear R43,
I had both carbo and cis, and for me the cis was harsher, hands down, but some women tolerate it quite well. Here is what the Women's Cancer Center says about it.

"Carboplatin is now being used more often than cisplatin because it can be given on an outpatient basis. It causes less kidney damage, hearing loss, nausea and vomiting and peripheral nerve damage (manifested by muscle weakness and numbness or tingling). Unfortunately, it does have more bone marrow toxicity than cisplatin."

I wonder if this is old info, because I noticed that some women do receive this as an out-patient. I had to be hospitalized to hydrate my kidneys, for a few days, but as it turns out, I would not have been able to go home anyway, I was so sick.

I find it helpful to keep a medical journal. I record briefly, my sypmptoms everyday I'm on chemo, and what meds, if I take any. It helps me to report back to the doctor, the facts, because by the time a month (or week!) goes by I do forget how badly I felt. It goes with me to the chemo room (I always record the dose of everything I get, including anti-nausea and steroids) doctor's appointments and hospitalization (I write down my vitals too and the nurses' names, I am usually too foggy to remember). I have 5 notebooks, now from the last 4 years. It has saved my life a few times, when I can't remember the anti-nausea meds that worked a couple years ago, or the pain meds that made me nauseated etc etc. It may sound a little anal retentive, but has actually helped keep me calm when I might have been nervous at an appointment or in the hospital. I am too busy recording to think about being nervous, LOL.

Hang in there, and take it a day at a time.
kathleen