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How can I benefit from ADCETRIS?
Before making decisions about your treatment, see how others have responded to ADCETRIS
ADCETRIS (brentuximab vedotin) plus chemotherapy is the first approved treatment in over 40 years for adults with newly diagnosed Stage 3 or 4 classical Hodgkin lymphoma, and was shown to be better than a traditional treatment in helping people reduce the chance of their cancer getting worse or needing more treatment.
Select each tab to see ADCETRIS study results for people with classical Hodgkin lymphoma
Newly diagnosed
Relapsed
After stem cell transplant
ADCETRIS is used with chemotherapy (AVD) for the treatment of adults with newly diagnosed Stage 3 or 4 classical Hodgkin lymphoma.
In a study of 1334 people, ADCETRIS plus chemotherapy (AVD) was compared to traditional treatment (ABVD).
- 664 people were treated with ADCETRIS plus AVD
- 670 people were treated with ABVD
Select the button above to view side effects.
Study results
Main study results
Compared to those treated with ABVD, people treated with ADCETRIS plus chemotherapy (AVD) were:
- Have their cancer grow or spread
- Receive additional treatment because the cancer was still detected
- Die from cancer or another cause
Compared to those treated with ABVD, fewer people treated with ADCETRIS plus chemotherapy (AVD) needed a stem cell transplant or more chemotherapy
Fewer people needed stem cell transplant (66 vs 99 people)
Fewer people needed more chemotherapy (36 vs 54 people)
The above information was evaluated in the study, but it was not planned for when the study started, nor was it included in the Prescribing Information.
These data are based on a median follow-up of just over 2.5 years
FDA = Food and Drug Administration
5 year follow-up results
In this study, investigators performed an assessment after 5 years after the start of treatment. The results from this assessment are from an exploratory analysis and were not part of the main study. This means that the study was not designed to find differences between the 2 treatment groups after 5 years.
Compared to those treated with ABVD, people treated with ADCETRIS plus chemotherapy (AVD) were:
- Have their cancer grow or spread
- Die from cancer or another cause
Find out if ADCETRIS may be an option for you.
Glossary
ABVD: A combination of 4 chemotherapies—adriamycin, bleomycin, vinblastine, and dacarbazine.
AVD: A combination of 3 chemotherapies—adriamycin, vinblastine, and dacarbazine.
The science of ADCETRIS treatment
ADCETRIS is not like traditional chemotherapy. It is an antibody drug conjugate made up of 3 parts: an antibody, a drug, and a linker.
Antibody
An antibody that finds CD30, a protein on the surface of certain cells. Antibodies are proteins made by the body’s immune system. The antibody that makes up ADCETRIS is made in a laboratory.
Drug
A drug that is designed to cause cell death.
Linker
A linker that attaches the drug to the antibody and releases the drug inside the cell.
How does ADCETRIS work?
Step 1
ADCETRIS attaches itself to cells that have a protein on their surface called CD30.
Step 2
Once attached, the drug is released inside the cell.
Step 3
The drug stops the cell from being able to grow and divide, causing the cell to die.
CD30 is found on classical Hodgkin Lymphoma cells and not commonly found on healthy cells. Even though ADCETRIS is a CD30-directed therapy, it can still harm normal cells and cause side effects. Talk to your doctor if you have questions about possible side effects.
Important Safety Information
What is the most important serious safety information I should know about ADCETRIS?
- PROGRESSIVE MULTIFOCAL LEUKOENCEPHALOPATHY (PML): Patients treated with ADCETRIS can have a rare, serious brain infection called PML. It can cause death. Symptoms can begin at different times after starting ADCETRIS treatment, some within 3 months after the first dose. Call your doctor if you have mood changes, confusion, dizziness or loss of balance, trouble talking or walking, vision changes, or if you feel weak or have weakness on one side of the body. PML could also be caused by other treatments or diseases that made your immune system weaker.
What should I avoid when receiving ADCETRIS?
- Do not take ADCETRIS with bleomycin because of possible serious side effects to the lungs.
What are the other possible serious side effects of ADCETRIS?
A serious side effect can be life-threatening or can lead to death. They may happen during treatment or after your treatment has ended.
Call your doctor right away if you have symptoms of a serious side effect or if your symptoms get worse. If you have a serious side effect, your doctor may delay or stop your ADCETRIS treatment.
- Nerve damage (peripheral neuropathy) that is mostly numbness or tingling in the hands or feet (sensory) and/or weakness in the arms or legs (motor). The nerve damage can get worse with more doses of ADCETRIS. Call your doctor if you have tingling, burning, or numbness in your hands or feet, changes in your sense of touch, or trouble moving your hands or feet.
- Allergic and infusion reactions during infusion or up to 24 hours after your ADCETRIS infusion. Call your doctor if you have fever, chills, rash, or breathing problems within 24 hours of your infusion.
- Blood problems such as a low number of white blood cells with or without fever, a low number of platelets, or a low number of red blood cells.
Your doctor will do blood tests to check your blood cell levels during ADCETRIS treatment. If your levels are too low, your doctor may lower or delay your dose, stop your ADCETRIS treatment, or give you a medicine called G-CSF. G-CSF is meant to prevent you from having a low number of white blood cells.
- Infections such as pneumonia, bacteremia, and sepsis or septic shock can happen with ADCETRIS treatment. Call your doctor if you have a fever of 100.5°F or higher, chills, cough, or pain when you urinate.
- Tumor lysis syndrome can happen if you have a tumor that grows quickly or have many tumor cells in your body.
- Patients with severe kidney disease may have more side effects and deaths than patients with normal kidney function and should avoid treatment with ADCETRIS.
- Patients with moderate or severe liver disease may have more side effects and deaths than patients with normal liver function and should avoid treatment with ADCETRIS.
- Liver injury can happen after the first dose of ADCETRIS or after ADCETRIS treatment is stopped and started again. Call your doctor if you feel tired, do not feel like eating, have upper stomach pain, dark urine, or yellow skin and eyes (jaundice).
- Lung problems. Call your doctor if you have a new cough, a cough that gets worse, or feel out of breath.
- Skin problems called Stevens-Johnson syndrome and toxic epidermal necrolysis can happen. Call your doctor if you have rash, hives, sores in your mouth, or blistering or peeling skin.
- Gastrointestinal (GI) problems related to the pancreas, stomach, intestine, and colon can happen. If you have lymphoma that involves your stomach or intestine, you could have a higher risk of GI perforation (a hole in your stomach or intestine). Call your doctor if you have severe stomach pain, chills, fever, nausea, vomiting, or diarrhea.
- High blood sugar. Your doctor will test your blood during ADCETRIS treatment. If your blood sugar is high, your doctor may give you medicine to control it. Call your doctor if you need to urinate more often, are very thirsty, or have blurry vision.
What were the most common side effects in patients treated with ADCETRIS?
When used alone or together with chemotherapy, the most common side effects were:
- nerve damage (peripheral neuropathy)
- feeling tired
- nausea
- diarrhea
- a low number of white blood cells
- infection in the nose or sinuses
- fever
- constipation
- vomiting
- hair loss
- weight loss
- upper stomach pain
- a low number of red blood cells
- sores or swelling in the mouth and/or in the digestive tract
Contact your doctor if you have any other side effects that bother you or do not go away.
What should I tell my doctor before I start treatment with ADCETRIS?
- All your medical conditions, including if you have kidney, liver, or lung problems, an infection, or diabetes.
- If you are pregnant or plan to become pregnant. ADCETRIS may harm your unborn baby. If you can get pregnant, you should have a pregnancy test before starting ADCETRIS treatment. You should use effective birth control (contraception) during ADCETRIS treatment and for at least 6 months after your last dose of ADCETRIS. Talk to your doctor about birth control methods. Tell your doctor right away if you become pregnant or think you are pregnant during ADCETRIS treatment. Men with female partners who can get pregnant should use effective birth control during ADCETRIS treatment and for 6 months after the last dose.
- If you are breastfeeding or plan to breastfeed. Do not breastfeed during your ADCETRIS treatment.
- All the medicines you take, including prescription and over-the-counter medicines, vitamins, and herbal supplements. ADCETRIS and certain other medicines can affect each other.
You are encouraged to report negative side effects of prescription drugs to the FDA. Visit www.fda.gov/Safety/MedWatch or call 1-800-FDA-1088.
Please see Important Facts about ADCETRIS, including IMPORTANT WARNING
What is ADCETRIS?
Important Safety Information
What is the most important serious safety information I should know about ADCETRIS?
- PROGRESSIVE MULTIFOCAL LEUKOENCEPHALOPATHY (PML): Patients treated with ADCETRIS can have a rare, serious brain infection called PML. It can cause death. Symptoms can begin at different times after starting ADCETRIS treatment, some within 3 months after the first dose. Call your doctor if you have mood changes, confusion, dizziness or loss of balance, trouble talking or walking, vision changes, or if you feel weak or have weakness on one side of the body. PML could also be caused by other treatments or diseases that made your immune system weaker.
What should I avoid when receiving ADCETRIS?
- Do not take ADCETRIS with bleomycin because of possible serious side effects to the lungs.
What are the other possible serious side effects of ADCETRIS?
A serious side effect can be life-threatening or can lead to death. They may happen during treatment or after your treatment has ended.
Call your doctor right away if you have symptoms of a serious side effect or if your symptoms get worse. If you have a serious side effect, your doctor may delay or stop your ADCETRIS treatment.
- Nerve damage (peripheral neuropathy) that is mostly numbness or tingling in the hands or feet (sensory) and/or weakness in the arms or legs (motor). The nerve damage can get worse with more doses of ADCETRIS. Call your doctor if you have tingling, burning, or numbness in your hands or feet, changes in your sense of touch, or trouble moving your hands or feet.
- Allergic and infusion reactions during infusion or up to 24 hours after your ADCETRIS infusion. Call your doctor if you have fever, chills, rash, or breathing problems within 24 hours of your infusion.
- Blood problems such as a low number of white blood cells with or without fever, a low number of platelets, or a low number of red blood cells.
Your doctor will do blood tests to check your blood cell levels during ADCETRIS treatment. If your levels are too low, your doctor may lower or delay your dose, stop your ADCETRIS treatment, or give you a medicine called G-CSF. G-CSF is meant to prevent you from having a low number of white blood cells.
- Infections such as pneumonia, bacteremia, and sepsis or septic shock can happen with ADCETRIS treatment. Call your doctor if you have a fever of 100.5°F or higher, chills, cough, or pain when you urinate.
- Tumor lysis syndrome can happen if you have a tumor that grows quickly or have many tumor cells in your body.
- Patients with severe kidney disease may have more side effects and deaths than patients with normal kidney function and should avoid treatment with ADCETRIS.
- Patients with moderate or severe liver disease may have more side effects and deaths than patients with normal liver function and should avoid treatment with ADCETRIS.
- Liver injury can happen after the first dose of ADCETRIS or after ADCETRIS treatment is stopped and started again. Call your doctor if you feel tired, do not feel like eating, have upper stomach pain, dark urine, or yellow skin and eyes (jaundice).
- Lung problems. Call your doctor if you have a new cough, a cough that gets worse, or feel out of breath.
- Skin problems called Stevens-Johnson syndrome and toxic epidermal necrolysis can happen. Call your doctor if you have rash, hives, sores in your mouth, or blistering or peeling skin.
- Gastrointestinal (GI) problems related to the pancreas, stomach, intestine, and colon can happen. If you have lymphoma that involves your stomach or intestine, you could have a higher risk of GI perforation (a hole in your stomach or intestine). Call your doctor if you have severe stomach pain, chills, fever, nausea, vomiting, or diarrhea.
- High blood sugar. Your doctor will test your blood during ADCETRIS treatment. If your blood sugar is high, your doctor may give you medicine to control it. Call your doctor if you need to urinate more often, are very thirsty, or have blurry vision.
What were the most common side effects in patients treated with ADCETRIS?
When used alone or together with chemotherapy, the most common side effects were:
- nerve damage (peripheral neuropathy)
- feeling tired
- nausea
- diarrhea
- a low number of white blood cells
- infection in the nose or sinuses
- fever
- constipation
- vomiting
- hair loss
- weight loss
- upper stomach pain
- a low number of red blood cells
- sores or swelling in the mouth and/or in the digestive tract
Contact your doctor if you have any other side effects that bother you or do not go away.
What should I tell my doctor before I start treatment with ADCETRIS?
- All your medical conditions, including if you have kidney, liver, or lung problems, an infection, or diabetes.
- If you are pregnant or plan to become pregnant. ADCETRIS may harm your unborn baby. If you can get pregnant, you should have a pregnancy test before starting ADCETRIS treatment. You should use effective birth control (contraception) during ADCETRIS treatment and for at least 6 months after your last dose of ADCETRIS. Talk to your doctor about birth control methods. Tell your doctor right away if you become pregnant or think you are pregnant during ADCETRIS treatment. Men with female partners who can get pregnant should use effective birth control during ADCETRIS treatment and for 6 months after the last dose.
- If you are breastfeeding or plan to breastfeed. Do not breastfeed during your ADCETRIS treatment.
- All the medicines you take, including prescription and over-the-counter medicines, vitamins, and herbal supplements. ADCETRIS and certain other medicines can affect each other.
You are encouraged to report negative side effects of prescription drugs to the FDA. Visit www.fda.gov/Safety/MedWatch or call 1-800-FDA-1088.
Please see Important Facts about ADCETRIS, including IMPORTANT WARNING
What is ADCETRIS?
