Sipuleucel-T Injection
Sipuleucel-T injection is used to treat certain types of advanced prostate cancer. Sipuleucel-T injection is in a class of medications called autologous cellular immunotherapy, a type of medication prepared using cells from the patient’s own blood. It works by causing the body’s immune system (a group of cells, tissues, and organs that protects the body from attack by bacteria, viruses, cancer cells, and other substances that cause disease) to fight the cancer cells.
🔔 How should this medicine be used?
Sipuleucel-T injection comes as a suspension (liquid) to be injected over about 60 minutes into a vein by a doctor or nurse in a doctor’s office or infusion center. It is usually given once every 2 weeks for a total of three doses.
About 3 days before each dose of sipuleucel-T injection is to be given, a sample of your white blood cells will be taken at a cell collection center using a procedure called leukapheresis (a process that removes white blood cells from the body). This procedure will take about 3 to 4 hours. The sample will be sent to the manufacturer and combined with a protein to prepare a dose of sipuleucel-T injection. Because this medication is made from your own cells, it is to be given only to you.
Talk to your doctor about how to prepare for leukapheresis and what to expect during and after the procedure. Your doctor will tell you what you should eat and drink and what you should avoid before the procedure. You may experience side effects, such as dizziness, fatigue, tingling in the fingers or around the mouth, feeling cold, fainting, and nausea during the procedure. You may feel tired after the procedure, so you may want to plan for someone to drive you home.
Sipuleucel-T injection must be given within 3 days from the time it was prepared. It is important to be on time and not to miss any scheduled appointments for cell collection or to receive each treatment dose.
Sipuleucel-T injection may cause serious allergic reactions during an infusion and for about 30 minutes afterwards. A doctor or nurse will monitor you during this time to be sure you are not having a serious reaction to the medication. You will be given other medications 30 minutes before your infusion to prevent reactions to sipuleucel-T injection. Tell your doctor or nurse immediately if you experience any of the following symptoms: nausea, vomiting, chills, fever, extreme tiredness, dizziness, difficulty breathing, fast or irregular heartbeat, or chest pain.
Long wait times are often cited as a downfall of universal healthcare systems, but wait times in America have reached a new high, too. The average time to make a physician appointment as a new patient in 15 major U.S. cities is now 24 days, up 30% in just 3 years (2014 to 2018) according to physician recruiting firm Merritt Hawkins.
Ask your pharmacist or doctor for a copy of the manufacturer’s information for the patient.
