KEYTRUDA is not chemotherapy or radiation therapy—it is an immunotherapy and it works with your immune system to help fight certain cancers.
KEYTRUDA can cause your immune system to attack normal organs and tissues in any area of your body and can affect the way they work. These problems can sometimes become severe or life-threatening and can lead to death. These problems may happen anytime during treatment or even after your treatment has ended.
Nurse: I’m Jane Arboleda, Oncology Nurse, and I’m going to explain how
immunotherapy works in the body.
Over the years, your body has helped to fight off thousands of invaders—colds,
infection, flu, even cancer—but not always. Why is that?
Well, sometimes one particular immune system cell known as a T cell needs help to
recognize cancer. Your immune system sends T cells throughout your body in search
of invaders to attack.
But certain cancer cells can flip a switch in what’s known as the PD-1 pathway
enabling them to hide from T cells, allowing cancer cells to multiply and spread.
Here’s where one specific type of immunotherapy, called KEYTRUDA, may help.
KEYTRUDA doesn’t attack cancer cells directly. Instead, it blocks the PD-1 pathway, to help prevent cancer cells from hiding, allowing the T cells to attack.
Male Narrator:
KEYTRUDA is a prescription medicine used to treat a kind of bladder
and urinary tract cancer called urothelial carcinoma. It may be used when your
bladder or urinary tract cancer has spread or cannot be removed by surgery and you
have received chemotherapy that contains platinum, and it did not work or is no
longer working.
Nurse: KEYTRUDA helps your own immune system do what it’s designed to do: find
and fight cancer.
Male Narrator: KEYTRUDA helps your immune system fight cancer, but can also
cause your immune system to attack healthy parts of your body. This can happen
during or after treatment and may be severe and lead to death.
See your doctor right away if you have new or worse cough, chest pain, shortness of
breath, diarrhea, severe stomach pain or tenderness, nausea or vomiting, rapid
heartbeat, increased hunger or thirst, constipation, dizziness or fainting, changes in
urine or eyesight, muscle pain or weakness, joint pain, confusion or memory
problems, fever, rash, itching, or flushing.
These are not all the possible side effects. Tell your doctor about all your medical
conditions, including immune system problems, if you’ve had an organ transplant,
had or plan to have a stem cell transplant, or have lung, breathing, or liver
problems.
KEYTRUDA, from Merck. Ask your doctor about KEYTRUDA.
Please read the Medication Guide for KEYTRUDA, and discuss it with your doctor. The physician Prescribing Information also is available. Select links to access.
The immune system is your body’s natural defense against disease. The immune system sends certain types of cells called T cells throughout your body to detect and fight infections and diseases—including cancer.
Cancer cells may use the PD-1 pathway to hide from T cells. This stops T cells from attacking cancer cells and allows cancer cells to grow and spread.
PD-1 = programmed death receptor-1
KEYTRUDA is a type of immunotherapy that works by blocking the PD-1 pathway and to help prevent cancer cells from hiding. KEYTRUDA helps the immune system do what it was meant to do: detect and fight cancer cells.
KEYTRUDA can cause your immune system to attack normal organs and tissues in any area of your body and can affect the way they work. These problems can sometimes become severe or life-threatening and can lead to death. These problems may happen anytime during treatment or even after your treatment has ended.
KEYTRUDA is a prescription medicine used to treat:
PD-L1 = programmed death ligand 1;
EGFR = epidermal growth factor receptor;
ALK = anaplastic lymphoma kinase;
HER2/neu = human epidermal growth factor receptor 2.
KEYTRUDA is a medicine that may treat certain cancers by working with your immune system. KEYTRUDA can cause your immune system to attack normal organs and tissues in any area of your body and can affect the way they work. These problems can sometimes become severe or life-threatening and can lead to death. These problems may happen any time during treatment or even after your treatment has ended.
Call or see your doctor right away if you develop any symptoms of the following problems or these symptoms get worse:
Lung problems (pneumonitis). Symptoms of pneumonitis may include shortness of breath, chest pain, or new or worse cough.
Intestinal problems (colitis) that can lead to tears or holes in your intestine. Signs and symptoms of colitis may include diarrhea or more bowel movements than usual; stools that are black, tarry, sticky, or have blood or mucus; or severe stomach-area (abdomen) pain or tenderness.
Liver problems, including hepatitis. Signs and symptoms of liver problems may include yellowing of your skin or the whites of your eyes, nausea or vomiting, pain on the right side of your stomach area (abdomen), dark urine, or bleeding or bruising more easily than normal.
Hormone gland problems (especially the thyroid, pituitary, adrenal glands, and pancreas). Signs and symptoms that your hormone glands are not working properly may include rapid heartbeat, weight loss or weight gain, increased sweating, feeling more hungry or thirsty, urinating more often than usual, hair loss, feeling cold, constipation, your voice gets deeper, muscle aches, feeling very weak, dizziness or fainting, or headaches that will not go away or unusual headache.
Kidney problems, including nephritis and kidney failure. Signs of kidney problems may include change in the amount or color of your urine.
Skin problems. Signs of skin problems may include rash, itching, blisters, peeling or skin sores, or painful sores or ulcers in your mouth or in your nose, throat, or genital area.
Problems in other organs. Signs and symptoms of these problems may include changes in eyesight; severe or persistent muscle or joint pains; severe muscle weakness; low red blood cells (anemia); swollen lymph nodes, rash or tender lumps on skin, cough, shortness of breath, vision changes, or eye pain (sarcoidosis); confusion, fever, muscle weakness, balance problems, nausea, vomiting, stiff neck, memory problems, or seizures (encephalitis); pain, numbness, tingling, or weakness in the arms or legs; bladder or bowel problems including needing to urinate more frequently, urinary incontinence, difficulty urinating, or constipation (myelitis); and shortness of breath, irregular heartbeat, feeling tired, or chest pain (myocarditis).
Infusion (IV) reactions that can sometimes be severe and life-threatening. Signs and symptoms of infusion reactions may include chills or shaking, shortness of breath or wheezing, itching or rash, flushing, dizziness, fever, or feeling like passing out.
Rejection of a transplanted organ. People who have had an organ transplant may have an increased risk of organ transplant rejection if they are treated with KEYTRUDA.
Complications, including graft-versus-host disease (GVHD), in people who have received a bone marrow (stem cell) transplant that uses donor stem cells (allogeneic). These complications can be severe and can lead to death. These complications may happen if you underwent transplantation either before or after being treated with KEYTRUDA. Your doctor will monitor you for the following signs and symptoms: skin rash, liver inflammation, abdominal pain, and diarrhea.
Getting medical treatment right away may help keep these problems from becoming more serious. Your doctor will check you for these problems during treatment with KEYTRUDA. Your doctor may treat you with corticosteroid or hormone replacement medicines. Your doctor may also need to delay or completely stop treatment with KEYTRUDA if you have severe side effects.
Before you receive KEYTRUDA, tell your doctor if you have immune system problems such as Crohn’s disease, ulcerative colitis, or lupus; have had an organ transplant or plan to have or have had a bone marrow (stem cell) transplant that used donor stem cells (allogeneic); have lung or breathing problems; have liver problems; or have any other medical problems.
If you are pregnant or plan to become pregnant, tell your doctor. KEYTRUDA can harm your unborn baby. If you are able to become pregnant, your doctor will give you a pregnancy test before you start treatment. Use effective birth control during treatment and for at least 4 months after the final dose of KEYTRUDA. Tell your doctor right away if you think you may be pregnant or you become pregnant during treatment with KEYTRUDA.
If you are breastfeeding or plan to breastfeed, tell your doctor. It is not known if KEYTRUDA passes into your breast milk. Do not breastfeed during treatment with KEYTRUDA and for 4 months after your final dose of KEYTRUDA.
Tell your doctor about all the medicines you take, including prescription and over-the-counter medicines, vitamins, and herbal supplements.
Common side effects of KEYTRUDA when used alone include feeling tired; pain, including pain in muscles, bones, or joints and stomach area (abdominal) pain; decreased appetite; itching; diarrhea; nausea; rash; fever; cough; shortness of breath; and constipation.
Common side effects of KEYTRUDA when given with certain chemotherapy medicines include feeling tired or weak; nausea; constipation; diarrhea; decreased appetite; rash; vomiting; cough; trouble breathing; fever; hair loss; inflammation of the nerves that may cause pain, weakness, and paralysis in the arms and legs; swelling of the lining of the mouth, nose, eyes, throat, intestines, or vagina; and mouth sores.
Common side effects of KEYTRUDA when given with axitinib include diarrhea; feeling tired or weak; high blood pressure; liver problems; low levels of thyroid hormone; decreased appetite; blisters or rash on the palms of your hands and soles of your feet; nausea; mouth sores or swelling of the lining of the mouth, nose, eyes, throat, intestines, or vagina; hoarseness; rash; cough; and constipation.
In children, feeling tired, vomiting and stomach-area (abdominal) pain, and increased levels of liver enzymes and decreased levels of salt (sodium) in the blood are more common than in adults.
These are not all the possible side effects of KEYTRUDA. Tell your doctor if you have any side effect that bothers you or that does not go away. For more information, ask your doctor or pharmacist.
You are encouraged to report negative side effects of prescription drugs to the FDA. Visit www.fda.gov/medwatch or call 1-800-FDA-1088.
Please read the accompanying Medication Guide for KEYTRUDA and discuss it with your doctor. The physician Prescribing Information also is available.
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For more detail about Merck's response to coronavirus, visit our COVID-19 information page.
US-NON-04886 04/20
