Irinotecan meet ProbioticIf you've arrived at this webpage you probably have a vague idea what irinotecan is. Perhaps someone you know has been diagnosed with colorectal cancer or perhaps it is yourself. (If you're just looking for the probiotic tie-in, zoom straight to the bottom of the page.) Hopefully, your doctor has explained what this drug is and what the side effects might be, but your mind was a mess and you've forgotten most of it. That's understandable. The hard bit is remembering that as you're throwing up and your hair is falling out! (Also called irinotecan hydrochloride. US Brand name: Camptosar [CPT-11]. Foreign Brand name: Campto.) It's a drug used in chemotherapy to destroy the cancer cells and is usually given intravenously. It is a semi-synthetic version of the natural alkaloid camptothecin (the natural source is found in plants such as the tree Camptotheca acuminata) and it causes major disruption to DNA strands. This disruption means that, whilst it plays an important role in chemotherapy treatments, unfortunately its side effects can also be harmful. It attacks the cells that are dividing the most rapidly - this is the cancer cells, which is good - but some other cells also divide rapidly. So it targets them too. This is why so often your hair falls out because the cells responsible for hair growth also divide rapidly.
Unfortunately, the drug can cause severe diarrhea (ie liquid bowel motions, "the trots"). The treatment of the diarrhea is often left in your hands so be sure that you fully understand what your doctor has advised. Your doctor will have advised you about this possible diarrhea. If you don't remember, ask her to explain again. She won’t mind. It is important to start treatment for the diarrhea at the first sign of looseness. Side effects can be nausea, vomiting, abdominal cramping, diarrhea and infection, and they often occur MORE than 24 hours AFTER treatment. You are advised to have an anti-diarrhea remedy ready to begin treatment at the first sign of poorly formed or loose bowel movements or if you are “going” more often than normal. Chemotherapy drugs can also suppress the immune system. The immune system is our bodies defense mechanism to fight off the bad bugs that assail us every day. Our immune system keeps us healthy so when it is not working properly disease can strike us down. The white blood cells are the warriors in your immune system and destroy diseased cells. Irinotecan will dramatically lower the number of white blood cell in the body. This leaves you wide open to catching diseases that normally your body would fight off. Some patients (with polymorphisms in UGT1A1 gene) are given a reduced dose because their bodies are not able to clear the drug as fast as other people so that they, in fact, receive a higher dose and as a result even worse diarrhea and lowered immune system. VSL3 is a probiotic that has been getting a good rap on its ability to prevent chemo induced diarrhea amongst other things. A recent study on rats has proven its effectivness at preventing the severe diarrhea that follows chemotherapy with Irinotecan. It is a mix of 8 different probiotic bacteria. The good probiotic bugs race to mankind’s aid yet again.
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My husband was diagnosed with stomach cancer over a decade ago. He went through the chemotherapy, just as you, or your spouse, or friend is about to. His hair fell out, even his eyelashes, and for years he had a bare patch on his stomach where the radiation treatment was done. That was a decade ago.
