My wife has MBC found in the peritoneum. After completing a course of Taxol she has been prescribed a combination of Faslodex and IBrance. She has completed the first 4 cycles of Faslodex and will, within the next month or so, start the IBrance. My questions:
1. Is there a preferred time of day to take IBrance?
2. Is there a preferred cycle of IBrance relative to the Faslodex cycle as they are both on a 4-week cycle?
Any other recommendations would be welcomed.
Thank you. I've read that a gallon of water a day is recommended. Is that your experience?
I take my Ibrance at lunch, because that's when I try to eat my largest meal of the day. And, I too drink a lot of fluids, mostly water and herbal or decaf tea. The cycles don't match up either, but I'm not sure it makes a difference. It was a lot at first though having the front load dosing on Faslodex every 2 weeks and the weekly bloodwork for Ibrance to monitor blood counts. I wish you and your wife the best with this course of treatment. You see there's a lot of us that it's working for.
I take Ibrance in the evening after my dinner. I have my dinner between 5-6pm .....aftawards between 9-10pm I take letrozole. I also drink lots of water between 3-4 litters a day. Hope this helps
Thank you
When I was on these two my Dr. and pharmacy told me I had to take them at the same time.
Reply ? I been told not to , strange , I will double check with my pharmacy
I was told the same and take Ibrance with Letrozole together at breakfast.
I take mine after breakfast, since it must be taken with food. Then I sit fir half an hour, sipping water to avoid stomach discomfort. Also I take 2 Pepsi’s AC with the Ibrance as suggested by my medical team.
The two cycles are independent. I’ve had to delay the Ibrance a few times, but my Faslodex cycles did not change. I have been traveling when due for the shots, and we just postponed the shots, with no problem.
Good luck.
Thanks for your input
Hi there, I'm new to these drugs. I had about 3 shots of Faslodex before starting with the iBrance. I was pleased to find I had no problems at all with the ibrance. Due to the fact that I have an erratic schedule I decided that morning would be the most consistent time for me. I also eat a good solid breakfast of raw oats (+almond milk) and fruit. I would literally eat and go straight to work to teach a low impact aerobics class without issue. The one caveat is to drink a lot. Water and tea works for me. I never counted out how much though. Interestingly I didn't exactly feel "thirsty" but just felt the need to keep drinking (especially the first few hrs after taking it) and didn't ignore that signal. For that reason I was glad not to have taken it in the evening.
Now after only 2 weeks I had to stop early as my counts dropped too low . I'm having a 2 week break, blood retest and then will be restarting (if all is good) with a lower dose of ibrance so don't worry about the cycles. They will likely be unpredictable anyway!
I was nervous about taking ibrance but then it turned out I had no side effects, except possibly less energy to get through a whole day. Taking a good hour in the afternoon just to chill and do nothing worked best.
Best of luck to your wife. She should be fine with it.
Hi, Josh. I've never been told of a preferred time. I just always take the meds at night, as Ibrance tends to zap your energy. God bless your wife on her journey; you've found a great support group! Linda in Seattle
Thanks for sharing your experience. Curious a to how long you feel your energy "zapped." (I like that term as it's really descriptive.)
I used to be pretty high energy and still find days when no one would guess I have MBC. But I do take a lot more naps than in my days before diagnosis. I'm not sure how women continue to work full-time. For me, it's the biggest side effect, but for women who have received intensive chemo, I feel ashamed to even complain. If your wife gets run down, I'd advise an occasional hour-long nap. It makes a world of difference! God bless you for doing all this research on behalf of your wife--you are a wonderful husband! Linda
Hi there. I usually take the ibrance at 10:00 as that is about when I eat a small breakfast. The faslodex is on a four week cycle but as some of the other comments agree it does not have to coincide with the ibrance. I have another question for the ladies though. On a rare occasion I miss a dose, do u take the dose perhaps later in the day or just skip it until the next day and then go back to the routine time? To josh, best of luck to u and your wife.
Thanks for sharing. Great question about what to do when you miss a pill. Thanks for adding it.
The paperwork in the pill packet explains what to do if you miss a dose. You should not take too close together because of overdose. Better to miss one entirely
Just skip. There is enough in our system to carry us through one missed day. Also, if you were sick (due to flu or nausea) and vomited, you should not take another “even if you see the pill in the vomit” per the nurse.
Yes I just confirmed this with my nurse at the hospital. Going for my pet scan tmrow so I feel like I want all the protection in my body as much as possible!
It's nice that you are posting on your wife's behalf. That kind of support means everything. LIke everyone else who has posted, I decided to take my ibrance during the meal that was most regular convenient for me, which was lunch. My oncologist and the pharmacist did not recommend a particular time of day, but did agree that it's best to take it the same time of day. I wish your wife well.
Thanks for your input. It seems like there's a common thread in the responses: Take it at the meal that is significant and most reliable as to time of day and drink lots and lots of water.
I take at dinner time. Very manageable. Each cycle has been a little different. I had nausea my first couple days of this cycle. I found taking Ibrance and ondansetron together eliminated it.
One cycle I had fatigue the last week of med. Two cycles my fatigue was in off week. But I did have low iron so I have to supplement.
I’m on my 4th cycle with it.
Hope this cycle is better. Thanks for sharing
I take Ibrance and Letrozole at breakfast since that's my most consistent meal time and I'm always home then. I've always been a big water drinker (don't drink much else). Now on 11th cycle with some tiredness, usually near end of 3rd week and beginning of off-week. I just rest a little more at that time. The only other side effect I had was a pretty bad rash during the first cycle. Didn't call doctor immediately as I guess I should have (saw that in drug instructions after the fact). She was somewhat alarmed when she saw it--told me to take an antihistamine and it cleared up relatively quickly and never reoccurred.
I have been taking ibrance for just 12 days now I take it with breakfast cuz it's the most stable time of day for me. Faslodex I have been using monthly for three years
I take my Ibrance everyday around 10AM and it seems to work well
I take my Ibrance and letrozole together with my supper nobody ever suggesteda time, just take with food.
I take my Ibrance/letrozole in the evening. I was told to take them together at the same time. I try very hard to drink the minimum recommended water but it is difficult. I'm sure many of you relate to that. I hope your wife does well.
Blessings
I wasn't told a time of day for Ibrance, just that with or after food and to avoid grapefruit. The first day I took it at lunchtime and fell asleep in the afternoon so I then moved it to late evening instead. The main thing is to take it roughly the same time each day because having it too close together can cause overdose.I'm curious about the people on here drinking loads of water - I was told at least 2 litres but I've also heard that more than 4 is detrimental as is flushes out essential minerals.
Surgery while taking Ibrance.
Stopping Ibrance for the time being
Long term survivors taking ibrance
Ibrance Time
