Cutting Promacta Pills

Hi everyone,

I was just curious...for anyone that used to or currently taking Promacta, have anyone cut their Promacta pills before? For example, I sometimes take 50mg and 25mg. It's really a hassle getting 2 different dosages through my specialty pharmacy...and wanted to save myself time and money by taking up the 50mg pill.

So far, I have spoken to 2 oncologist pharmacists...and they both told me no. They said per the manufacturer, Promacta can't be cut up. He also told me there's a special coating on the pill that helps your body absorb it...if you cut it, that special coating might work as well. Also, there's no line in the middle so that I can cut the pill accurately in half and they told me the pill might break apart...thus, I will not be getting the right dosage.

I just wanted some insights on this.

Sounds like you've been given the correct answer already. Some tablets cut easily and others don't. If it isn't scored it will be difficult and totally inaccurate. Often there is a coating which ensures that the tablet gets to the right part of the gut before dissolving. If it has a cut edge it would dissolve too early and could cause stomach problems.

Some meds are also time-released and if cut, you get the entire dose at once instead of spread out the way it should be. I'm not sure if Promacta is time-released, but seems like there are enough reasons already stated not to cut it.

I have been cutting 75s into 37.5s for several weeks with no issues. They are a little uneven, but it does not seem to matter in my case.

Hey Slammed, what did ya decide? I'm on 50 mg right now and was thinking about cutting them into 25s

Brizee, how is that working out for you?

Thanks,

Dan

I did not cut up the 50mg in half. I just decided to save them if I need to increase to 50mg. I'm like a yo-yo. I will be stable at 25mg, crashed due to being sick or stress...have to up it to 50mg to get my numbers back up...then back to 25mg.

Sounds like "typical" ITP to me That's probably a good idea. Its probably a nice feeling too to see an empty bottle of 25mgs and a full bottle of 50mgs every now and then. Good luck !

You are right! Very typical of ITP! I'm blessed to have good health insurance that is willing to pay for Promacta.

But, most of the time, I'm on 25mg.

This is a UK link so not sure if it will work... www.medicines.org.uk/emc/PIL.22951.latest.pdf

In case it doesn't it states it is a film coated tablet ....Swallow the tablet whole, with some water.

If the link does work the Summary of Product Characteristics will also be available. This provides some interesting reading

Just to chime in, I'd also been told that these pills can't be cut. Titrating your dosage can be a little tricky since the jumps are quite large... 12.5 mg to 25mg to 50 mg etc.

What my doctor does is put in my prescription for 75mg as "take 25mg tablet 3 times daily." I obviously don't do that, but having a month's supply of 75mg a day as 25mg tablets makes it easier for me to go up and down. I take 3 pills when I'm actually on 75mg like I am now, 2 if I'm on 50mg, etc. From my numbers lately, it seems like 75mg is a bit too much, but 50mg is not quite enough. I'm wondering about experimenting with 2 pills of 25mg plus 1 pill of 12.5mg to make a dosage of 62.5mg. I am building a stash of 25mg tablets but don't have many 12.5mg ones, so I'll have to tweak the prescription with my doctor if I need to do that.

For the moment I'll just stick with my 75mg until my counts (hopefully) bounce back up and then experiment with different ways to go down in dosage if I get too much higher than counts of 50.

Slammed, I hear you on the roller coaster! Getting stable numbers is a challenge when counts fluctuate quite a bit on their own

I have been on Promacta for last 10.5 months and most of time (9 months) i have been taking half of 25 mg except the very beginning. I cut the 25 mg pill using the pill cutter (works very well though it may not be very accurate). My counts has been steady in 70s except few times in 90s and 120s though last week it went down to 50. I suspect that the change in my diet (I had been on gluten free for several months but fell apart and started indulging myself with loads of gluten 2 weeks prior to the last test) might have caused the drop but never know. I am debating whether I want to keep the pleasure of gluten in my life for the sake of platelets.

I called the promacta producer (glaxo?) and they said it was fine to cut them. They tend to crumble however. My platelets are at 41000 without anything, but if they keep going down I will go back on promacta. Woke up with an unexplained bruise on the bottom part of my little finger so I figured something was not great. Last month I was at 600000. Just so happened today was my monthly test. Fingers crossed they do not keep dropping. Luckily no other symptoms.