[K_Shash]

Rash from Revlimid after stopping dexamethasone

by K_Shash on Sat Nov 07, 2015 1:50 pm

Hello everyone,

Has anyone a rash from Revlimid after stopping dex?

I developed a severe rash on my legs yesterday, only on the 9th day of my Revlimid cycle this time. I had a whole body itch for a couple of days prior to this rash last night. I skipped the Revlimid last night (per the past advice from my oncologist, as noted below) and took a Benadryl (diphenhydramine) before going to sleep. Already, the rash seems to have gone from bright red to brown.

I have had the Revlimid rash (only a couple of spots on my forearm) a couple of times over the last 10 or 11 cycles of Revlimid, three weeks on, one week off. In both the cases, the rash appeared at the end of the cycle, on the 20th day the first time, and on the 23rd day (during the OFF week) the second time.

My oncologist had already advised me to stop the Revlimid the first time. I had also read that Benadryl (or any antihistamine helps, too).

My Revlimid dose will be reduced as the next and final step of my tapering from the induction to the maintenance phase of my therapy. Somehow, all this seems to happen on Friday nights, just before the weekend, when I cannot contact my oncologist for two days.

I plan to take the Revlimid tonight with Benadryl and see what happens. I am pretty sure that the dex was keeping the Revlimid rash away. I have generally tolerated Revlimid at the Induction level dose and would like to be able to tolerate it for my maintenance therapy.

Anyone else with such an experience after stopping dex?

K_Shash

[dcsilv]

Re: Rash from Revlimid after stopping dexamethasone

by dcsilv on Wed Nov 11, 2015 1:04 am

I originally started maintenance 5 years ago with dex + Revlimid after a couple of years of not being on anything after a bone marrow transplant. Developed a severe rash within a week –something that looked like a cross between poison ivy and hives from the neck down.

Stopped Revlimid and took thalidomide + dex then thalidomide only for about 2 years. No rash.

Oncologist decided to try Revlimid again because both he and I heard of cases where, on the second try with Revlimid after a rash clears, the rash does not return or can be easily controlled. So, I changed back to Revlimid but without dex. This time the rash was very slight and we eliminated it using 10 mg Zyrtec (generic cetirizine from Costco).

I remained on this regimen for over 2 years. At least for me, Zyrtec caused almost no drowsiness, unlike Benadryl. Dex did not have any affect on the rash in my case. All we have been able to conclude is that I became much less sensitive to Revlimid. That won't necessarily be your outcome and Zyrtec may or may not work for you. This disease and the drugs used to fight it seem to affect people differently.