Cladribine

What is cladribine?

Cladribine is a chemotherapy drug. Cladribine is used to treat:

• hairy cell leukaemia

• B cell chronic lymphocytic leukaemia (CLL)

Find out more about hairy cell leukaemia and CLL

How does cladribine work?

Cladribine is one of a group of chemotherapy drugs known as anti metabolites. These stop cells making and repairing ​DNA​. Cancer cells need to make and repair DNA so that they can grow and multiply. Cladribine kills abnormal ​white blood cells​.

How do you have cladribine?

There are 2 types of cladribine, these are called Leustat and LITAK.

Leustat

You might have treatment through a long plastic tube that goes into a large vein in your chest. The tube stays in place throughout the course of treatment. This can be a:

• central line

• PICC line

• portacath

LITAK

You usually have injections under the skin (subcutaneous injection) into the stomach, thigh or top of your arm.

You might have stinging or a dull ache for a short time after this type of injection, but they don't usually hurt much. The skin in the area may go red and itchy for a while.

The video below shows you how to inject just under your skin (subcutaneously). 

How often do you have Leustat?

For hairy cell leukaemia you usually have intravenous Leustat as a continuous drip for 7 days. 

For chronic lymphocytic leukaemia you usually have Leustat as a 2 hour drip each day for 5 days every 4 weeks. Each 4 week period is called a ​cycle of treatment​. You may have up to 6 cycles. 

Your doctor may prescribe a medicine called allopurinol to lower blood levels of uric acid which can build up in your blood when the leukaemia cells are killed.

How often do you have LITAK?

For hairy cell leukaemia you have LITAK as injections just under the skin each day for 5 days. Your doctor or nurse may show you how to do this yourself. 

Your doctor may prescribe a medicine called allopurinol to lower blood levels of uric acid which can build up in your blood when the leukaemia cells are killed. 

Tests

You have blood tests before and during your treatment. They check your levels of blood cells and other substances in the blood. They also check how well your liver and kidneys are working.

What are the side effects of cladribine?

Side effects can vary from person to person. They also depend on what other treatments you're having. 

When to contact your team

Your doctor, nurse or pharmacist will go through the possible side effects. They will monitor you during treatment and check how you are at your appointments. Contact your advice line as soon as possible if:

• you have severe side effects 

• your side effects aren’t getting any better

• your side effects are getting worse

Early treatment can help manage side effects better. 

We haven't listed all the side effects here. Talk to your healthcare team if you have any new symptoms that you think might be a side effect of your treatment.

Remember it is very unlikely that you will have all of these side effects. But you might have some of them at the same time.

Common side effects

These side effects happen in more than 10 in 100 people (more than 10%). You might have one or more of them. They include:

Increased risk of getting an infection

Increased risk of getting an infection is due to a drop in white blood cells. Symptoms include a change in temperature, aching muscles, cough, headaches, feeling cold and shivery, pain or a burning feeling when peeing, or generally feeling unwell. You might have other symptoms depending on where the infection is.

Infections can sometimes be life threatening. You should contact your advice line urgently if you think you have an infection. 

You might have medication to try and prevent some infections.

Breathlessness and looking pale

You might be breathless and look pale due to a drop in red blood cells. This is called anaemia.

Bruising, bleeding gums or nosebleeds

This is due to a drop in the number of platelets in your blood. These blood cells help the blood to clot when we cut ourselves. You may have nosebleeds or bleeding gums after brushing your teeth. Or you may have lots of tiny red spots or bruises on your arms or legs. This is known as petechiae.

Tiredness and weakness (fatigue)

Tiredness and weakness (fatigue) can happen during and after treatment. Doing gentle exercises each day can keep your energy up. Don't push yourself, rest when you start to feel tired and ask others for help.

Dizziness

This drug may make you feel drowsy or dizzy. Don’t drive or operate machinery if you have this.

High temperature (fever)

Tell your healthcare team straightaway if you get a high temperature. Ask them if you can take paracetamol to help lower your temperature.

Headaches

Tell your healthcare team if you keep getting headaches. They can give you painkillers to help.

Cough 

You might develop a cough or breathing problems. This could be due to infection, such as pneumonia or inflammation of the lungs (pneumonitis). 

Feeling or being sick

Feeling or being sick is usually well controlled with anti sickness medicines. It might help to avoid fatty or fried foods, eat small meals and snacks and take regular sips of water. Relaxation techniques might also help.

It is important to take anti sickness medicines as prescribed even if you don’t feel sick. It is easier to prevent sickness rather than treat it once it has started.

Skin rash

Skin problems include a skin rash, dry skin and itching. This usually goes back to normal when your treatment finishes. Your healthcare team can tell you what products you can use on your skin to help.

Pain at drip site

Tell your nurse straight away if you have any pain, redness, swelling or leaking around your drip site.

Sweating

Talk to the team looking after you about this.

Diarrhoea or constipation

Tell your healthcare team if you have diarrhoea or constipation. They can give you medicine to help. 

Loss of appetite

You might lose your appetite for various reasons while having cancer treatment. Sickness, taste changes or tiredness can put you off food and drinks.

Red spots under the skin

This happens when small blood vessels leak under the skin. It is known as purpura or petechia.

Occasional side effects

These side effects happen in between 1 and 10 out of every 100 people (between 1 and 10%). You might have one or more of them. They include:

• a serious reaction to an infection - signs can include feeling very unwell, not passing urine, being sick, a very high or very low temperature or shivering - contact your advice line straight away if you have any of these symptoms

• allergic reaction that can cause a rash, shortness of breath, redness or swelling of the face and dizziness - some allergic reactions can be life threatening, alert your nurse or doctor if notice any of these symptoms

• difficulty sleeping (insomnia)

• nose bleeds

• anxiety

• changes to the heart such as a fast heart rate, murmur and damage to heart muscle (myocardial ischaemia)

• low blood pressure

• sore mouth

• wind and stomach pain

• second cancers. Talk to your doctor if you are concerned about this.

• changes to how the kidneys work including kidneys not working. You have blood tests to check for this.

• changes to how the liver works. This shows up in blood test results and goes back to normal when you finish treatment.

• general pain including muscle pain, joint pain and bone pain

• confusion

• arthritis

• swelling

Rare side effects

These side effects happen in fewer than 1 in 100 people (fewer than 1%). You might have one or more of them. They include:

• a severe skin reaction that may start as tender red patches which leads to peeling or blistering of the skin. You might also feel feverish and your eyes may be more sensitive to light. This is serious and could be life threatening.

• changes to the levels of chemicals in your blood due to the breakdown of tumour cells (tumour lysis syndrome). You have regular blood tests to check for this. You might have medication to help prevent this.

• nerve damage causing pins and needles, loss of ability to move your legs or other parts of the body

• changes to the level of awareness (consciousness)

• shingles

• severe weight loss

• inflammation of the voice box

• inflammation of the blood vessels

• eye infection (conjunctivitis)

Coping with side effects

We have more information about side effects and tips on how to cope with them.

Read more about how to cope with side effects

What else do you need to know?

Other medicines, foods or drink

Cancer drugs can interact with medicines, herbal products, and some food and drinks. We are unable to list all the possible interactions that may happen. An example is grapefruit or grapefruit juice which can increase the side effects of certain drugs.

Tell your healthcare team about any medicines you are taking. This includes vitamins, herbal supplements and over the counter remedies. Also let them know about any other medical conditions or allergies you may have.

Having blood after this treatment

After having this treatment you should only have blood or platelets that are first treated with radiation (irradiated). The radiation lowers the risk of a reaction between your blood cells and the cells in the transfusion. No harm comes from the irradiated blood.

In your medical records there is a note saying you should only have irradiated blood. You have a card to carry with this information. This is in case you need treatment at another hospital.

Pregnancy and contraception

This drug may harm a baby developing in the womb. It is important not to become pregnant or get someone pregnant while you are having treatment with this drug and for at least 6 months after treatment.

Talk to your doctor or nurse about effective contraception before starting treatment. Let them know straight away if you or your partner falls pregnant while having treatment.

Loss of fertility

You may not be able to become pregnant or get someone pregnant after treatment with this drug. Talk to your doctor before starting treatment if you think you may want to have a baby in the future.

Men might be able to store sperm before starting treatment. And women might be able to store eggs or ovarian tissue. But these services are not available in every hospital, so you would need to ask your doctor about this.    

Breastfeeding

Don’t breastfeed during this treatment and for 6 months afterwards. The drug may come through in the breast milk.

Treatment for other conditions

If you are having tests or treatment for anything else, always mention your cancer treatment. For example, if you are visiting your dentist.

Immunisations

Don’t have immunisations with live vaccines while you’re having treatment and for up to 12 months afterwards. The length of time depends on the treatment you are having.

Ask your doctor or pharmacist how long you should avoid live vaccinations.

In the UK, live vaccines include rubella, mumps, measles, BCG, and yellow fever.

You can usually have:

• other vaccines, but they might not give you as much protection as usual

• the flu vaccine (as an injection)

• the coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccine

Talk to your doctor or pharmacist about the best time to have a vaccine in relation to your cancer treatment.

Contact with others who have had immunisations 

You can be in contact with other people who have had live vaccines as injections. If someone has had a live vaccine by mouth or nasal spray there may be a small risk the vaccine virus can be passed onto you if your ​immune system​ is weakened.

Your healthcare team will let you know if you need to take any precautions if you are in close contact with someone who has had a live vaccine.

Read more about immunisations and cancer treatment

More information about this treatment

For further information about this treatment and possible side effects go to the electronic Medicines Compendium (eMC) website. You can find the patient information leaflet on this website.

eMC website

You can report any side effect you have to the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) as part of their Yellow Card Scheme.

Report a side effect to the MHRA