Cancer drugs A to Z list
Encorafenib and binimetinib is a targeted cancer drug combination treatment for people whose cancer has spread to other areas of the body (advanced or metastatic).
You might have it if you have advanced melanoma skin cancer that can’t be removed with surgery. Or if you have metastatic non small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and haven’t had treatment yet.
You can only have these drugs if you have a BRAF V600E (mutation). You have tests on the melanoma cells to check for this gene change.
Encorafenib is also known as Braftovi. Binimetinib is also known as Mektovi.
You pronounce encorafenib as en-ko-raf-e-nib. You pronounce binimetinib as bin-i-meh-ti-nib.
Encorafenib and binimetinib are types of cancer growth blockers. They work by targeting certain proteins that help cancer cells grow. By blocking these proteins, this combination of drugs stops or slows down the growth of cancer cells.
Go to information about cancer growth blockers
You take encorafenib as capsules and binimetinib as tablets.
You swallow the capsules and tablets whole with a glass of water. You can take them with or without food.
Encorafenib capsules can be opened and mixed in a small quantity (about 20ml) of apple sauce and take immediately.
For binimetinib you can dissolve the 15mg tablets in a small glass with about 10ml (roughly 2 teaspoons) of either water, orange juice or apple juice and take immediately. You should then rinse the glass with a further 10ml of water, orange juice or apple juice, and drink it immediately.
You should take the right dose, not more or less.
Talk to your healthcare team before you stop taking a cancer drug, or if you have missed a dose.
You take encorafenib once a day. You take binimetinib twice a day, about 12 hours apart.
You continue taking encorafenib and binimetinib for as long as the treatment is working, and you are not experiencing too many side effects.
You have blood tests before and during your treatment. They check your levels of and other substances in the blood. They also check how well your liver and kidneys are working.
Before treatment starts you may have a blood test to check for viruses such as hepatitis B, hepatitis C, and HIV. This is called a viral screen.
It’s important for your doctor to know if you have had any of these viruses. This is because this treatment can weaken your and can cause the virus to become active again (reactivation).
You have an , or both before and regularly during this treatment to check for how well your heart is working.
Go to information about having an ECG and ECHO
Side effects can vary from person to person. They also depend on what other treatments you're having.
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.
These side effects happen in more than 10 in 100 people (more than 10%). You might have one or more of them. They include:
Tell your healthcare team straightaway if you get a high temperature. Ask them if you can take paracetamol to help lower your temperature.
You might be breathless and look pale due to a drop in . This is called anaemia.
Numbness or tingling in fingers or toes is often temporary and can improve after you finish treatment. Tell your healthcare team if you're finding it difficult to walk or complete fiddly tasks such as doing up buttons.
Tell your healthcare team if you keep getting headaches. They can give you painkillers to help.
This treatment might make you feel dizzy. Don’t drive or operate machinery if you have this.
This treatment can cause changes to your vision, or you might get a fluid leak under the retina. The retina is a layer of cells at the back of the eyeball that converts light into nerve signals. This is how you see.
Symptoms can include blurred vision, redness, swelling, pain, loss of vision, or coloured spots before your eyes. Some people have floaters which might appear as moving shapes, shadows or halo’s (blurred outline around objects).
Eye problems usually get better after you stop taking these drugs.
You might bleed from different areas of the body. This can be serious.
Symptoms of bleeding can include a severe headache - it’s often described as a thunderclap. Feeling or being sick, confused, dizziness, changes to your speech or eyesight, weakness or numbness on one side of the body.
You might vomit or cough up blood. You might pass blood when you pee or poo. You might bleed in between your periods (menstrual cycle) and it might be heavier than usual.
Tell your doctor or nurse if you have headaches, nosebleeds, blurred or double vision or shortness of breath. You have your blood pressure checked regularly.
Contact your advice line if you have diarrhoea. For example, in one day you have 2 or more loose bowel movements than usual. If you have a , you might have more output than normal. Your doctor may give you anti diarrhoea medicine to take home with you after treatment.
Try to eat small meals and snacks regularly. It’s best to try to have a healthy balanced diet if you can. You don’t necessarily need to stop eating foods that contain . But if your diet is normally very high in fibre, it might help to cut back on high fibre foods such as beans, nuts, seeds, dried fruit, bran and raw vegetables.
Drink plenty to try and replace the fluid lost. Aim for 8 to 10 glasses per day.
is easier to sort out if you treat it early. Drink plenty and eat as much fresh fruit and vegetables as you can. Try to take gentle exercise, such as walking. Tell your healthcare team if you think you are constipated. They can give you a laxative if needed.
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 problems can include new moles and non cancerous skin tumours. These are also called skin papilloma’s.
You might develop an acne like rash, dry skin, itching, reddening and your skin might feel thicker. You might have areas of skin that go darker than the surrounding areas.
In some people the skin on your hands and feet may get sore, blister or peel. You may also have tingling, numbness, pain and dryness. This is called hand-foot syndrome or palmar plantar syndrome.
You are at an increased risk of developing another skin cancer with this treatment. This is a less common side effect. Your doctor will check your skin regularly throughout your treatment.
Your skin might also be more sensitive to the sunlight causing a reaction. It’s important to protect your skin by keeping in the shade, covering up your skin and wearing sunscreen. The sunscreen should be at least SPF 30 with a 4 or 5 star UVA protection rating.
Your hair may thin, you might lose hair in certain areas (patches) or it may go completely. It usually grows back when you finish treatment.
Other areas of hair that might be affected include your eyelashes, eyebrows, underarm, leg and sometimes pubic hair.
You might feel some pain from your tummy (abdomen), arms, legs, back, muscles or joints. Speak to your doctor or nurse about what painkillers you can take to help with this.
Let your doctor or nurse know if you have any weakness, stiffness, pain and spasms in your muscles during or after having treatment.
Your blood tests might show that you have high levels of an enzyme in your blood called creatinine kinase (CK). This is mainly found in the heart, brain or skeletal muscles.
Rarely this treatment can cause a breakdown of muscles that can lead to kidney problems. This is called rhabdomyolysis. Symptoms can include, muscle aches or pains, muscle tenderness or weakness or dark reddish – brown urine.
Let your healthcare team know straight away if you are having any of these symptoms.
You may have swelling of your hands and legs due to a build up of fluid (oedema).
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.
You might have liver changes that are usually mild and unlikely to cause symptoms. They usually go back to normal when treatment finishes.
You have regular blood tests to check for any changes in the levels of chemicals produced by the liver.
You might lose your appetite for various reasons while having cancer treatment. Sickness, taste changes or tiredness can put you off food and drinks.
Taste changes may make you go off certain foods and drinks. You may also find that some foods taste different from usual or that you prefer to eat spicier foods. Your taste gradually returns to normal a few weeks after your treatment finishes.
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:
an allergic reaction that can cause a rash, shortness of breath, redness or swelling of the face and dizziness
problems with how well your heart works – symptoms can include feeling dizzy, tired, lightheaded or short of breath. Your heart might feel like its pounding, racing or beating irregularly. You might also have swollen legs. Let your healthcare team know straight away if you have any of these symptoms
blood clots - these can be life threatening. Signs are pain, swelling and redness where the clot is. Feeling breathless can be a sign of a blood clot on the lung. Contact your advice line or doctor straight away if you have any of these symptoms
inflammation of your bowel (colitis) - symptoms include diarrhoea, pain or cramping in your tummy, passing blood in your poo and weight loss
changes to how well your kidneys work - symptoms might include not passing enough pee, breathlessness, feeling tired and weak, confused, feeling sick and you might have swelling on your legs, ankles and feet. You have regular bloods tests to check this
problems with your . Blood tests might show you have pancreatic changes. Rarely this treatment can cause inflammation of the pancreas. Symptoms can include severe tummy pain, feeling or being sick, a high temperature or diarrhoea
inflammation of your joints (arthritis)
weakness or unable to move your facial muscles – you may slur your words, dribble or not be able to eat or drink properly
inflammation of the fatty tissue layer between the skin and muscle (panniculitis) – you can get large bumps to appear under the skin, usually on the lower legs
We have more information about side effects and tips on how to cope with them.
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.
It is not known whether this treatment affects in people. Talk to your doctor before starting treatment if you think you may want to have a baby in the future.
Don’t breastfeed during this treatment. This is because the drugs may come through in your breast milk.
This treatment might harm a baby developing in the womb. It is important not to become pregnant or get someone pregnant while you're having treatment and for a month afterwards.
Encorafenib may stop hormonal contraceptives like the pill, injection, patches or implant working properly. If you are using one of these, you should also use another barrier method such as a condom or a diaphragm during and for at least a month after treatment has finished.
Talk to your doctor or nurse about effective contraception before starting treatment. Let them know straight away if you or your partner becomes pregnant while having treatment.
If you are having tests or treatment for anything else, always mention your cancer treatment. For example, if you are visiting your dentist.
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.
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 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.
For further information about each drug and the possible side effects go to the electronic Medicines Compendium (eMC) website. You can find patient information leaflets for each drug on this website.
You can report any side effect you have to the Medicines and Healthcare Regulatory Agency (MHRA) as part of their Yellow Card Scheme.
Last reviewed: 01 May 2026
Next review due: 01 May 2029
Melanoma develops in cells called melanocytes. You have these in your skin and other parts of your body. Melanoma that starts in the skin is called melanoma skin cancer.
Lung cancer starts in the windpipe (trachea), the main airway (bronchus) or the lung tissue. Cancer that starts in the lung is called primary lung cancer.
Cancer drugs have side effects and these can vary from person to person. But there are things that you can do to help you cope.
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