![]() It may get better on its own or stay about the same during the rest of treatment, but it should go away completely about a month after treatment is stopped. The rash can itch, burn, or sting, and may be painful. In some people this can lead to skin infections. In the weeks after that, round, flat or raised red spots and pimples with pus in the center often appear. By about a month into treatment, the skin usually crusts and gets very dry and red. It’s often worst within the first few weeks of treatment. The rash most often starts as skin redness and swelling. In severe cases it can affect other parts of the body. It often looks like acne and shows up on the scalp, face, neck, chest, and upper back. The risk of getting a rash and how bad it gets depends on the type and dose of the targeted drug. Rash: This is the most common skin change from targeted drugs. It may very easily be burned and blister, even after very little sun exposure or exposure to sun coming through windows. Photosensitivity: Your skin will likely become much more sensitive to light and more easily damaged by UV rays during treatment. You may notice this change on your face as early as the first week of treatment. Even though it doesn’t look different, the sensation can be disturbing. What kinds of skin changes should I watch for?Ĭhanges in how your skin feels: Your skin may start to feel like it’s sunburned, before any redness or rash shows up. Blocking these proteins leads to damage in these tiny blood vessels which can cause hand-foot syndrome (described later). The VEGF proteins help tumors build and keep a blood supply, but they also seem to be important to the very small blood vessels in the hands and feet. Bevacizumab (Avastin) is one of these drugs. ![]() They turn off the signal for skin cells to grow normally and make it harder for them to retain moisture.ĭrugs called angiogenesis inhibitors often target vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) proteins. The problem is that normal skin cells also have a lot of EGFR, so drugs that target or block EGFR can affect skin cells, too. These are called EGFR inhibitors, and examples are cetuximab (Erbitux), panitumumab (Vectibix), and erlotinib (Tarceva). For instance, some targeted drugs attack the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) protein, which tells the cancer cells to grow and divide. Skin changes are caused by the way some targeted therapy drugs work. If you have these kinds of symptoms, get emergency help and call your doctor right away. An allergic reaction often includes other serious symptoms such as trouble breathing, dizziness, tightness in the throat or chest, or swelling of the lips or tongue. They may include hives (raised skin welts that often go away in a day or so) and intense itching. In contrast, allergic reactions are different because they tend to start suddenly, usually within minutes to hours after taking the drug. These skin problems usually develop slowly over days to weeks after your treatment starts. Many targeted therapy drugs cause a rash or other skin changes. In many cases we still don’t know if targeted therapy drugs cause these kinds of long-term changes. We do know that some of the side effects from standard or traditional chemo drugs can last a lifetime, such as when the drug causes long-term damage to the heart, lungs, kidneys, or reproductive organs. It depends on many factors, including your overall health and the drugs you were given.īecause many targeted drugs are still quite new, it’s hard to say how long you can expect side effects to last. ![]() The time it takes to get over some side effects varies from person to person. Most side effects go away over time after treatment ends and the healthy cells recover. Report all changes and side effects as soon as possible to your cancer care team. Rare and unusual side effects can happen with some of these drugs, and some can be serious.Your doctor may give you instructions to follow or medicines to help prevent some side effects before they happen. Be sure to talk to your cancer care team about which side effects are most common with your treatment, how long they might last, how bad they might be, and when you should call the doctor’s office about them. How severe a side effect might be can vary greatly from drug to drug and from person to person.Not every person gets every side effect, and some people get few or none.There are many different types of targeted drugs, and their side effects depend largely on the type of drug that's given and what it targets. Some targeted drugs have very few side effects, and others can cause more or more serious problems. Targeted therapy drugs have different side effects than standard or traditional chemotherapy.
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