Dasatinib
Dasatinib is a cancer drug. It is used to treat chronic myeloid leukaemia (CML) and acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL).
What is dasatinib?
Dasatinib is a type of drug called a tyrosine kinase inhibitor and belongs to a group of targeted therapy drugs known as cancer growth inhibitors.
Dasatinib is used to treat chronic myeloid leukaemia (CML) and acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL).
Dasatinib is used when the leukaemia cells have a genetic change called the Philadelphia chromosome (Philadelphia chromosome positive). The doctor can test your blood or bone marrow to look for the Philadelphia chromosome.
It is best to read this information with our general information about targeted therapy drugs and the type of cancer you have.
Your cancer team will talk to you about this treatment and its possible side effects before you agree (consent) to have treatment.
More information about this treatment
This information is correct at time of publishing. But sometimes the types of cancer this treatment is used for, or treatment side effects, may change between revision dates.
You can talk to your cancer team if you want more detailed information about this treatment. Or visit the electronic Medicines Compendium (eMC) website, which has patient information leaflets (PIL) for individual drugs.
How dasatinib is given
Dasatinib comes as tablets. This means you can take it at home.
- blood cancer doctor (haematologist)
- specialist nurse
- specialist pharmacist.
This is who we mean when we mention doctor, nurse or pharmacist in this information.
During your treatment, you will have regular blood tests. This is to check that it is safe for you to have treatment.
Sometimes your doctor may have to stop or lower your dose for a while depending on your blood test results.
You will meet with a doctor, nurse or pharmacist regularly. They will talk to you about your blood results and ask how you have been feeling.
Your course of treatment
Your cancer team will give you the dasatinib tablets to take at home. They may give you tablets of different strengths. Always take them exactly as your doctor, nurse or pharmacist tell you to. This is important to make sure they work as well as possible for you.
You usually take dasatinib for as long as it is working for you and side effects can be managed. It is important that you do not stop taking it without talking to your doctor.
Your cancer team may also give you anti-sickness drugs and other medicines to take home. Take all your capsules or tablets exactly as they tell you to.
Taking dasatinib tablets
You take dasatinib once a day. You can take them with or without food.
Make sure you:
- take them at the same time every day
- swallow them whole with a glass of water
- do not chew, break or crush them
- avoid grapefruit or grapefruit juice whilst taking dasatinib, as this may increase your risk of side effects
- wash your hands after taking your tablets
- take any medicines for stomach acid or indigestion 2 hours before taking the dasatinib or 2 hours after taking the dasatinib
If you forget to take the tablets, take the next dose at the usual time. Do not take a double dose to make up for the forgotten one.
Other things to remember about your tablets:
- Keep them in the original package and at room temperature, away from moisture, heat and direct sunlight.
- Keep them safe, where children cannot see or reach them.
- If you are sick (vomit) just after taking them, do not take an extra dose. Take your next dose at the usual time.
- Do not throw away unused tablets. Return them to your cancer team at the hospital.
About side effects
We explain the most common side effects of this treatment here. We also include some that are less common.
You may get some of the side effects we mention, but you are unlikely to get all of them. And you may have some side effects, including rarer ones, that we have not listed here.
Other cancer treatments may cause different side effects. If you are also having other cancer treatment, you may have other side effects.
Always tell your doctor, nurse or pharmacist about any side effects you have. They can give you:
- drugs to help control some side effects
- advice about managing side effects.
It is important to take any drugs exactly as explained. This means they will be more likely to work for you.
Serious and life-threatening side effects
Some cancer treatments can cause serious side effects. Sometimes, these may be life-threatening. Your doctor, nurse or pharmacist can explain the risk of these side effects to you.
Contact the hospital
Your doctor, nurse or pharmacist will give you 24-hour contact numbers for the hospital. If you feel unwell or need advice, you can call at any time of the day or night. Save these numbers in your phone or keep them somewhere safe.
Very common side effects
Risk of infection
This treatment can reduce the number of white blood cells in your blood. These cells fight infection. If your white blood cell count is low, you may be more likely to get an infection. A low white blood cell count is called neutropenia.
An infection can be very serious when the number of white blood cells is low. It is important to get any infection treated as soon as possible. If you have any of the following symptoms, contact the hospital straight away on the 24-hour number:
- a temperature above 37.5°C
- a temperature below 36°C
- you feel unwell, even with a normal temperature
- you have symptoms of an infection.
Symptoms of an infection include:
- feeling shivery and shaking
- a sore throat
- a cough
- breathlessness
- diarrhoea
- needing to pass urine (pee) often, or discomfort when you pass urine.
It is important to follow any specific advice your cancer treatment team gives you.
You will have regular blood tests during treatment. If your white blood cell count is low, your doctor may stop your treatment for a short time, until your cell count increases. Sometimes they will reduce the dose of your treatment.
Bruising and bleeding
This treatment can reduce the number of platelets in your blood. Platelets are cells that help the blood to clot.
If the number of platelets is low, you may bruise or bleed easily. You may have:
- nosebleeds
- bleeding gums
- heavy periods
- blood in your urine (pee) or stools (poo)
- tiny red, brown or purple spots that may look like a rash – these spots can be harder to see if you have black or brown skin.
If you have any unexplained bruising or bleeding, contact the hospital straight away on the 24-hour number. You may need a drip to give you extra platelets. This is called a platelet transfusion.
Anaemia (low number of red blood cells)
This treatment can reduce the number of red blood cells in your blood. Red blood cells carry oxygen around the body. If the number of red blood cells is low, this is called anaemia. You may feel:
- very low in energy
- breathless
- dizzy and light-headed.
If you have these symptoms, contact the hospital straight away on the 24-hour number. You may need treatment for anaemia. If you are very anaemic, you may need a drip to give you extra red blood cells. This is called a blood transfusion.
Fluid build-up
This treatment can sometimes cause swelling in the ankles or around the eyes. Sometimes fluid may build up in the lining of the lungs. This is known as pleural effusion. Rarely, fluid collects in the lining around the heart.
A build-up of fluid may be treated with steroid tablets or with drugs called diuretics. Diuretics make you pass more urine (pee). Sometimes doctors may ask you to stop taking this drug for a few days, until the fluid goes away.
Always tell your doctor if you develop swelling. It is important to contact your doctor or your hospital straight away if you develop any of the following:
- a cough
- chest pain
- feeling more breathless than usual
- gaining weight suddenly.
Effects on the lungs
This treatment can cause changes to the lungs. Tell your doctor, nurse or pharmacist if you develop:
- a cough that does not go away
- wheezing
- breathlessness.
You should also tell them if any existing breathing problems get worse. You may have tests to check your lungs.
Diarrhoea
This treatment may cause diarrhoea. Diarrhoea means passing more stools (poo) than is normal for you, or having watery or loose stools. You may also have stomach cramps. If you have a stoma, it may be more active than usual.
If you are passing loose stools 3 or more times a day and this is not normal for you, contact the hospital as soon as possible on the 24-hour number. Follow the advice they give you about:
- taking anti-diarrhoea medicines
- drinking enough fluids to keep you hydrated and to replace lost salts and minerals
- any changes to your diet that might help.
They might also ask you for a specimen of your stool to check for infection.
Feeling sick
Your doctor, nurse or pharmacist may prescribe anti-sickness drugs to help prevent or control sickness. Take the drugs exactly as they tell you to.
If you feel sick, take small sips of fluid often and eat small amounts regularly. It is important to drink enough fluids. If you continue to feel sick, or if you are sick (vomit) 1 to 2 times in 24 hours, contact the hospital on the 24-hour number as soon as possible. They will give you advice. They may change your anti-sickness treatment. Let them know if you still feel sick.
Headaches
This treatment may cause headaches. If you have headaches, tell your doctor, nurse or pharmacist. They can give you advice about painkillers that may help. Tell them if the headache does not get better, or gets worse.
Rarely, this treatment may cause a brain bleed. Symptoms of this include:
- sudden, severe headache
- weakness in an arm or leg
- fits (seizures)
- loss of speech.
You or the person you are with should always call 999 if you have any symptoms of a brain bleed.
Tummy pain
You may get pain in your tummy (abdomen), or have indigestion. Your doctor, nurse or pharmacist can give you advice or treatment to help. Contact the hospital straight away on the 24-hour number if:
- your symptoms do not go away, or get worse.
- you have blood in your stools (poo)
- you develop a fever.
Feeling tired
Feeling tired is a common side effect of this treatment. Try to pace yourself and plan your day so you have time to rest. Gentle exercise, like short walks, can help you feel less tired.
If you feel sleepy, do not drive or use machinery.
Skin changes
This treatment can affect your skin. If your skin feels dry, try using soap-free cleansers and unperfumed moisturising cream every day. This treatment can also:
- cause a rash, which may be itchy
- cause acne
- can cause you to sweat more
- make you more sensitive to the sun.
Your skin may burn more easily during treatment and for several months after. Use a sun cream of at least SPF 30. SPF stands for sun protection factor. Cover up with clothing and wear a hat.
Always tell your doctor, nurse or pharmacist about any skin changes. They can give you advice or prescribe creams or medicines to help.
Other side effects
Muscle, joint or bone pain
You may get pain in your muscles, joints or bones. If this happens, tell your doctor, nurse or pharmacist. They can give you painkillers and advice. They can also tell you if any of the painkillers you usually take are suitable.
This treatment can also cause muscle spasms in some people. Ask your doctor, nurse or pharmacist for advice if this is a problem for you.
Sore mouth and throat
This treatment may cause a sore mouth and throat. You may also get mouth ulcers. This can make you more likely to get a mouth or throat infection. Use a soft toothbrush to clean your teeth or dentures in the morning, at night and after meals.
Contact the hospital straight away on the 24-hour number, if:
- a sore mouth or throat affects how much you can drink or eat
- your mouth, tongue, throat or lips have any blisters, ulcers or white patches.
They can give you advice, and mouthwash or medicines to help with the pain or to treat any infection. Follow their advice and make sure you:
- drink plenty of fluids
- avoid alcohol and tobacco
- avoid food or drinks that irritate your mouth and throat.
Loss of appetite
This treatment can affect your appetite. Don’t worry if you do not eat much for 1 or 2 days. But if your appetite does not come back after a few days, or if you are losing weight, tell your doctor, nurse or pharmacist. They can give you advice. They may give you food or drink supplements. Or they may suggest changes to your diet or eating habits to help.
Changes to your taste
Some foods may taste different or have no taste. Try different foods to find out what tastes best to you. You may also get a bitter or metallic taste in your mouth. Your doctor, nurse or pharmacist can give you advice. It might help to try:
- sucking sugar-free sour or boiled sweets
- eating cold foods
- eating sharp-tasting fresh fruit.
We have more information about coping with changes to taste.
Constipation
This treatment can cause constipation. Constipation means that you are not able to pass stools (poo) as often as you normally do. It can become difficult or painful. Here are some tips that may help:
- Drink at least 2 litres (3½ pints) of fluids each day.
- Eat high-fibre foods, such as fruit, vegetables and wholemeal bread.
- Do regular gentle exercise, like going for short walks.
If you have constipation, contact the hospital on the 24-hour number for advice. They can give you drugs called laxatives to help.
If you have not been able to pass stools for over 2 days and are being sick, contact the 24-hour number straight away.
Changes in blood pressure
This treatment may cause high blood pressure and sometimes, it may cause low blood pressure. Your cancer team will check your BP if needed.
Hair thinning
While you are having this treatment, your hair may become thinner, drier and more brittle. This is usually mild. If you are worried about this, ask your nurse for advice on hair care.
Difficulty sleeping (insomnia)
Mood changes
You may feel low or depressed, or have mood swings, during this treatment. Talking to family and friends about how you feel might help. If mood changes last for more than a few weeks, tell your doctor, nurse or pharmacist. They can talk to you about different ways to manage low mood or depression.
Effects on the eyes
Your eyes may become watery and feel sore. Your doctor, nurse or pharmacist can give you advice and eye drops to help with this.
Contact the hospital on the 24-hour number if:
- your eyes get red and inflamed (conjunctivitis)
- you have pain in your eyes
- you notice any change in your vision.
Do not drive or operate machinery if you have any changes to your vision.
Ear problems
This treatment may cause a ringing sound on your ears. It can also cause some hearing loss, dizziness or problems with your balance. Tell your doctor or nurse if you notice this.
Do not drive or operate machinery if you feel dizzy.
Numb or tingling hands or feet (peripheral neuropathy)
This treatment may affect the nerves in your fingers and toes. This can cause numbness, tingling or pain in your hands or feet. This is called peripheral neuropathy . You might find it hard to do fiddly tasks such as fastening buttons or tying shoelaces.
If you have these symptoms, always tell your doctor, nurse or pharmacist.
Effects on the heart
This treatment can affect how the heart works. You may have tests to check how well your heart is working. These may be done before, during and after treatment.
If the treatment is causing heart problems, your doctor may change the type of treatment you are having.
Contact the hospital straight away on the 24-hour number if you have any of these symptoms during or after treatment:
- breathlessness
- dizziness
- changes to your heartbeat (palpitations)
- swollen feet and ankles.
Other conditions can cause these symptoms, but it is important to get them checked by a doctor.
Always call 999 if you have:
- chest pain, pressure, heaviness, tightness or squeezing across the chest
- difficulty breathing.
Effects on the kidneys
This treatment can affect how the kidneys work. You will have blood tests and may have a urine sample test to check how well your kidneys are working.
Contact the hospital on the 24-hour number if you:
- have blood in your urine (pee)
- have foamy, frothy or bubbly urine
- are passing less urine or peeing less often than usual.
Tumour lysis syndrome (TLS)
Some people are at risk of developing a condition called tumour lysis syndrome (TLS). The risk is highest at the beginning of treatment. TLS happens when treatment makes large numbers of cancer cells die and break down quickly. This releases lots of waste products into the blood and can affect the kidneys and heart.
TLS can be prevented or treated. You will have regular blood tests to check for TLS. You may have:
- extra fluids through a drip
- medicines such as allopurinol tablets or rasburicase through a drip.
Drinking at least 2 litres (3½ pints) of fluid a day will also help.
Hepatitis B reactivation
If you have had a liver infection called hepatitis B in the past, this treatment can make it active again. Your doctor or nurse will talk to you about this. They will test you for hepatitis B.
Serious skin changes
Rarely, this treatment can cause a serious skin reaction that needs to be treated immediately in hospital.
Do not take any more of this treatment and contact the hospital straight away on the 24-hour number if you have any of these symptoms:
- a skin rash that is spreading
- blistering or peeling skin
- flu-like symptoms, such as a high temperature and joint pain
- sores on your lips or in your mouth.
Other information
Blood clot risk
Cancer and some cancer treatments can increase the risk of a blood clot. Contact the hospital straight away on the 24-hour number if you have any of these symptoms during or after treatment:
- throbbing pain or swelling in a leg or arm
- reddening of the skin in the area – if you have black or brown skin, this can be harder to notice, but the skin might become darker
- suddenly feeling breathless or coughing.
Always call 999 if you have:
- chest pain
- difficulty breathing.
A blood clot is serious, but it can be treated with drugs called anticoagulants. These thin the blood. Your doctor, nurse or pharmacist can give you more information about preventing and treating blood clots.
Lactose
This treatment may contain lactose. If you have a lactose allergy or intolerance, ask your doctor, nurse or pharmacist for more information.
Other medicines
Some medicines can affect how this treatment works or be harmful while you are having it. Always tell your cancer doctor, nurse or pharmacist about any drugs you are taking or planning to take, such as:
- medicines you have been prescribed
- medicines you buy in a shop, pharmacy or online
- vitamins or supplements
- herbal drugs and complementary or homeopathic therapies
- recreational drugs – for example, cannabis.
Vaccinations
Cancer doctors usually recommend that people with cancer have vaccinations for flu and coronavirus (covid). They may also recommend other vaccines, such as Shingrix® for shingles. These all help reduce your risk of serious illness from these infections. Most people can have these vaccines, including people with weak immune systems.
You should not have live vaccines if your immune system is weak. This includes if you are having or recently had chemotherapy, radiotherapy or other cancer treatments that affect your immune system. Live vaccines can make you unwell because they contain a very weak version of the illness they protect you against. There are several live vaccines, including the yellow fever vaccine.
It is important to ask your doctor, nurse or pharmacist for advice about having vaccinations. They can explain what vaccines are right for you and when it is best to have them.
Contraception
Your doctor, nurse or pharmacist will advise you not to get pregnant or make someone pregnant while having this treatment and for some time afterwards. The drugs may harm a developing baby. It is important to use contraception to prevent pregnancy. Follow their advice about:
- what types of contraception to use
- how long after treatment you should continue to use contraception.
Breastfeeding
You are advised not to breastfeed while having this treatment, or for some time after treatment ends. This is because the drugs could be passed to the baby through breast milk.
Your doctor, nurse or pharmacist can give you more information.
Fertility
Some cancer drugs can affect whether you can get pregnant or make someone pregnant. If you are worried about this, it is important to talk with your doctor before you start treatment.
Medical and dental treatment
If you need medical treatment for any reason other than cancer, always tell the healthcare professional that you are having cancer treatment. Give them the contact details for your cancer doctor or cancer team so they can ask for advice.
If you have appointments with a dentist, always tell them you are having cancer treatment. Talk to your cancer team before you have any dental treatment.
About our information
This information has been written, revised and edited by Macmillan Cancer Support’s Cancer Information Development team. It has been reviewed by expert medical and health professionals and people living with cancer.
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References
Visit the electronic Medicines Compendium (eMC) to download a Patient Information Leaflet (PIL) for more detailed information. The leaflet lists all known side effects.
Date reviewed
Our cancer information meets the PIF TICK quality mark.
This means it is easy to use, up-to-date and based on the latest evidence. Learn more about how we produce our information.
The language we use
We want everyone affected by cancer to feel our information is written for them.
We want our information to be as clear as possible. To do this, we try to:
- use plain English
- explain medical words
- use short sentences
- use illustrations to explain text
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We use gender-inclusive language and talk to our readers as ‘you’ so that everyone feels included. Where clinically necessary we use the terms ‘men’ and ‘women’ or ‘male’ and ‘female’. For example, we do so when talking about parts of the body or mentioning statistics or research about who is affected.
You can read more about how we produce our information here.