Carboplatin

You usually have carboplatin: 

• in a chemotherapy day unit or clinic as an outpatient  
• during a stay in hospital.  

You may have it with other cancer drugs.

During your course of treatment, you will meet with someone from your cancer team, such as a:

• cancer doctor
• chemotherapy nurse or specialist nurse
• specialist pharmacist.

This is who we mean when we mention doctor, nurse or pharmacist in this information.

Before or on the day of each treatment, you will have a blood test. This is to check that it is safe for you to have chemotherapy.

You will meet with a doctor, nurse or pharmacist before you have chemotherapy. They will talk to you about your blood results and ask how you have been feeling. If your blood results are okay, the pharmacy team will prepare your chemotherapy.

Your nurse will usually give you anti-sickness drugs before chemotherapy. You will have your chemotherapy through 1 of the following:

• a cannula – a short, thin tube the nurse puts into a vein in the arm or hand
• a central line – a fine tube that goes under the skin of the chest and into a vein close by
• a PICC line – a fine tube that is put into a vein in the arm and goes up into a vein in the chest
• an implantable port (portacath) – a disc that is put under the skin on the chest or arm and goes into a vein in the chest.

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.

You usually have a course of several cycles of treatment over a few months. Your cancer team will discuss your treatment plan with you.

Some people have an allergic reaction while having this treatment. Before treatment, you may be given medicines to help prevent or reduce any reaction. Signs of a reaction can include:

• feeling hot or flushed 
• shivering
• itching
• a skin rash
• feeling dizzy or sick
• a headache
• feeling breathless or wheezy
• swelling of your face or mouth
• pain in your back, tummy or chest.

Your nurse will check you for signs of a reaction during your treatment. If you feel unwell or have any of these signs, tell them straight away. If you do have a reaction, they can treat it quickly.

Sometimes a reaction happens a few hours after treatment. If you develop any of these signs or feel unwell after you get home, contact the hospital straight away on the 24-hour number.

Sometimes cancer drugs that are given into a vein may leak outside the vein. If this happens, some drugs can damage the tissue near the vein. This is called extravasation. Extravasation is not common, but it is important that it is dealt with quickly. If you have any of the following symptoms around the vein during or after your treatment, tell your nurse straight away:

• stinging
• pain
• swelling
• if you have white skin, the area may become red
• if you have black or brown skin, the area may become darker.

This treatment can cause pain:

• at the place where the drip (infusion) is given 
• along the vein. 

If you feel pain, tell your nurse straight away. They can check the site. They may give the drug more slowly or flush it through with more fluid to reduce pain.

These side effects happen to less than 10 in 100 people (less than 10%) who have this treatment. Some of them are much rarer than this but they are still important to know about. Rare means a side effect that happens to less than 1 in 1,000 people (less than 0.1%).

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.

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. 

This treatment may cause blurry vision. Always tell your doctor or nurse if you have eye pain or notice any change in your vision.

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.

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.

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.

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.

Taste changes usually get better after treatment ends. We have more information about coping with changes to taste.

Your hair may get thinner. But you are unlikely to lose all the hair from your head. Hair loss usually starts after your first or second treatment. It is almost always temporary, and your hair will usually grow back after treatment ends. 

Your nurse can talk to you about ways to cope with hair loss.

You may get pain in your muscles or joints for a few days after treatment. 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. 

Tell them if the pain does not get better. Having warm baths and resting regularly may help. 

Feeling tired is a common side effect of this treatment. It is often worse towards the end of treatment and for some weeks after it ends. 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.

This treatment may cause hearing changes, including hearing loss. You may have ringing in the ears. This is called tinnitus. You may also become unable to hear some high-pitched sounds. Hearing changes may get better after this treatment ends. But this does not always happen. If you notice any changes in your hearing, tell your doctor, nurse or pharmacist.

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. They sometimes need to change the drug or the dose of the drug. The symptoms usually improve slowly after treatment ends. But for some people they continue and are a long-term side effect of treatment.

Chemotherapy can affect your skin. It might feel dry. You may develop a rash, which may be itchy. Always tell your doctor, nurse or pharmacist about any skin changes. They can give you advice or prescribe creams or medicines to help.

If your skin feels dry, try using soap-free cleansers and unperfumed moisturising cream every day.

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.

Rarely, this treatment causes a brain condition that can be serious. You can make a full recovery from this. But it must be diagnosed and treated quickly.

This condition can cause:

• a headache that does not get better
• drowsiness or confusion
• changes in eyesight
• fits (seizures).

If you have any of these symptoms, it is important to either:

• contact the hospital straight away on the 24-hour number 
• go to the hospital straight away. 

You should not drive yourself to hospital.