Side Effects of Herceptin and Pertuzamab - Diarrhea

Hi - any advice would be super helpful!

I was diagnosed with Her2+ last October.  I had 4 cycles of EC and something else..then 4 cycles of Docetaxel, herceptin and Pertuzamab, and now 14 more cycles of Herceptin and Pertuzamab.

I had surgery in July ( Mascectomy and Recon)  and then 15 rounds of Radiotherapy in September.

During my Docetaxel my gut was all over the place.  I had constipation for most of it, but then sometimes Diarrhea too.  So it was hard to know what my normal bowel habits were!  I read that Herceptin can give you Diarrhea.  But i think because of the Docetaxel, that won out and i was constipated!

I was then pretty constipated up until end of August, when suddenly one day i felt quite nauseous for 2 days, then suddenly had diarrhea.  Which i have now had for nearly 2 months!  Which is exhausting.  I had a colonscopy 2 weeks ago.  No cancer so that is brilliant.  But my question is.. as i am still on Hercpetin, I am wondering if that is causing my diarrhea?  Can it be a build up of Herceptin?  As i know one side effect is Diarrhea... but am wondering if it can be delayed.... and if anyone else has experienced this and what they did to cope?!  I am taking Imodium at the moment.

Thanks in advance!!

  • Hello Bryans

    I'm sorry to hear that you're struggling with some unpleasant side effects at the moment. Diarrhoea is listed as a common side effect of herceptin and it may be that it's just taking longer for your body to adjust to all the treatment that you've been through. 

    It's great to hear that your colonoscopy was clear so I'd suggest at this point getting in touch with the team responsible for your care and talking to them about things. I'm sure that there will be medications that they are able to offer you other than or in addition to the imodium to try and help. 
    If you'd like to chat to one of our nurses for some advice then you're welcome to call them on 0808 800 4040 (Mon-Fri 9am-5pm). 

    I hope things settle and improve for you soon. 

    Best wishes, 
    Jenn
    Cancer Chat moderator