For many people with cancer, mitomycin is a life-saving drug. Mitomycin, which is sold under the trade name Mutamycin® and is also known as Mitomycin-C or MTC, is a type of antitumor antibiotic. The medication acts at different stages of a cell’s cycle to stop the cell from dividing and cancer from progressing.
Mitomycin Treats Different Types of Cancer
Mitomycin, together with other forms of chemotherapy and radiation, is approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to treat:
- Adenocarcinoma of the stomach
- Adenocarcinoma of the pancreas
- Anal cancer
- Bladder cancer
- Breast cancer
- Cervical cancer
- Colorectal cancer
- Head and neck cancer
- Non-small cell lung cancer
Your doctor may also decide to use mitomycin to treat other forms of cancer.
Calculating a Mitomycin Dose
Patients receive mitomycin through an injection or an infusion. Since you don’t take the medication orally, you can’t double-check the dose of a pill. However, it is important to understand how your physician should calculate your mitomycin dose. Your doctor will consider your:
- Weight
- Height
- General health, including any health problems other than cancer
- The type of cancer that is being treated
All of these factors should determine your dose, how often you receive the medication, and whether the medication is administered through an infusion or injection.
Mitomycin Side Effects
Chemotherapy drugs have side effects. Some side effects are inconvenient or uncomfortable, but others are dangerous.
Some of the short-term side effects associated with mitomycin include mouth sores, fatigue, lack of appetite, mild nausea or vomiting, diarrhea, and hair loss. Bladder inflammation is also a concern for people with bladder cancer. Longer-term and potentially more severe side effects are also possible. While you are taking mitomycin, and in the months and years afterward, you may be at risk of suffering:
- Bone marrow suppression. Bone marrow suppression is the most common severe reaction to mitomycin, and it can make dangerous and potentially fatal infections more likely.
- Tissue damage. Mitomycin can cause serious tissue damage if the medication leaves the vein. Accordingly, only a properly trained doctor or nurse should administer mitomycin.
- Lung complications. Mitomycin may cause pneumonitis and pulmonary fibrosis in people with pre-existing lung conditions and older patients. Your lung function should be monitored while mitomycin is in your system.
- Hemolytic-uremic syndrome. People with this serious medical condition experienced the destruction of their red blood cells, damage to the lining of blood vessel walls, and in some cases, kidney failure. Blood tests should be done to watch for early signs of this potentially fatal syndrome.
These side effects may be more significant if you receive more mitomycin than you should have for your weight, height, and condition or if you receive more than the maximum lifetime dosage of mitomycin.
What to Do After a Mitomycin Overdose Injury
You took mitomycin understanding that there were risks and that you could suffer some of the short-term side effects that are often associated with chemotherapy. What you did not expect was a medical mistake that would cause you to suffer serious long-term health consequences.
While you can’t go back and undo the harm that has been done, you can take action now to protect your future. You can call our experienced cancer treatment injury law firm for a free, no-obligation consultation. If we represent you, you can be assured that we will do everything we can to make sure you get fair compensation for the past and future medical costs, lost income, out-of-pocket expenses, physical pain, and emotional suffering you have experienced because of someone’s medical negligence.
To learn more or to schedule your free initial meeting, please contact us any time through this website or by phone. The doctor or nurse who caused your chemotherapy injury will be well represented by counsel, and you deserve the same advantage. Let us help you get the fair and just recovery you deserve after a mitomycin mistake.
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