Before Using

Drug information provided by: Merative, Micromedex®

In deciding to use a medicine, the risks of taking the medicine must be weighed against the good it will do. This is a decision you and your doctor will make. For this medicine, the following should be considered:

Allergies

Tell your doctor if you have ever had any unusual or allergic reaction to this medicine or any other medicines. Also tell your health care professional if you have any other types of allergies, such as to foods, dyes, preservatives, or animals. For non-prescription products, read the label or package ingredients carefully.

Pediatric

Appropriate studies performed to date have not demonstrated pediatric-specific problems that would limit the usefulness of ipilimumab injection to treat melanoma, to help prevent melanoma from coming back after surgical removal, and to treat microsatellite instability high (MSI-H) or mismatch repair deficient (dMMR) colorectal cancer in children 12 years of age and older. Safety and efficacy have not been established in children younger than 12 years of age to treat other approved conditions.

Appropriate studies have not been performed on the relationship of age to the effects of ipilimumab injection to treat kidney cancer in the pediatric population. Safety and efficacy have not been established.

Geriatric

Appropriate studies performed to date have not demonstrated geriatric-specific problems that would limit the usefulness of ipilimumab injection in the elderly.

Breastfeeding

There are no adequate studies in women for determining infant risk when using this medication during breastfeeding. Weigh the potential benefits against the potential risks before taking this medication while breastfeeding.

Drug Interactions

Although certain medicines should not be used together at all, in other cases two different medicines may be used together even if an interaction might occur. In these cases, your doctor may want to change the dose, or other precautions may be necessary. Tell your healthcare professional if you are taking any other prescription or nonprescription (over-the-counter [OTC]) medicine.

Other Interactions

Certain medicines should not be used at or around the time of eating food or eating certain types of food since interactions may occur. Using alcohol or tobacco with certain medicines may also cause interactions to occur. Discuss with your healthcare professional the use of your medicine with food, alcohol, or tobacco.

Other Medical Problems

The presence of other medical problems may affect the use of this medicine. Make sure you tell your doctor if you have any other medical problems, especially:

  • Adrenal gland problem or
  • Allergic skin reactions (eg, dermatitis, Stevens-Johnson syndrome, toxic epidermal necrolysis), severe or
  • Autoimmune disease (eg, Crohn disease, lupus, sarcoidosis, ulcerative colitis) or
  • Colitis (inflammation of the bowel) or
  • Diabetes or
  • Eye or vision problems (eg, episcleritis, iritis, uveitis) or
  • Guillain-Barré syndrome or
  • Hemolytic anemia (blood disorder) or
  • Hepatitis (inflammation of the liver) or
  • Hyperthyroidism (overactive thyroid) or
  • Hypopituitarism (low levels of pituitary hormone) or
  • Hypothyroidism (underactive thyroid) or
  • Intestinal or bowel perforation (a hole in the bowel) or
  • Meningitis (inflammation of the brain) or
  • Myasthenia gravis (severe muscle weakness) or
  • Nephritis (inflammation of the kidney) or
  • Organ transplant, recent or history of or
  • Pancreatitis (inflammation of the pancreas) or
  • Pericarditis (inflammation of the heart) or
  • Peripheral neuropathy (nerve problem in the arms and legs) or
  • Pneumonitis (inflammation of the lungs)—Use with caution. May make these conditions worse.
  • Patients who have had allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplant (HSCT)—Use with caution. May cause side effects to become worse.

Portions of this document last updated: Feb. 01, 2024

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