PrescriptionGiant is a FREE prescription savings program that can save you up to 75% on your prescriptions with or without insurance!

Amethopterin (Generic Methotrexate Injection)

Actual product appearance may differ slightly.

Click the CARD below to print or take a screenshot on your mobile phone or tablet. There is no need to download another app!

If you would like to personalize your card enter your full name in the member name field below the card at this link and click the Update button.


WARNING

Life-threatening adverse effects from methotrexate are possible. Discuss the dangers of taking methotrexate injection for your disease with your doctor.

When receiving methotrexate injection, or soon after, you may experience a severe, potentially fatal reaction. Tell your doctor right away if you have any of the following signs while taking methotrexate or right after. Runny or stuffy nose, dizziness or lightheadedness, difficulty breathing, chest pain, wheezing, or feeling faint. Rash, itching, hives. Tightness in the throat. Swelling of the face, lips, tongue, or neck.

If you or your partner intend to become pregnant, let your doctor know. Your unborn child could be harmed by methotrexate injection. Before starting methotrexate treatment, female patients must perform a pregnancy test. They must also use effective birth control throughout their treatment and for six months after finishing it. If you’re a man, you should take effective birth control while you’re receiving treatment and for three months following your last dose. Call your doctor right away if either you or your partner becomes pregnant. The foetus may suffer injury or perhaps pass away from methotrexate.

Inform your doctor if you have or have ever had excess fluid in your stomach area, the area around your lungs, or if you are undergoing dialysis. Also mention any renal illness you may have had or now have. Aspirin, choline magnesium trisalicylate (Tricosal, Trilisate), ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin), magnesium salicylate (Doan’s), naproxen (Aleve, Naprosyn), or salsalate are examples of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory medicines (NSAIDs) that you should mention to your doctor. You may be more likely to experience severe methotrexate side effects if you have these diseases or take certain drugs. Your doctor will keep a closer eye on you and may need to reduce the amount of methotrexate you receive from time to time, or maybe stop it altogether.

Your bone marrow’s capacity to produce blood cells may decline as a result of methotrexate. If you have or have ever had a low amount of any sort of blood cell or if there is another issue with your blood cells, let your doctor know. If you notice any of these signs, contact your doctor right away: A sore throat, chills, fever, persistent cough, congestion, or other infection-related symptoms; unusual bleeding; unusual fatigue; pale complexion; or shortness of breath.

When taken over an extended period of time, methotrexate may harm the liver. If you consume high amounts of alcohol now or in the past, or if you have previously had liver disease, let your doctor know. Due to the increased risk of liver damage, your doctor may advise against receiving methotrexate injection unless you have a cancer that is life-threatening. Additionally, if you have diabetes, are fat, or are elderly, your risk of developing liver damage may be higher. Inquire with your physician about whether drinking alcohol is safe when you are having methotrexate injection. Inform your physician if you are using acitretin (Soriatane), azathioprine (Imuran), isotretinoin (Accutane), sulfasalazine (Azulfidine), or tretinoin (Vesanoid). If you notice any of these signs, contact your doctor right away: nausea, intense fatigue, a lack of energy, appetite loss, pain in the upper right stomach region, yellowing of the skin or eyes, or symptoms like the flu.

Lung injury may result from methotrexate. If you have lung disease now or ever had it, let your doctor know. If you develop any of the following signs: a dry cough, a fever, or shortness of breath, call your doctor right once.

It’s possible for methotrexate to harm the lining of your mouth, stomach, or intestines. Inform your doctor if you currently have or have ever had ulcerative colitis or stomach ulcers (a condition which causes swelling and sores in the lining of the colon [large intestine] and rectum). Mouth sores, diarrhoea, black, tarry, or bloody stools, and vomiting—especially if the vomit is red or resembles coffee grounds—should all be reported to your doctor very away.

Utilizing methotrexate may enhance your risk of developing lymphoma (cancer that begins in the cells of the immune system). If lymphoma does develop in you, it may go away on its own when you stop taking methotrexate, or it may require chemotherapy.

Serious or perhaps fatal skin reactions can be brought on by methotrexate. Call your doctor right away if you suffer any of the following symptoms: fever, rash, blisters, or peeling skin.

Your immune system’s function could be compromised by methotrexate, which increases your risk of developing life-threatening infections. Inform your doctor if you have any infections of any kind and if you currently have or have ever had an autoimmune disease. Your physician might advise against using methotrexate unless you have cancer that poses a serious risk to your life. Call your doctor right away if you suffer any infection-related symptoms, such as a sore throat, cough, fever, or chills.

Methotrexate may increase the likelihood that radiation therapy will harm your skin, bones, or other body parts if you take it when you are receiving radiation therapy for cancer.

Keep all of your appointments with your physician and the lab. Before, during, and after your treatment, your doctor will request specific lab tests to monitor your body’s response to methotrexate and to manage side effects before they worsen.

Why is this medication prescribed?

When combined with other drugs or used alone, methotrexate injection is used:

  • To treat specific forms of childhood and adult acute lymphocytic leukaemia (ALL);
  • Meningeal leukaemia, a brain and spinal cord malignancy, in both adults and children, to treat or prevent;
  • To treat specific non-lymphoma Hodkin’s (cancer kinds that start in a type of white blood cell that often fights infection) in both adults and kids;
  • After surgery to remove the tumour, to treat adults and children with osteosarcoma (bone cancer);
  • To treat cutaneous T-cell lymphoma (CTCL), a class of immune system malignancies that initially manifest as skin rashes;
  • Adult breast cancer treatment;
  • To deal with certain head and neck tumours in adults;
  • To deal with adult cases of gestational trophoblastic tumours, a kind of tumour that develops inside a woman’s uterus during pregnancy;
  • Treating individuals with rheumatoid arthritis (RA; a disorder in which the body destroys its own joints, resulting in discomfort, swelling, and loss of function);
  • To treat children with polyarticular juvenile idiopathic arthritis (pJIA), a form of paediatric arthritis that strikes five or more joints within the first six months of the illness and results in pain, swollen joints, and loss of function; and
  • To treat individuals with severe psoriasis, a skin condition that causes red, scaly patches to appear in some body parts.

The drug methotrexate belongs to the group of drugs known as antimetabolites. By reducing the growth of cancer cells, methotrexate treats cancer. In order to prevent the development of scales, methotrexate slows the growth of skin cells in psoriasis. By reducing immune system activity, methotrexate may be used to treat polyarticular juvenile idiopathic arthritis and rheumatoid arthritis.

How should this medicine be used?

Methotrexate injection is available as a powder to be combined with liquid and injected intravenously, intramuscularly, subcutaneously, or intrathecally (just under the skin) (into the fluid-filled space of the spinal canal). The sort of drugs you are taking, how well your body reacts to them, and the type of cancer or disease you have all affect how long your therapy will last.

To avoid or cure methotrexate injection side effects, your doctor may prescribe medicine.

For a copy of the manufacturer’s information for the patient, ask your pharmacist or doctor.

Other uses for this medicine

To treat bladder cancer, methotrexate is occasionally used with other drugs. Additionally, Crohn’s disease (a condition in which the immune system attacks the lining of the digestive tract, resulting in discomfort, diarrhoea, weight loss, and fever) and other autoimmune diseases are occasionally treated with it (conditions that develop when the immune system attacks healthy cells in the body by mistake). Inquire with your doctor about the dangers of using this drug to treat your disease.

Ask your doctor or pharmacist for more details if you believe this drug should be used for something else.

What special precautions should I follow?

Before receiving methotrexate injection,

  • If you have any allergies, including those to benzyl alcohol, methotrexate, other drugs, or any of the ingredients in methotrexate injection, tell your doctor and pharmacist right away. Request a list of the components from your pharmacist.
  • Inform your doctor and pharmacist about all prescription and over-the-counter drugs, vitamins, dietary supplements, and herbal products that you are now taking or intend to use. Mention the drugs in the IMPORTANT WARNING section as well as any of the following: folic acid (available alone or as a component in certain multivitamins); other drugs for rheumatoid arthritis; phenytoin (Dilantin); probenecid (Benemid); some antibiotics like chloramphenicol (Chloramycetin), penicillins, and tetracylcines; sulfonamides such as co-trimoxazole (Bactrim, Septra), sulfadiazine, sulfamethizole (Urobiotic), and sulfisoxazole (Gantrisin); and theophylline. Proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) include esomeprazole (Nexium), omeprazole (Prilosec, Prilosec OTC, Ze (Theochron, Theolair). Your physician might need to adjust the dosage of your drugs or keep a close eye on you for side effects.
  • Inform your physician if you experience seizures, have low blood folate levels, or have ever had any of the disorders listed in the IMPORTANT WARNING section.
  • While having methotrexate injections and for at least a week following your last dose, refrain from breastfeeding.
  • You should be aware that this medicine may lower both male and female fertility. If you are worried about your ability to conceive, discuss the dangers of using this medicine with your doctor.
  • You should be aware that methotrexate may make you feel lightheaded or sleepy. Prior to understanding how this drug affects you, avoid using machinery or driving a car.
  • Inform the surgeon or dentist if you are undergoing surgery, including dental surgery, that you are taking methotrexate injection.
  • Plan to use protective clothes, sunglasses, and sunscreen and to avoid unnecessary or prolonged exposure to sunlight or UV radiation (tanning beds and sunlamps). Your skin may become more susceptible to UV or sunlight while taking methotrexate. If you are taking methotrexate and have psoriasis, it could make your sores worse if you expose your skin to the sun.
  • Avoid getting any shots while taking methotrexate without first consulting your doctor.

What special dietary instructions should I follow?

Keep eating normally unless your doctor instructs you otherwise.

What should I do if I forget a dose?

If you are unable to keep a scheduled appointment to receive a methotrexate injection, call your doctor right away.

What side effects can this medication cause?

There may be negative effects from methotrexate. If any of these symptoms are severe or do not go away, let your doctor know right once:

  • Muscle or joint pain
  • Flamboyant eyes
  • Enlarged gums
  • Hair fall

Some adverse effects can be very harmful. Call your doctor right away or seek emergency medical attention if you develop any of these signs or any of the ones detailed in the IMPORTANT WARNING section:

  • Vomiting
  • Vision haziness or a sudden loss of eyesight
  • Unexpected fever, excruciating headache, and stiff neck
  • Seizures
  • Confusion or forgetfulness
  • One or both sides of the body are weak or difficult to move. Walking is difficult or unsteady.
  • Consciousness loss
  • Reduced speech
  • Less urinations
  • Face, arm, hand, foot, ankle, or lower leg swelling

 

Some recipients of methotrexate injections went on to develop different types of cancer. You should discuss the dangers of using this drug with your doctor.

Other negative effects of methotrexate are possible. If you have any strange side effects while taking this medicine, call your doctor right away.

You or your doctor can submit a report to the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) MedWatch Adverse Event Reporting programme online or by phone if you have a serious side event (1-800-332-1088).

In case of emergency/overdose

Call the poison control hotline at 1-800-222-1222 in the event of an overdose. Additionally, information can be found online at https://www.poisonhelp.org/help. Call 911 right once if the person has collapsed, experienced a seizure, is having difficulty breathing, or cannot be roused.

Overdose signs could include the following:

  • In the mouth and throat sores
  • Chills, fever, persistent coughing and congestion, sore throat, or other infection-related symptoms
  • Abnormal bleeding or bruising
  • Bloody or dark-colored stools
  • Bloody poop
  • Vomited substance that resembles coffee grounds

What other information should I know?

You should keep a written record of every medication you take, including any over-the-counter (OTC) items, prescription drugs, and dietary supplements like vitamins and minerals. This list should be brought with you whenever you see a doctor or are admitted to the hospital. You should always have this information with you in case of emergencies.

Brand names

  • Abitrexate®
  • Folex®
  • Mexate®
  • Otrexup®
  • Rasuvo®
  • Reditrex®
Copyright © 2023 PrescriptionGiant.com