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

Carac Cream (Generic Fluorouracil Topical)

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.


Why is this medication prescribed?

To treat actinic or solar keratoses, fluorouracil cream and topical solution are utilised (scaly or crusted lesions [skin areas] caused by years of too much exposure to sunlight). If standard forms of treatment are ineffective, fluorouracil cream and topical solution are also used to treat superficial basal cell carcinoma, a kind of skin cancer. The drug fluorouracil belongs to the group of drugs known as antimetabolites. It functions by destroying rapidly proliferating cells, such as the aberrant ones found in basal cell cancer and actinic keratoses.

How should this medicine be used?

Both a solution and a cream for topical application of fluorouracil are available. Typically, it is given twice daily to the afflicted areas. Use fluorouracil at roughly the same times each day to help you remember to take it. Ask your doctor or pharmacist to explain any instructions on your prescription label that you are unsure about following. Follow the fluorouracil instructions exactly. Do not use more, less, or more frequently than advised by your doctor.

Fluorouracil should be used until the actinic or solar keratoses begin to peel off if you are treating them with it. Normally, this takes two to four weeks. However, it’s possible that the lesions won’t fully heal for a month or more after you stop using fluorouracil.

Fluorouracil should be used until the lesions are gone if it is being used to treat basal cell carcinoma. This typically takes between 3 and 6 weeks, but it could take up to 10 or 12.

The skin lesions and surrounding areas will feel itchy during the first several weeks of treatment and appear red, puffy, and scaly. This demonstrates the fluorouracil’s efficacy. If your doctor has not instructed you to discontinue taking fluorouracil, do not.

Use a glove, a nonmetal applicator, or your finger to apply fluorouracil cream. If you use your finger to apply fluorouracil lotion, wash your hands well right after. Unless your doctor instructs you to, avoid bandaging or dressing the treated areas.

Using fluorouracil cream or topical solution to the eyes, nose, or mouth is not advised.

Other uses for this medicine

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 using fluorouracil,

  • If you have an allergy to fluorouracil or any other drug, let your doctor and pharmacist know right away.
  • Inform your doctor and pharmacist about any topical medications you are taking, as well as any vitamins, nutritional supplements, and herbal products you use. 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 suffer from a dihydropyrimidine dehydrogenase (DPD) enzyme deficiency now or in the past (a lack of a naturally occurring enzyme in your body).
  • Inform your doctor if you are expecting, intend to get pregnant, or are nursing a baby. Call your doctor right away if you find out you’re pregnant while taking fluorouracil. The foetus could suffer from fluorouracil.
  • Plan to prevent unnecessary or extended exposure to sunshine and UV light (such as tanning booths) and to dress protectively by using sunscreen, sunglasses, and protective clothes. Your skin may become more sensitive to the sun if you use fluorouracil.

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?

As soon as you realise you missed a dose, administer it. If the next dose is soon due, skip the missed one and carry on with your regular dosing plan. Applying a second dose to make up for a missed one is not advised.

What side effects can this medication cause?

Side effects from fluorouracil are possible. If any of these symptoms are severe or do not go away, consult your doctor:

  • An application site reaction that includes burning, crusting, redness, discoloration, irritation, discomfort, itching, rash, or soreness

Certain adverse effects can be very harmful. Even though the following signs are unusual, you should call your doctor right once if you notice any of them:

  • Very bad stomach ache
  • Bloody stools
  • Vomiting
  • Fever
  • Chills
  • Severe rash with red skin

Other adverse reactions to fluorouracil could occur. If you have any strange side effects while taking this medicine, contact your doctor right once.

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

What should I know about storage and disposal of this medication?

Keep this medication tightly closed in the original container and out of the reach of children. Keep it away from excessive heat and moisture at room temperature (not in the bathroom).

Unused prescriptions must be disposed of carefully to prevent pets, kids, and other people from ingesting them. You should not, however, dispose of this medication in the toilet. Instead, utilising a medicine take-back programme is the easiest approach to get rid of your medication. To find out about take-back programmes in your area, speak with your pharmacist or the garbage/recycling department in your city. If you do not have access to a take-back programme, see the FDA’s Safe Disposal of Medications website at http://goo.gl/c4Rm4p for additional information.

Although many containers (such as weekly pill minders and those for eye drops, creams, patches, and inhalers) are not child-resistant and are simple for young children to open, it is crucial to keep all medications out of sight and out of reach of children. Always lock safety caps and promptly stash medication up and away from young children where it is out of their sight and reach to prevent poisoning. http://www.upandaway.org

In case of emergency/overdose

Call the poison control hotline at 1-800-222-1222 in the event of an overdose. Moreover, 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.

What other information should I know?

Keep all of your doctor’s appointments.

Do not share your medication with anybody else. Any queries you may have regarding medication refills should be directed to your pharmacist.

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

  • Carac® Cream
  • Efudex® Cream
  • Efudex® Solution
  • Fluoroplex® Cream
Copyright © 2023 PrescriptionGiant.com