Bone pain with chemo: What helps?

Just to let you all know ,it has to be the claritin DM.The other one WILL NOT WORK.I took it for months and found that out the hard way.I don't know if the Drs. don't know that or what.You start it the day before your injection and continue for 3-5 days after.You have to start it the day before or you will have some pain.

Thank you will try!

I used Claritin to help bone pain. It seemed to work ok.

My husband just started on Claritin because he has the onsite injector of Neulasta Onpro. And all they told us was to buy Claritin. Never mentioned the Claritin DM. He got that yesterday and so far no pain but I will make sure that he takes two more. He was instructed to only take if for 3 days.

Hi @denise96. You bought the correct Claritin.
It’s better to avoid the decongestant found in Claritin D if you don’t need it for relief from allergy symptoms.
Regular Claritin 24 hour capsule works really well to help avoid the bone pain that can come on with the Neulasta.
My oncology team had me take it for at least 7 days. The 3rd time I had Neulasta, I only took Claritin for 3 days and holy crow…that was the worst pain I’ve ever had on day 4! So I took the pills then for the full 7 days and had no more pain.
The cell production takes time to ramp up. So the 3 day window might not cover the pain that can be experienced for up to 7 days or so. That’s just my experience.

Thank you so much. I will try and get my husband to take it for at least 7 days. So far, he says he has no pain but this is just the first day after his first treatment. I read a post on here that said it should be clairitin D. I did not buy that kind so I will continue giving him the plain claritin that I bought. Thank you again.

It probably doesn’t matter if it is with the decongestant but it is the addition of a drug that isn’t necessary. That’s why my oncology team suggested not getting Claritin-D.

Nulasta starts working the very first day. It jumpstarts the production of neutrophils which are depleted during chemo. Those cells reproduce quickly, mature and then spill out into the blood stream. That can cause bone marrow expansion, peripheral nerves being sensitized and releasing
histamines which can cause inflammation and local swelling. So the Claritin, which is an anti-histamine can help with the inflamation and swelling, reducing possible discomfort.

Some people on Nulasta don’t have the pain. I wasn’t one of the lucky ones! But it works well to re-establish the neutrophils which are vital to help fight infection. So it’s an important tool for patients undergoing chemo. Your husband may not need more than 3 days. He’ll know! ☺️

Let me know how he does!

Thank you for your concern and information, Have a great day!