Ibrance (palbociclib)

Ibrance is a brand-name prescription drug that’s used to treat breast cancer in certain situations.

It’s approved by the Food and Drug Administration to treat breast cancer that has each of the following characteristics:

• advanced or metastatic (has spread to other parts of the body)
• hormone receptor-positive (is stimulated to grow by the hormones estrogen, progesterone, or both)
• HER2-negative (doesn’t have high levels of HER2, which is a protein that helps breast cancer cells grow quickly)

Doctors can prescribe Ibrance to both males and females with this form of breast cancer.* It’s used in the following ways.

For details about breast cancer and how the drug treats it, see the “Ibrance: Use for breast cancer” section below.

* Sex and gender exist on spectrums. In this article, use of the terms “male” and “female” refers to sex assigned at birth.

The following table provides key facts about Ibrance.

If you’re interested in taking this drug, search here to find a doctor who might prescribe it.

Ibrance contains the active drug palbociclib. It only comes as a brand-name medication. And it isn’t currently available as a generic drug.

A generic is an identical copy of the active drug found in a brand-name medication. Generics typically cost less than brand-name drugs.

As with most drugs, it’s possible to have side effects with Ibrance. These can include some mild side effects, but also some serious ones.

To learn more about Ibrance’s side effects, talk with your doctor or pharmacist. They may also provide information about managing certain side effects of this drug.

Note: The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) tracks side effects of drugs it has approved. If you would like to notify the FDA about a side effect you’ve had with Ibrance, you can do so through MedWatch.

Mild and serious side effects of Ibrance are listed in the table below. This table does not include all of Ibrance’s possible side effects.

* This is not a complete list of Ibrance’s mild side effects. To learn about other mild side effects of this drug, ask your doctor or pharmacist. Or you can view the prescribing information for Ibrance capsules and tablets.
† For more information about this side effect, see “Ibrance’s side effects explained” below.

Most times, mild side effects of a drug go away within a few days or a couple of weeks. Talk with your doctor or pharmacist if any side effects become severe or don’t go away.

Serious side effects from Ibrance aren’t common, but they are possible. If you have serious side effects, call your doctor right away. However, if you’re having a medical emergency or your symptoms feel life threatening, call 911 or a local emergency number.

Below, you can find detailed information about some of Ibrance’s side effects. To learn more about other side effects of this medication, talk with your doctor. 

Ibrance can cause serious, life threatening lung side effects. These include interstitial lung disease and pneumonitis. With these side effects, you have inflammation or scarring in your lungs.

In clinical studies, lung side effects were rare with Ibrance. To learn more about how often these side effects occurred in clinical studies, see the prescribing information for Ibrance capsules and tablets.

Symptoms of lung side effects can include:

• difficulty breathing
• shortness of breath
• cough
• chest pain

What to do

If you have new or worsening symptoms of lung side effects while taking Ibrance, see your doctor right away. Your doctor will likely recommend that you stop taking Ibrance while they check to see what’s causing your symptoms.

If your doctor determines that you have severe interstitial lung disease or pneumonitis, you’ll need to permanently stop taking Ibrance. In that case, your doctor can discuss alternative treatment options for your condition.

Ibrance can sometimes cause eye side effects. Eye side effects with the drug are typically mild.

Examples of these include:

• blurred vision
• dry eyes
• watery eyes

In clinical studies, eye side effects weren’t common with Ibrance. To learn more about how often these side effects occurred in clinical studies, see the prescribing information for Ibrance capsules and tablets.

What to do

If you have bothersome eye side effects with Ibrance, talk with your doctor. They may want to examine your eyes. They can also suggest ways to help manage the side effects. For example, if you have dry eyes, your doctor may recommend using lubricating eye drops.

You may have hair loss while taking Ibrance. However, your hair is more likely to get thinner than to fall out completely.

In clinical studies, hair loss was common with Ibrance. To learn more about how often this side effect occurred in clinical studies, see the prescribing information for Ibrance capsules and tablets.

It’s important to note that hair loss is also a side effect of hormone therapies such as fulvestrant (Faslodex) and letrozole (Femara). Your doctor will likely prescribe one of these therapies in combination with Ibrance.

What to do

If you have hair loss with Ibrance that’s bothersome to you, tell your doctor. They may suggest ways to help manage this side effect.

As with other medications, prices for Ibrance may vary. The drug’s price will depend on factors such as:

• the pharmacy you use
• your insurance coverage

Here’s a list of things to consider when looking into the cost of Ibrance.

• Option for a 90-day supply. For some drugs, it’s possible to get a 90-day supply. If this option is approved by your insurance company, it can help lower the cost of the drug. It can also help you avoid frequent trips to your pharmacy. If you’d like to learn more about this option, ask your doctor, pharmacist, or insurance company.
• Need for prior authorization. Before insurance coverage for Ibrance is approved, your insurance company may require prior authorization. In this case, your doctor and insurance company will communicate about your prescription for Ibrance. Then, the insurance company will decide if the drug will be covered. To find out if you need prior authorization for Ibrance, contact your insurance company.
• Possible cost assistance options. Financial assistance to help lower the cost of Ibrance is available. This drug has a savings card as well as other programs available to help reduce its cost. To learn more and see if you’re eligible for support, visit the manufacturer’s website. Also, check out this article to learn about ways to save on prescription drugs.
• Use of a specialty pharmacy. Ibrance is only dispensed from specialty pharmacies. These pharmacies are authorized to handle certain drugs considered specialty medications. These medications may be expensive or require help from healthcare professionals to be used safely and effectively. Ask your doctor which specialty pharmacy they’ll prescribe Ibrance through.
• Availability of a generic form. Ibrance doesn’t come in a generic form. A generic drug is an exact copy of the active drug in a brand-name medication. Typically, generics cost less than brand-name drugs.

Here are some common questions about Ibrance and brief answers to them. If you’d like to know more about these topics, ask your doctor.

No, Ibrance isn’t a chemotherapy drug. These drugs are traditional cancer treatments that kill all rapidly growing and multiplying cells in your body. (Cells that multiply are making more cells.) This includes healthy cells as well as cancer cells.

Instead, Ibrance is a targeted therapy. These therapies act more selectively on cancer cells than chemotherapy drugs do. They target specific features of cancer cells that make them grow and multiply quickly. Targeted therapies typically have fewer side effects on healthy cells than chemotherapy does.

To learn more about how Ibrance works, see the “Ibrance: How it works” section below.

No, that’s not likely. In clinical studies, breast cancer didn’t reach remission with Ibrance. (With remission, signs of your cancer go away.)

However, taking Ibrance may help shrink your cancer. And the drug can help you live longer without your cancer getting worse or spreading further.

To find out how the drug performed in clinical studies, see the prescribing information for Ibrance capsules and tablets.

Ibrance has been found effective for improving progression-free survival (PFS). PFS describes the length of time you live without your cancer getting worse or spreading further. Ibrance has also been found effective for shrinking tumors in some people.

To learn more about how the drug performed in clinical studies, see the prescribing information for Ibrance capsules and tablets. You can also read about clinical study results on the manufacturer’s website.

Ibrance isn’t known to interact with any vitamins.

However, it’s possible that Ibrance may interact with turmeric. Taking turmeric may increase the level of Ibrance in your body, possibly increasing the risk of Ibrance’s side effects. Always check with your doctor before taking any herbs, supplements, or vitamins with Ibrance.

To read more about interactions with Ibrance, see the “Ibrance: Interactions” section below.

Ibrance didn’t cause weight gain in clinical studies. However, doctors prescribe Ibrance with hormone therapies. And some hormone therapies, such as letrozole (Femara), may cause weight gain.

If you’re concerned about weight gain with Ibrance, talk with your doctor.

Prescription drugs, such as Ibrance, are approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to treat certain conditions. Doctors sometimes prescribe drugs off-label for other conditions. With off-label use, doctors prescribe a drug for a purpose other than what it’s approved for.

Doctors prescribe Ibrance for breast cancer in certain situations. Both females and males with a certain form of breast cancer can take Ibrance.*

Ibrance is approved by the FDA to treat breast cancer that has all of the following characteristics:

• advanced or metastatic (has spread to other parts of the body, such as the liver, bones, or brain)
• hormone receptor-positive (is stimulated to grow by the hormones estrogen, progesterone, or both)
• HER2-negative (doesn’t have high levels of HER2, which is a protein that helps breast cancer cells grow quickly)

Symptoms of breast cancer can vary, but some general ones include:

• breast lumps
• breast or nipple rash or sores
• changes affecting the skin of the breast, such as dimpling
• nipple discharge or tenderness
• breast pain
• weight loss

Your doctor will order tests to check the hormone receptor and HER2 status of your cancer. The tests are done on a tissue sample from a biopsy or from tissue removed during surgery. Determining the characteristics of your breast cancer allows doctors to prescribe a treatment that’s right for you.

If your breast cancer is HER2-negative and hormone receptor-positive, your doctor may prescribe hormone therapy, targeted therapy, or both. Hormone therapy stops your hormones from stimulating the cancer cells to grow and multiply. (Cells that multiply are making more cells.) Targeted therapy blocks other specific features of cancer cells that make them grow and multiply.

Ibrance is a targeted therapy, and it’s used in combination with certain hormone therapies. See the section directly below for details.

* Sex and gender exist on spectrums. In this article, use of the terms “male” and “female” refers to sex assigned at birth.

Doctors prescribe Ibrance with different hormone therapies for different groups of people. These are described in the table below.

In some cases, your doctor may also prescribe a luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone (LHRH) agonist, such as goserelin (Zoladex). You’ll take an LHRH agonist if:

• you’re a female who hasn’t reached menopause, or are going through menopause, and you’re taking Ibrance with fulvestrant (Faslodex), or
• you’re a male using Ibrance with an aromatase inhibitor, such as letrozole (Femara)

* Sex and gender exist on spectrums. In this article, use of the terms “male” and “female” refers to sex assigned at birth.

Ibrance isn’t approved for use in children. It hasn’t been studied in this age group.

If you’re interested in taking Ibrance, you can find a doctor who may prescribe it by searching here. To prepare for your appointment, you may find it helpful to visit our appointment guide for breast cancer.

Ibrance doesn’t interact with alcohol. However, consuming alcohol during Ibrance treatment could increase certain side effects of the drug. These include nausea, diarrhea, and fatigue. Consuming alcohol may also irritate mouth sores from Ibrance.

If you drink alcohol, talk with your doctor about how much is safe to consume while taking Ibrance.

Ibrance may interact with other medications, certain supplements, and certain foods.

Different interactions can cause different effects. Some interactions can interfere with a drug’s effectiveness. Others can increase a drug’s side effects or cause them to be severe.

If any of the interactions listed below might pertain to you, talk with your doctor. They can tell you what you need to do to avoid the interaction.

• Ibrance and certain medications. The manufacturer of Ibrance advises that these drugs should not be taken together. Be sure to talk with your doctor before taking these drugs together.
  • the antibiotics clarithromycin and rifampin (Rimactane)
  • the antifungals itraconazole (Sporanox), ketoconazole, voriconazole (Vfend), and posaconazole (Noxafil)
  • the HIV drugs lopinavir/ritonavir (Kaletra), nelfinavir (Viracept), and ritonavir (Norvir)
  • the seizure medications carbamazepine (Tegretol, Carbatrol, others) and phenytoin (Dilantin)
  • the antidepressant nefazodone
  • the prostate cancer drug enzalutamide (Xtandi)
• Ibrance and other medications. Because Ibrance may interact with the following drugs, your doctor may recommend that you don’t take it with these drugs. Examples include:
  • the immunosuppressant drugs cyclosporine (Gengraf, Neoral, Sandimmune), tacrolimus (Prograf, Astagraf), sirolimus (Rapamune), and everolimus (Afinitor)
  • the antipsychotic drug pimozide
  • the sedative drug midazolam
  • the heart condition drug quinidine
  • the pain-relieving drugs fentanyl (Subsys, Lazanda, Fentora, others) and alfentanil (Alfenta)
  • the migraine drugs ergotamine (Migergot) and dihydroergotamine (Migranal)
• Ibrance and herbs and supplements. Because certain herbs and supplements may interact with Ibrance, your doctor may recommend that you don’t take them with Ibrance. Examples include:
  • St. John’s wort
  • turmeric
• Ibrance and foods. Certain medications interact with foods. Examples of foods to avoid while taking Ibrance include:
  • grapefruit
  • grapefruit juice

Below, you’ll find dosages that are commonly recommended for Ibrance. However, you should take the dosage your doctor prescribes for you. They’ll recommend the dosage that’s best for your needs.

The dosage of Ibrance that your doctor prescribes will depend on factors such as:

• your liver function
• other medications you take
• if you have certain side effects with Ibrance

Ibrance is available as follows.

• Form: oral tablets and capsules
• Strength: 125 milligrams (mg), 100 mg, and 75 mg

Recommended dosage for Ibrance in adults with a certain form of breast cancer is described below. To read more about this form of cancer, see the “Ibrance: Use for breast cancer” section above.

The usual recommended dosage for Ibrance in adults is as follows.

• Dose: 125 mg
• Frequency: Once per day for 21 days, followed by 7 days of not taking Ibrance. Repeat this 28-day cycle for as long as your doctor recommends.

Below are some things to consider about Ibrance’s dosage.

• Missing a dose. If you miss a dose of Ibrance, skip the missed dose and take your next dose when scheduled. Do not take double doses or extra doses to make up for missed doses. View these medication reminder options to help avoid missing doses. You could also set an alarm, use a timer, or download a reminder app on your phone.
• Length of treatment. Doctors typically prescribe Ibrance as a long-term treatment. You’ll likely take it long term if you and your doctor feel it’s safe and effective for your condition.

Doctors may prescribe drugs other than Ibrance for your condition. Certain drugs may work better for you than others.

Ibrance is used to treat a certain form of breast cancer. Here’s a summary of other drugs that doctors sometimes prescribe for breast cancer.

To learn more about some alternatives of Ibrance, view the following articles:

• Ibrance vs. Verzenio
• Ibrance vs. Kisqali

Your doctor can tell you about other similar drugs, such as letrozole and anastrozole.

To learn more about alternatives to Ibrance, ask your doctor. They can tell you about other medications that could be prescribed for your condition.

Doctors prescribe Ibrance to treat breast cancer in certain situations.

The drug is approved for breast cancer that has all of the following characteristics:

• advanced or metastatic (has spread to other parts of the body)
• hormone receptor-positive (is stimulated to grow by the hormones estrogen, progesterone, or both)
• HER2-negative (doesn’t have high levels of HER2, which is a protein that helps breast cancer cells grow quickly)

Ibrance is a targeted therapy for this form of breast cancer. It’s used in combination with certain hormone therapies. Hormone therapy stops your hormones from stimulating the cancer cells to grow and multiply. (Cells that multiply are making more cells.) Targeted therapy blocks other specific features of cancer cells that make them grow and multiply.

Ibrance blocks two proteins: cyclin-dependent kinase (CDK) 4 and CDK 6. These proteins are involved in controlling how all cells grow and multiply. However, in breast cancer cells that are hormone receptor-positive, estrogen makes these proteins become overactive. This makes the cancer cells grow and multiply faster than usual.   

By blocking CDK 4 and CDK 6, Ibrance stops the cancer cells from growing and multiplying. This is the way the drug works, which is also called its mechanism of action. This is how Ibrance slows the growth and spread of the cancer.

Ibrance starts working soon after you start taking it, although you might not notice it working. Your doctor will order tests from time to time to check that the drug is working for you.

Ibrance stays in your system for about 6 days after you take a dose.

Your doctor will recommend how you should take Ibrance. It’s important that you take the drug exactly as your doctor instructs.

Ibrance comes as oral tablets and capsules. You’ll take either form by swallowing it.

Here’s a list of common questions related to taking Ibrance.

• When should I take Ibrance? You’ll likely take Ibrance once per day for 21 days, followed by 7 days of not taking Ibrance. Repeat this 28-day cycle for as long as your doctor recommends. View these medication reminder options to help avoid missing doses. You could also set an alarm, use a timer, or download a reminder app on your phone.
• Do I need to take Ibrance with food? It depends on the form of Ibrance you take:
  • Ibrance tablets can be taken either with or without food.
  • Ibrance capsules should be taken with food.
• Can Ibrance be chewed, split, or crushed? No, Ibrance capsules and tablets should not be chewed, split, or crushed. You should not open Ibrance capsules. And you should not take Ibrance tablets or capsules that are cracked, broken, or damaged in any other way. If you have trouble swallowing Ibrance tablets or capsules whole, talk with your doctor.
• Is there a best time of day to take Ibrance? No, you can take Ibrance at any time of day. Just be consistent with the time you choose. Taking Ibrance around the same time of day helps keep a steady level of it in your body. This helps the medication work effectively.

For some drugs, taking more than the recommended dosage may lead to unwanted side effects or overdose. Do not use more Ibrance than your doctor advises.

If you vomit after taking a dose of Ibrance, do not take an additional dose afterward. Take your next dose as usual at the scheduled time. Doing so may help prevent overdose.

Call your doctor if you think you’ve taken too much of this drug. Also, you can call the American Association of Poison Control Centers at 800-222-1222 or use their online tool. However, if your symptoms are severe, call 911 or your local emergency number. Or go to the nearest emergency room right away.

Ibrance is not safe to take during pregnancy. Based on animal studies and how the drug works, Ibrance could harm a developing fetus.

If you’re able to become pregnant, your doctor will likely have you take a pregnancy test before you start Ibrance. And they’ll likely recommend that you use birth control during treatment. See the “Ibrance: Birth control needs” section below to learn more.

If you’re pregnant or planning to become pregnant, talk with your doctor about alternative treatment options.

Based on animal studies, Ibrance may reduce fertility in males.* It’s not known if Ibrance may affect fertility in females.* (Fertility describes the ability to become pregnant or cause someone to become pregnant.) Keep in mind that animal studies may not predict what will happen in humans.

If you plan to have children, talk with your doctor. It may be possible to collect and store your sperm or eggs for use in future fertility treatment. This includes in vitro fertilization (IVF), for example.

* Sex and gender exist on spectrums. In this article, use of the terms “male” and “female” refers to sex assigned at birth.

Ibrance is not safe to take during pregnancy. Talk with your doctor about your birth control needs with Ibrance if you’re sexually active and you or your partner can become pregnant. Your doctor can recommend if you should use birth control with this medication.

If you’d like to learn more about taking Ibrance during pregnancy, see the “Ibrance: Taking while pregnant” section above.

Note: Sex and gender exist on spectrums. In this article, use of the terms “male” and “female” refers to sex assigned at birth.

If you’re able to become pregnant, you should use birth control while taking Ibrance. And you should continue using birth control for at least 3 weeks after your last dose.

If you’re sexually active with a partner who’s able to become pregnant, you should use birth control while taking Ibrance. And you should continue using birth control for 3 months after your last dose.

You should not breastfeed while taking Ibrance or for at least 3 weeks after your last dose of the drug.

It’s not known if Ibrance passes into breast milk. If it does, the drug could cause serious side effects in a breastfed child.

If you’re breastfeeding or planning to breastfeed, talk with your doctor. They can recommend other healthy ways to feed your child while you’re taking Ibrance.

Tell your doctor about your health history before starting treatment with Ibrance. Your doctor may not recommend this medication if you have certain factors affecting your health or specific medical conditions.

These factors and conditions include those listed below.

• Allergic reaction. Your doctor will likely not prescribe Ibrance if you’ve had an allergic reaction to it or any of its ingredients. To find out about other treatment options, talk with your doctor.
• Low white blood cell levels. Ibrance commonly lowers white blood cell levels. If you already have low white blood cell levels, Ibrance could make this worse. Your doctor will order blood tests to check your white blood cells before you start Ibrance and regularly throughout treatment. If your white blood cell levels fall too low, your doctor may reduce your Ibrance dosage. Or they may pause your treatment until your white blood cell levels recover.
• Infections. If Ibrance lowers your levels of white blood cells, it may be difficult for your body to fight off infections. Before starting Ibrance, be sure to tell your doctor if you have any infections. These may need to be treated before you start Ibrance. If you develop a fever or any signs of infection while taking Ibrance, see your doctor right away. They may reduce your Ibrance dosage or pause your treatment until the infection is treated.
• Liver problems. Ibrance is broken down by your liver. If you have severe liver problems, Ibrance could build up in your body, raising your risk for its side effects. Due to this risk, your doctor will typically prescribe a dosage of Ibrance that’s lower than usual.
• Lung problems. In rare cases, Ibrance can cause serious lung side effects. If you already have a lung problem, having lung side effects with Ibrance could make your condition worse. If you have a lung problem, this can make it harder to notice symptoms of lung side effects with Ibrance. Talk with your doctor about whether Ibrance is right for you.
• Pregnancy. Ibrance is not safe to take during pregnancy. If you’d like more information about taking Ibrance while pregnant, view the “Ibrance: Taking while pregnant” section above.
• Breastfeeding. You should not breastfeed while taking Ibrance. If you’d like to learn more about taking Ibrance while breastfeeding, view the “Ibrance: Taking while breastfeeding” section above.

To learn more about side effects of Ibrance that could be harmful, see the “Ibrance: Side effects” section above.

Here’s some information about Ibrance’s expiration date, as well as how to store and dispose of the drug.

• Expiration. Your pharmacist will add an expiration date to the label on Ibrance’s bottle or packet. This date is usually 1 year from the date the medication was dispensed to you. Expiration dates help ensure that a medication is effective during a period of time. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) advises Trusted Source Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Governmental authority Go to source that you avoid using expired drugs. If you have an unused medication and it’s past the drug’s expiration date, talk with your pharmacist. They can let you know whether you might still be able to use the medication.
• Storage. Many factors determine how long a medication remains good to use. These factors include how and where you store the drug. Ibrance tablets and capsules should be stored at room temperature. Avoid storing it in areas where it could get damp or wet, such as bathrooms. The medication should be kept in its original blister pack until it’s time to take a dose.
• Disposal. It’s important to safely dispose of Ibrance if you no longer need to take it and have unused medication. Doing so helps prevent others, including children and pets, from accidentally taking the drug. It also helps avoid causing harm to the environment. Ask your pharmacist for information about disposing of Ibrance. Also, check out this page for several tips on safe medication disposal.

If you have questions about Ibrance, talk with your doctor. They can help advise whether Ibrance could be a good treatment option for you.

Here’s a list of questions you may want to ask your doctor:

• Is my breast cancer suitable for treatment with Ibrance?
• What other drugs will I need to take with Ibrance?
• Could Ibrance worsen any health conditions I have?
• Should I get any vaccines before starting Ibrance?

Your doctor may also tell you about other treatment options for your condition. You may find this article helpful in learning about alternative drugs for breast cancer. And check out our selection of videos on breast cancer.

Disclaimer: Healthgrades has made every effort to make certain that all information is factually correct, comprehensive, and up to date. However, this article should not be used as a substitute for the knowledge and expertise of a licensed healthcare professional. You should always consult your doctor or another healthcare professional before taking any medication. The drug information contained herein is subject to change and is not intended to cover all possible uses, directions, precautions, warnings, drug interactions, allergic reactions, or adverse effects. The absence of warnings or other information for a given drug does not indicate that the drug or drug combination is safe, effective, or appropriate for all patients or all specific uses.