MelanomaTaken continuously — no infusion cycle7 effects documented
Two daily targeted pills for BRAF-mutant melanoma. The standout effect is recurring fevers (often with chills) — report a temperature of 100.4°F (38°C) or higher, as the usual fix is briefly pausing both pills. Your team also checks your heart (echo) and eyes, and does regular skin checks. Adding the second pill actually LOWERS the skin-cancer risk seen with the BRAF drug alone.
Two oral targeted pills taken daily (a BRAF inhibitor + a MEK inhibitor) for BRAF-mutant melanoma. The hallmark effect is PYREXIA (fever) — often recurrent, usually early (around week 4), managed by briefly pausing BOTH drugs. Onset is in weeks-months, not infusion cycles. The team monitors the heart (echo) and eyes, and does skin checks.
Get help straight away — this is true on any regimen, on any day.
A temperature of 100.4°F (38°C) or higher during treatment can mean a
serious infection while your blood counts are low. Call your team or go to the ER — do not
wait it out.
Also urgent: trouble breathing or chest pain · swelling of the face, lips or throat ·
new confusion or fainting · shaking chills · not being able to keep fluids down.
This is standing guidance shown to everyone. Nothing on this page is based on anything
about you, and nobody is monitoring you.
What is reported
This regimen is taken continuously, so effects are described in the terms their sources use rather than by cycle day.
Recurring fever (pyrexia)
often early (median ~27 days); recurrent
The hallmark of this combination: fever, often with chills, that tends to appear early (around week 4) and can come back in episodes. It's not usually an infection, but you should still report a temperature of 100.4°F (38°C) or higher — the standard approach is to briefly pause BOTH pills until it settles, with fever-reducers and occasionally a short steroid course.
Call your team urgently: A temperature of 100.4°F (38.0°C) or higher, or fever with feeling very unwell.
reported by about 54-61% of people; severe in 5-6% · from Dabrafenib, Trametinib
Chills
with fever episodes, often early
Chills often come with the fever episodes. Manage them together with the fever plan your team gives you.
reported by about 31% of people · from Dabrafenib, Trametinib
Reduced heart pumping (decreased LVEF)
can be early or later; monitored by echo
The MEK pill can reduce the heart's pumping strength, usually found on a scan rather than felt, and generally improving if the drug is paused. Your team checks an echocardiogram at baseline, about a month in, then periodically. Report new breathlessness or swelling.
Call your team: New breathlessness, swelling, or a rapid/irregular heartbeat.
reported by about 6% of people · from Trametinib
Rash
A skin rash is common, usually manageable with skin care and sometimes medicine.
reported by about 32% of people; severe in 1% · from Dabrafenib, Trametinib
Eye problems (uveitis, retinal changes)
any time on treatment
Uncommonly, these pills can inflame the eye (uveitis) or affect the retina, causing blurred vision, eye pain, or seeing spots. Report any new visual change promptly — an eye exam is arranged, and it's usually reversible if caught early.
Call your team urgently: Sudden vision loss or eye pain — seek urgent care.
reported by about ~2 (uveitis); retinal effects rare% of people · from Dabrafenib, Trametinib
New skin growths / skin cancers
any time; skin checks every ~2 months
The BRAF pill can prompt new skin growths, including a type of skin cancer (cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma) that is removed and doesn't usually require stopping treatment. Importantly, adding the MEK pill LOWERS this risk (about 2% together vs ~11% with the BRAF pill alone). Keep skin-check appointments and report new or changing skin lesions.
reported by about ~2 (combination) vs ~11 (BRAF alone)% of people · from Dabrafenib
Headache and joint aches
Headaches and aching joints are common and usually manageable with simple measures.
reported by about 30 (headache); 25 (arthralgia)% of people · from Dabrafenib, Trametinib
Where this comes from
S1. Long GV / Robert C, COMBI-d / COMBI-v (dabrafenib + trametinib) (2015) — PMID 25399551 / 25265492
S2. Dabrafenib (Tafinlar) + Trametinib (Mekinist) FDA prescribing information — FDA label
S3. Pyrexia pooled analysis (dabrafenib + trametinib) (2022) — Eur J Cancer
A window appears here only where a retrievable document ties it to a drug in
this regimen. Where nothing could be found, the window was removed rather than estimated —
so a missing time is an honest gap, not an oversight.
Oncura