How Assistance Works
Streamlining our patient’s specialty pharmacy experience with unmatched full-service convenience
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1. Check Your Coverage/Benefits Verification
Our team of expert billers finds the best avenues of coverage that minimize out-of-pocket costs.
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2. Transfer Prescription to AmeriPharma™
We process your prescription by working with your previous pharmacy or prescriber, making the transition quick and easy.
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3. Prior Authorization
Our team of specialists obtains approval from your insurance companies within 24 to 72 hours.
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4. Copay Assistance & Financial Aid
We secure financial aid and decrease copays, out-of-pocket expenses, and high deductibles. To date, AmeriPharma™ Specialty Care has secured $55 million in financial assistance for our patients.
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5. Nursing Care Coordination
AmeriPharma™ puts your schedule and home environment first when scheduling and coordinating one of our specialized nurses for your in-home infusions.
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6. Delivery Coordination
Medications are always delivered in strict compliance with the specific requirements for shipping. Next-day and overnight cold-chain deliveries are coordinated around your schedule.
What Is Tasigna?
Tasigna, also known by its generic name of nilotinib, is an oral medication used to treat Philadelphia chromosome-positive chronic myeloid leukemia in both children and adults. Tasigna is not a first-resort medicine. Doctors typically prescribe it after trying other methods without success.
Chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) affects the bone marrow and blood cells, inhibiting normal white blood cell growth. Instead of fighting off infections like white blood cells typically do, patients with CML have bone marrow crowded with stunted (undersized) blood cells. Typically, there are no symptoms, and patients often find out they have CML after blood draws during an annual medical examination.
Nevertheless, some symptoms of CML commonly overlooked include excess sweating, feeling pain or fullness in the stomach, bruising easily, or losing weight without any explanation. Other less common but more distinctive symptoms include bone pain, fatigue that will not go away, and persistent fever and infection.
How Does Tasigna Work?
Nilotinib blocks the production of a tyrosine kinase protein known as BCR-ABL. This is the protein that causes the bone marrow to make leukemic cells in Philadelphia chromosome-positive patients with CML. When the production of this protein is blocked, the leukemia cells stop growing.
Treatment with Tasigna is a long-term process and it can affect several organs in the body. Tasigna can also lower the body’s ability to fight off infections. For this reason, it requires consistent monitoring and careful dosage regulation. Parents of children on nilotinib must monitor symptoms and possible side effects closely.
Copay and Financial Assistance
AmeriPharma™ Specialty Care alleviates financial burdens for patients and their families
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Advanced software locates funding sources to match you with top-dollar foundation programs
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One of our copay assistance specialists will assist with the application process
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Automatic updates will be sent to you and your physician on the status of the funding
Directions for Use
Tasigna is an oral capsule and should be taken every 12 hours without food. Taking it with food can increase its presence in the blood and cause dangerous side effects. You should avoid eating anything 1 hour before and 2 hours after taking nilotinib.
Capsules for adult patients should not be opened or broken. Instead, capsules should be swallowed whole with a full glass of water. However, doctors allow children on the medication to open the capsule and sprinkle it into a teaspoon of applesauce; it cannot be more than a teaspoon. Avoid saving any of the mixture because it is not safe for later use.
Tasigna is a long-term medication to be taken exactly as doctors order for as long as they recommend. It may be administered along with hematopoietic growth factors, such as granulocyte colony-stimulating factor or erythropoietin, anagrelide, or hydroxyurea. The dosage for adults is typically 400 mg twice per day and around 230 mg twice per day for children over 1 year of age.
Tasigna Side Effects
Tasigna can have severe side effects and potentially cause death. Doctors should consistently monitor blood count and check for any negative impact on the pancreas and liver. Symptoms to watch for include:
- Fever
- Stuffy nose, sneezing, or sore throat
- Night sweats
- Diarrhea or constipation
- Muscle and joint pain
- Headache
- Itching and coughing
- Extreme fatigue
Typically your doctor will continue treatment even with these symptoms. However, alert your doctor right away if you experience the following:
- Signs of decreased blood flow, such as trouble walking, feeling cold, numbness or chest pain, or speech problems
- Signs of liver or pancreas issues, such as stomach pain spreading to your back, vomiting, dark urine, or jaundice
- Unusual bleeding
- Rapid weight gain or swelling
- Shortness of breath
Some signs of tumor cell breakdown to look out for include confusion; changes in heart rate; tingling in your hands, feet, and lips; weakness; and muscle cramps. If you have a child on the medication, alert the doctor if you notice that their growth appears to slow.
Insurances Accepted
We accept Medicare, multi-state Medicaid, Medi-Cal, Blue Shield, and most private insurances. Call us to find out more about your coverage.
Get Started in Minutes
Fill out your information and one of our specialists will call you ASAP.
How Much Can You Save?
Speak with a copay assistance specialist
(877) 778-0318
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