The best for you that your family doctor check your progress at regular appointments to make sure that this drug is help you. Blood tests will be needed to check for unwanted effects.
While you are being treated with gemcitabine and after you stop treat with it, do not have any immunizations - vaccinations without your family doctor's approval . Gemcitabine may lower your body's resistance, and there is a risk you might get the infection that the immunization is meant to prevent. In addition, other people living in your household must not take oral polio vaccine, since there is a risk they could pass the polio virus on to you. Always avoid people who have taken oral polio vaccine within the past few months. Do not get close to them and do not stay in the same room with them for very long. If you can't take these precautions, you must consider wearing a protective face mask that covers the nose and mouth.
Check with your family doctor immediately if shortness of breath occurs or worsens while you are being treated with gemcitabine.
Gemcitabine can temporarily lower the number of white blood cells in your blood, increasing the risk of getting an infection. It can also lower the number of platelets, which are needed for proper blood clotting. If this occurs, there are certain precautions you can take, especially when your blood count is low, to reduce the risk of infection or bleeding: