Cellcept 500mg Tablet

Cellcept 500mg Tablet contains mycophenolate mofetil 500mg, an immunosuppressant used together with other immunosuppressant medicines, such as a calcineurin inhibitor (e.g. ciclosporin or tacrolimus) and a corticosteroid, to help prevent organ rejection in people who have received a kidney, heart, or liver transplant. This medicine must only be used under the close supervision of a specialist transplant team, with regular full blood count monitoring and awareness of the increased infection risk that comes with immunosuppression.

Mycophenolate mofetil works by selectively blocking the proliferation of the immune cells (lymphocytes) responsible for attacking a transplanted organ, while having comparatively less effect on other cell types in the body, and works alongside your other immunosuppressant medicines as part of your overall anti-rejection regimen.

Mycophenolate mofetil is converted in the body to its active form, mycophenolic acid, which inhibits inosine monophosphate dehydrogenase (IMPDH), an enzyme essential for producing the building blocks of DNA that immune cells need in order to multiply. Because T- and B-lymphocytes rely heavily on this particular pathway (unlike most other cells in the body, which have an alternative route), mycophenolic acid selectively suppresses the proliferation of these immune cells, reducing the immune response responsible for transplant rejection.

Take Cellcept 500mg Tablet on an empty stomach where possible, at the same times each day approximately 12 hours apart, swallowing the tablet whole with water – do not crush, chew, or open it, and avoid touching a broken or crushed dose with your bare hands, as this medicine can be harmful if inhaled or if it contacts broken skin or mucous membranes. Always take it alongside your other prescribed immunosuppressants, and attend every scheduled blood test so your transplant team can monitor your blood counts and adjust your dose if needed.

The dose of Cellcept 500mg Tablet is individualised by your transplant specialist, usually starting soon after transplant surgery and continued long-term as part of a combination immunosuppressive regimen, typically taken twice daily. Your doctor will adjust your dose based on regular blood tests (including full blood counts) and how well you tolerate the medicine. Never change your dose or stop taking this medicine without your transplant team’s explicit instruction, as this can put your transplanted organ at risk of rejection.

Use this product before the expiry date stated on the packaging. Do not use the medicine if the expiry date has passed.

Store below 30°C in a dry place, away from direct sunlight and out of reach of children.

• Known hypersensitivity to mycophenolate mofetil, mycophenolic acid, or polysorbate 80
• Pregnancy – mycophenolate is known to cause miscarriage and birth defects; effective contraception is required before, during, and for a period after treatment for anyone who could become pregnant, or whose partner could become pregnant
• Breastfeeding
• Use without close specialist transplant-team supervision and regular blood count monitoring

• Azathioprine should not be combined with mycophenolate mofetil, due to an increased risk of additive bone marrow suppression
• Live vaccines should not be given during treatment – check with your transplant team before any vaccination
• Antacids containing magnesium or aluminium, and proton pump inhibitors, can reduce absorption of this medicine if taken too close together
• Cholestyramine significantly reduces the absorption of mycophenolate mofetil and should not be taken at the same time

• Never skip a scheduled blood test – your transplant team relies on these results to keep you safe
• Use effective contraception as advised, given the risk of harm to a pregnancy
• Avoid direct contact with a broken or crushed dose; wash your hands thoroughly if contact occurs
• Report any signs of infection, fever, or unusual bruising/bleeding to your transplant team immediately
• Check with your transplant team before receiving any vaccination, especially live vaccines