Mercaptopurinedosage
mercaptopurine 50 MG Oral Tablet
Dosage and administration
The recommended starting dose of Mercaptopurine Tablets is 1.5 mg/kg to 2.5 mg/kg orally once daily as part of a combination chemotherapy maintenance regimen. Adjust dose to maintain desirable absolute neutrophil count and for excessive myelosuppression.
Renal Impairment: Use the lowest recommended starting dose or increase the dosing interval.
Hepatic Impairment: Use the lowest recommended starting dose.
2.1 Recommended
Dosage The recommended starting dosage of Mercaptopurine Tablets is 1.5 mg/kg to 2.5 mg/kg orally once daily as part of combination chemotherapy maintenance regimen. A recommended dosage for patients less than 17 kg is not achievable, because the only available strength is 50 mg. Take Mercaptopurine Tablets either consistently with or without food. After initiating Mercaptopurine Tablets, monitor complete blood count (CBC) and adjust the dose to maintain absolute neutrophil count (ANC) at a desirable level and for excessive myelosuppression. Evaluate the bone marrow in patients with prolonged myelosuppression or repeated episodes of myelosuppression to assess leukemia status and marrow cellularity. Evaluate thiopurine S-methyltransferase (TPMT) and nucleotide diphosphatase (NUDT15) status in patients with severe myelosuppression or repeated episodes or myelosuppression. Do not administer to patients who are unable to swallow tablets. If a patient misses a dose, instruct the patient to continue with the next scheduled dose. Mercaptopurine Tablets is a cytotoxic drug. Follow special handling and disposal procedures.
2.2 Dosage Modifications in
Patients with TPMT and NUDT15 Deficiency Consider testing for TPMT and NUDT15 deficiency in patients who experience severe myelosuppression or repeated episodes of myelosuppression. Homozygous Deficiency in either TPMT or NUDT15 Patients with homozygous deficiency of either enzyme typically require 10% or less of the recommended dosage. Reduce the recommended starting dosage of Mercaptopurine Tablets in patients who are known to have homozygous TPMT or NUDT15 deficiency. Heterozygous Deficiency in TPMT and/or NUDT15 Reduce the Mercaptopurine Tablets dose based on tolerability. Most patients with heterozygous TPMT or NUDT15 deficiency tolerate the recommended dosage, but some require a dose reduction based on adverse reactions. Patients who are heterozygous for both TPMT and NUDT15 may require more substantial dose reductions.
2.3 Dosage Modifications in
Renal and Hepatic Impairment Renal Impairment Use the lowest recommended starting dosage for Mercaptopurine Tablets in patients with renal impairment (CLcr less than 50 mL/min). Adjust the dosage to maintain absolute neutrophil count (ANC) at a desirable level and for adverse reactions. Hepatic Impairment Use the lowest recommended starting dosage for Mercaptopurine Tablets in patients with hepatic impairment. Adjust the dosage to maintain absolute neutrophil count (ANC) at a desirable level and for adverse reactions.
2.4 Dosage Modification with
Concomitant Use of Allopurinol Reduce the dose of Mercaptopurine Tablets to one-third to one-quarter of the current dosage when coadministered with allopurinol.
Text above is quoted in full from the FDA-approved drug label published by openFDA, effective February 25, 2026. Matched to this product by RxNorm code. Cross-references to other sections of the full prescribing information have been removed, since they point to a document not shown here. Nothing else is changed: no sentence is shortened, reworded or summarised.
This page reproduces regulatory text for reference. It is not medical advice, and KenyRx is not a pharmacy or a prescriber. Talk to a doctor or pharmacist about whether a medicine is right for you.
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