Abiraterone Acetate Coupons & Prices

Use a free Rx.com abiraterone acetate coupon to compare cash prices at more than 60,000 pharmacies before you fill your prescription. Abiraterone acetate tablets are the generic form of Zytiga, a once-daily tablet taken with prednisone for metastatic prostate cancer. Cash prices are set by each pharmacy, so what one pharmacy charges can look nothing like what the pharmacy down the street charges for the exact same tablets. Enter your ZIP code above to compare today's price near you and print, text, or email your coupon.

What is abiraterone acetate and how does it work?

Abiraterone acetate is an androgen biosynthesis inhibitor, sometimes called a CYP17 inhibitor. Prostate cancer cells are usually fueled by male hormones (androgens) such as testosterone. Abiraterone blocks an enzyme called CYP17 that the body needs to make those hormones, not just in the testicles but also in the adrenal glands and in the tumor itself. Lowering the hormone supply helps slow the cancer down. It is a hormonal (endocrine) therapy, not traditional cytotoxic chemotherapy.

The FDA has approved abiraterone acetate tablets (Zytiga and its generics), in combination with prednisone, to treat metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC) and metastatic high-risk castration-sensitive prostate cancer (mCSPC). It is used along with ongoing androgen deprivation therapy, such as a GnRH agonist or antagonist like leuprolide, or after surgical castration. For Zytiga and generic abiraterone acetate, the usual dose is 1,000 mg once a day (two 500 mg tablets or four 250 mg tablets) taken on an empty stomach, with no food for 2 hours before and 1 hour after the dose. The prednisone dose depends on the indication: 5 mg twice a day for mCRPC and 5 mg once a day for mCSPC. Yonsa, a separate fine-particle brand of abiraterone acetate, has its own label and is dosed differently (see below), so the 1,000 mg empty-stomach instructions above do not apply to it. Abiraterone is not indicated for use in women.

Abiraterone acetate coupon: what it costs without insurance

Generic abiraterone acetate tablets are FDA-approved and substitutable for Zytiga. Cash prices for the same 250 mg or 500 mg tablets can still vary widely from pharmacy to pharmacy, because each pharmacy sets its own cash price. There is no single national price, so it is worth comparing before you fill.

Rx.com compares discount cash prices at more than 60,000 U.S. pharmacies, including major chains, grocery and warehouse pharmacies, and independents. Enter your ZIP code above, check the price at pharmacies near you, and show your free coupon at the counter. A few things worth knowing:

• Rx.com coupons are for cash-pay prescriptions and are not insurance. You can use one instead of insurance if the cash price beats your copay.
• Because the daily dose is four 250 mg tablets or two 500 mg tablets, price differences add up quickly over a 30-day supply. Ask about both strengths, and about a 90-day fill if your oncologist agrees.
• Abiraterone is often dispensed through a specialty pharmacy. If yours is, ask whether a retail pharmacy can fill it too, then compare.
• There is no manufacturer copay card for generic abiraterone. Brand programs, when they exist, are described on the manufacturer's own website, and their terms and eligibility rules vary. Nonprofit and foundation grants for prostate cancer treatment may also help; your cancer center's financial navigator can point you to them.

Brand vs. generic, and other prostate cancer medicines

Two brand versions exist, and they are not interchangeable. Zytiga (Janssen/Johnson & Johnson) is the original abiraterone acetate: 250 mg and 500 mg tablets, 1,000 mg once daily with prednisone, taken on an empty stomach, approved for both mCRPC and mCSPC. Yonsa (Sun Pharma) is a different, fine-particle formulation with its own FDA label: it is approved only for metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer, the labeled dose is 500 mg once daily (four 125 mg tablets) together with methylprednisolone 4 mg twice daily, and it is labeled to be taken with or without food. Those differences (different indication, different dose, different steroid, different food rule) are exactly why you should never assume instructions for one product apply to the other. Generic abiraterone acetate tablets are substitutable for Zytiga, not for Yonsa. Follow the exact product, dose, steroid, and food instructions your oncologist and pharmacist gave you.

Abiraterone is one of several hormone-directed options for advanced prostate cancer. Others your oncologist may discuss include Xtandi (enzalutamide), Erleada (apalutamide), Nubeqa (darolutamide), and the older antiandrogen bicalutamide. These are different drugs with different side-effect profiles, and they are not interchangeable with abiraterone. Choosing between them depends on your disease stage, other health conditions, and prior treatments, so this is a conversation for you and your cancer team, not a swap to make at the pharmacy counter.

Safety, side effects, and monitoring

Abiraterone acetate has no boxed warning, but its FDA label does carry important warnings and precautions. Blocking CYP17 can raise mineralocorticoid levels, which may cause low potassium, fluid retention, high blood pressure, and heart-related problems; your blood pressure, potassium, and swelling should be checked at least monthly, and extra caution is advised if you have heart failure or a recent heart attack or arrhythmia. Liver injury, including rare severe cases, can occur, so liver blood tests are done before you start, every two weeks for the first three months, and monthly after that. Stopping or lowering the corticosteroid on your own can lead to adrenal insufficiency, especially during illness, stress, or infection, so never adjust the steroid without your doctor. Abiraterone should not be combined with radium Ra 223 dichloride, which increased fractures and deaths in a study. The label also warns about severe hypoglycemia: severe low blood sugar has been reported in patients with pre-existing diabetes who were taking medicines containing thiazolidinediones (including pioglitazone) or repaglinide. If you have diabetes, your blood glucose should be monitored during and after treatment with abiraterone, and you should tell your cancer team which diabetes medicines you take.

The food rule is product-specific, and getting it right matters. Zytiga and generic abiraterone acetate tablets must be taken on an empty stomach: no food for 2 hours before and 1 hour after the dose. Food sharply increases how much drug is absorbed. Compared with fasting, the Zytiga label reports abiraterone exposure (AUC) roughly 5 times higher with a low-fat meal and roughly 10 times higher with a high-fat meal, with peak levels (Cmax) about 7 times and 17 times higher respectively, and the label states that the safety of these increased exposures when doses are taken with food has not been established. Yonsa is different: its fine-particle formulation is labeled to be taken with or without food, at a lower 500 mg daily dose with methylprednisolone. Follow the instructions for the exact product you were dispensed, and if you are not sure which one you have, ask your pharmacist.

Tell your doctor about all other medicines, since drugs like rifampin and St. John's wort can make abiraterone less effective, and abiraterone can affect medicines processed by CYP2D6 (such as dextromethorphan and thioridazine). The dose is lowered in moderate liver impairment and abiraterone is avoided in severe liver impairment. Abiraterone can harm a developing fetus: women who are or may become pregnant should not handle the tablets without gloves, and men with partners of reproductive potential should use a condom plus another effective contraceptive during treatment and for three weeks after the last dose. Common side effects include fatigue, joint swelling or discomfort, swelling in the legs, hot flashes, diarrhea, high blood pressure, low potassium, cough, headache, urinary tract infection, and elevated liver enzymes. This page is information, not medical advice: talk with your oncologist or pharmacist about your own situation, and report new or severe symptoms promptly.