What is ondansetron?
Ondansetron (generic Zofran) is a prescription medication typically given to patients undergoing chemotherapy, radiation therapy, or surgery to prevent nausea and vomiting.
What is ondansetron?
Ondansetron (generic Zofran) is a prescription medication typically given to patients undergoing chemotherapy, radiation therapy, or surgery to prevent nausea and vomiting.
What are common side effects of ondansetron?
While adverse reactions to ondansetron are uncommon, some patients who take the drug may experience mild side effects, including headache, constipation, weakness, tiredness, chills, and drowsiness.
Rare, more serious adverse events have also been known to occur, including irregular heartbeats. If you are concerned that ondansetron may be causing you to experience any number of adverse side effects, please contact your doctor or clinician.
This is not a complete list of side effects. If you are concerned about additional side effects, please contact your provider directly.
FDA-approved medication
Hundreds of generic medications starting at $5 delivered right to your door.
Free & fast delivery
Easy tracking to check the status of your prescription.
Dedicated customer support
SesameRx's dedicated English and Spanish-language support available to help whenever you need.
Ondansetron (generic Zofran) is a prescription medication typically given to patients undergoing chemotherapy, radiation therapy, or surgery to prevent nausea and vomiting.
Ondansetron is in the class of medications called serotonin 5-HT₃ receptor antagonists. It works on the body’s natural chemicals that are responsible for the nausea.
Chemotherapy and radiation therapy cause the release of serotonin 5-HT₃, a neurotransmitter in the central nervous system that triggers the nerves that bring about the vomiting reflex. Serotonin 5-HT₃ receptor antagonist medication- such as Ondansetron- blocks serotonin from reaching the nerves. This prevents feelings of nausea or the need to vomit.
While adverse reactions to ondansetron are uncommon, some patients who take the drug may experience mild side effects, including: - headache - constipation - weakness - tiredness - chills - drowsiness
If any of the side effects above are severe or do not go away, you should contact your doctor. Rare, more serious side effects may occur. If you experience any symptoms listed below, contact your doctor right away. - blurred vision or vision loss - Rash or hives - swelling of the eyes, face, lips, tongue, throat, hands, feet, ankles, or lower legs - difficulty breathing or swallowing - chest pain - seizures Because ondansetron can cause drowsiness and dizziness, especially when you first start taking it, it is advised to avoid driving or operating machinery until you know how the drug may affect you. This is not a complete list of ondansetron’s side effects. For more information on advice effects associated with ondansetron, please visit the National Institutes of Health’s DailyMed webpage.
Ondansetron typically takes 30-60 minutes to work.
Ondansetron is prescribed as a film-coated tablet.
Adults with cancer are typically given 24 mg 30 minutes before the start of chemotherapy. Additional doses are sometimes given after the chemotherapy if needed.
For more moderate post-chemotherapy nausea and vomiting, 8 mg is given 30 minutes before starting cancer treatment. The 8 mg dose is taken again 8 hours after the first dose. Then, the dose is 8 mg every 12 hours for 1 to 2 days.
Patients undergoing radiotherapy are typically given 8 mg 1-2 hours before radiotherapy.
Patients undergoing surgery are typically given 16 mg 1 hour before receiving anesthesia.
Yep! With SesameRx, you can get medication delivered right to your door with free and fast delivery - no insurance necessary. Our fully-integrated prescription service lets your doctor write you a prescription (or refill an existing one) during your visit. That way, you can focus on getting better and not worry about how and when you’ll get your prescription.
Please note that all prescriptions are at the sole discretion of your provider.