Adjuncts (or adjunctive drugs) are a variety of medications that complement the chemotherapy regimen. Adjuncts technically are not chemotherapy drugs, because the adjuncts do not attack the cancer itself. However, adjuncts are considered part of the treatment, because they have one or more of the following beneficial effects:
• Help make the action of chemotherapy drugs more effective
• Help alleviate symptoms of the cancer
• Help alleviate side effects of the treatment
Leucovorin calcium, a derivative of the vitamin, folic acid, is an adjunct used to:
• Enhance the effectiveness of the chemotherapy drug, 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) and 5-FU-related chemotherapy drugs
• Reduce the toxic effects of folate antagonist types of chemotherapy drugs |