Oxaliplatin, sold under the brand name Eloxatin, is a cancer medication used to treat colorectal cancer. Often it is used together with fluorouracil and folinic acid (leucovorin) in advanced cancer. It is given by injection into a vein.
Common side effects include numbness, feeling tired, nausea, diarrhea, and low blood cell counts. Other serious side effects include allergic reactions. Use in pregnancy is known to harm the baby. Oxaliplatin is in the platinum-based antineoplastic family of medications. It is believed to work by blocking the duplication of DNA.
Oxaliplatin was patented in 1976 and approved for medical use in 1996. It is on the World Health Organization’s List of Essential Medicines.