What You Need To Know About Keytruda Coupons, Cost, and Patient Assistance Programs

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Posted by Prescription Hope - See Editorial Guidelines (Last Updated On: Mon Feb 13 2023)

Is your Keytruda medication too expensive?

Keytruda (Pembrolizumab), a medication used to treat cancer, can be very expensive for patients. The list price for an indicated dose given every 3 weeks is $10,067.36, and the list price for an indicated dose given every 6 weeks is $20,134.72.

Insurance from Medicare and Medicaid can lower the price patients pay for Keytruda. However, some patients may still need to pay up to $1,950 per infusion, even with coverage.

Patients can get their Keytruda medication for $60.00 per month through Prescription Hope’s medication access service. Prescription Hope is not a drug coupon, discount card, or insurance.

Patients can save hundreds and even thousands every month by allowing Prescription Hope to manage the Keytruda patient assistance program.

See If You Qualify How It Works

Here’s the monthly cost of Keytruda compared to Prescription Hope:

The four options you have to save money on Keytruda

There are four main ways to save money on out-of-pocket costs when it comes to prescription medication.

1. Join a healthcare plan with prescription drug coverage (Please make sure the medication you are taking is in the insurance formulary.)
2. Prescription drug discount cards
3. Coupon cards that are directly for the pharmaceutical manufacturer
4. Patient assistance programs, which are also directly from the pharmaceutical manufacturer

Now that we have given you the four main medication savings programs, there are a few hurdles to go over in each of those areas. We will be quick about this…

When you join a health insurance program, you will have high deductibles, copays, and things of that nature.

When you have prescription drug discount cards, the discounts are uneven all across the board.

Coupons sponsored directly from the pharmaceutical manufacturer specifically for brand-name medications are excellent in the short run. For the long term, there is a lot of money still left out of your pocket…

Last are the pharmaceutical manufacturer’s patient assistance programs that give away FREE medication to individuals who qualify, which provides unmatched medication savings for the long term.

The downside to patient assistance programs is that the first shipment of medication takes, on average, 2 to 4 weeks to reach the patient. Also, managing medication orders and refills can be a daunting task, especially with the shipping times.

Do I qualify for Keytruda patient assistance programs?

Qualifying for Keytruda patient assistance programs is based on household income guidelines. Every patient assistance program uses different criteria for qualification, so we use the information below as general guidelines:

• An individual earning up to $50,000 a year may qualify
• Households of 2 individuals with a combined income up to $70,000 a year may qualify
• Guidelines can increase in families making up to $200,000 per year

Prescription Hope suggests that anyone looking to save money on Keytruda submit an enrollment form.

Suppose you do not qualify to receive medication through patient assistance programs. In that case, we will never charge a service fee for that medication.

Soon after submitting an enrollment form, we will determine whether you qualify to receive the medications you have requested through patient assistance programs.

Suppose we find a program that will work for you. In that case, we will reach out to you for any additional information needed and reach out to your healthcare provider for the prescription.

Once we receive this information back, we immediately order your medication for you. After that, Prescription Hope works to manage medication orders, refill medications on time throughout the year, maintain up-to-date records, and renew your prescription medication’s enrollment every year.

Once your enrollment form is submitted and you are pre-qualified, the first shipment of prescription medication typically arrives within 2 to 4 weeks. We will then place refills ahead of time so that you receive your medication on a regular schedule.

During the four to six week enrollment period, we recommend that you ask your healthcare provider if they could provide you with Keytruda samples while waiting for your first shipment.

Through our program, Americans save thousands every year from the retail cost of their prescription medications through Prescription Hope. To learn more about how Prescription Hope works you can visit our website.

If you are looking to save money on medication other than Keytruda, you can view a complete list of medications available through patient assistance programs here.

If this medication is not suitable for you, then talk to your healthcare provider about possible Keytruda alternatives. Other brand-name prescription drugs that are similar to Keytruda and available through Prescription Hope include:

• Tarceva
• Tagrisso
• Opdivo

Who is Prescription Hope?

Prescription Hope is a medication access service-based company that provides access to brand-name medication through patient assistance programs.

Prescription Hope charges a service fee of $60.00 a month through Prescription Hope’s medication access service for each medication accessed through patient assistance programs to manage medication orders and refills.

There are no other costs, fees, deductibles, or copays associated with the Prescription Hope service.

Prescription Hope is not an insurance product, coupon card, discount program, or pharmacy.

Prescription Hope is a medication access service that manages patient assistance programs for you. We do not manufacture, store, or ship medications.

Our medication list includes the top-100 prescribed medications offered by U.S. based pharmaceutical manufacturers.

Create your account to fill out an application!

Keytruda: Prescribed as part of cancer treatment

Keytruda is a medication that works with your immune system to fight cancer cells. Keytruda can be used to treat:

• Non-small cell lung cancer – Keytruda can be used with certain chemotherapy medications or alone to treat squamous or nonsquamous non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).

• Melanoma – Keytruda can be used when melanoma has spread and cannot be removed in surgery or to keep melanoma from coming back after removal.

• Head and neck squamous cell cancer (HNSCC) – Keytruda can be used with chemotherapy when head and neck cancer has spread, returned, cannot be removed by surgery, when the tumor tests positive for “PD-L1” (programmed death-ligand 1), or when chemotherapy is no longer working.

• High-risk non-muscle invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC) – Keytruda can be used when cancer is at high risk of spreading but has not yet spread to tissue near the bladder, when the type of tumor is called carcinoma in situ, when you have had unsuccessful treatment with Bacillus Calmette-Guerin, or when you have not yet decided to have surgery to remove your bladder.

• Advanced urothelial bladder cancer – Keytruda can be used when bladder or urinary tract cancer has either spread or cannot be removed by surgery, you are unable to receive chemotherapy that contains cisplatin and your tumor tests positive for PD-L1, when you are unable to receive cisplatin or carboplatin, or when you received chemotherapy that contains platinum and it never worked or no longer works.

• Advanced kidney cancer – Keytruda can be used with a medication called axitinib as your first line of treatment for a kind of kidney cancer called renal cell carcinoma (RCC). It is used when your kidney cancer has spread or cannot be removed via surgery.

• Advanced MSI-H/dMMR colorectal cancer – Keytruda can be used to treat colon or rectal cancer when it has spread, cannot be removed by surgery, and has been shown to be microsatellite instability-high (MSI-H) or mismatch repair deficient (dMMR).

• Microsatellite instability-high cancer (MSI-H) – Keytruda can be used to treat cancer that has spread or cannot be removed by surgery, has progressed following treatment, or when you received chemotherapy with fluoropyrimidine, oxaliplatin, and irinotecan for colon or rectal cancer and it did not work or no longer works.

• Advanced triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) – Keytruda can be used with chemotherapy when your breast cancer has returned and cannot be removed by surgery and tests positive for PD-L1.

• Classical Hodgkin lymphoma (cHL) – Keytruda can be used when your cHL has returned and you have received a treatment that did not work.

• Advanced gastric cancer – Keytruda can be used to treat stomach cancer called gastric or gastroesophageal junction (GEJ) adenocarcinoma. Keytruda can be used when stomach cancer has returned or spread, when you have received fluoropyrimidine or chemotherapy containing platinum that is not working or no longer works, or when your tumor has a HER2/neu gene and also received a HER2/neu-targeted medicine that is not working or no longer works.

• Advanced cervical cancer – Keytruda can be used when your cervical cancer has returned or spread and cannot be removed by surgery or when you received chemotherapy and it did not work or no longer works.

• Primary mediastinal b-cell lymphoma (PMBCL) – Keytruda can be used when you received another form of treatment that did not work or your PMBCL has returned after receiving at least two other types of treatment.

• Advanced liver cancer – Keytruda can be used to treat liver cancer called hepatocellular carcinoma. Keytruda can be used after you have received sorafenib.

• Advanced merkel cell carcinoma (MCC) – Keytruda can be used when your cancer has spread or returned.

• Advanced esophageal cancer – Keytruda can be used with platinum and fluoropyrimidine-based medicines, or alone when you have received at least one treatment that did not work or no longer works, your tumor is a type called squamous and tests positive for PD-L1.

• Cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma (cSCC) – Keytruda can be used when your skin cancer has returned or spread and cannot be cured by surgery or radiation.

Unlike chemotherapy or radiation therapy, Keytruda is an immunotherapy that is given by slow injection into a vein.

How Keytruda works

Your healthcare provider will administer Keytruda for you into your vein through an intravenous (IV) line. The treatments usually take about 30 minutes and are typically given at your healthcare provider’s office or an infusion clinic.

While Keytruda works alongside your immune system, it can sometimes cause your immune system to attack organs and tissues in the body. The problems created by these attacks can become severe and even life-threatening.

Your immune system sends T cells throughout your body that detect and fight infections and diseases like cancer.

Cancer cells use the PD-1 pathway to hide from your body’s T cells. As a result, T cells are unable to detect the cancer cells, which leads to cancer growing and spreading throughout the body.

Keytruda blocks the PD-1 pathway, which stops the cancer cells from being able to hide from the T cells. This allows your body’s T cells to find and destroy cancer cells.

Important safety information:

Contact your healthcare provider right away if you experience problems with your:

• Lungs (includes cough, shortness of breath, and chest pain)
• Liver (includes yellowing of skin or whites of eyes, nausea and vomiting, dark urine, and easily bleeding and bruising)
• Hormone glands (includes headaches, sensitivity to light, rapid heartbeat, increased sweating, and tiredness)
• Kidneys (includes decrease in amount of urine, blood in urine, ankle swelling, and loss of appetite)
• Intestines (includes diarrhea, stools that are black, tarry, sticky, or bloody, and severe abdominal pain)
• Skin (includes rash, itching, blistering or peeling, sores or ulcers, fever or flu symptoms, and swollen lymph nodes)

Infusion (IV) reactions can be severe and sometimes life-threatening. Look out for any symptoms of infusion reactions including:

• Chills or shaking
• Shortness of breath or wheezing
• Flushing
• Dizziness
• Fever
• Back pain
• Feeling of passing out.

If you experience any of the problems mentioned above, seek medical treatment right away and discuss what steps need to be taken with your healthcare provider. Before receiving treatment by Keytruda, tell your healthcare provider about your medical history, especially if you have had any immune system problems.

Keytruda can cause harm to an unborn baby, so tell your healthcare provider if you are pregnant or are able to get pregnant before getting treatment. It is highly recommended that you use an effective birth control method during your treatment and up to 4 months after your final treatment.

Common side effects:

The most common side effects of Keytruda may include:

• Muscle and joint pain
• Abdominal pain
• Drowsiness
• Loss of appetite
• Nausea
• Diarrhea
• Fever and cough
• Shortness of breath

Before receiving treatment by Keytruda, tell your healthcare provider what other medications you are taking, including vitamins and other over-the-counter medications. This may be a preventative step in ensuring side effects are limited and that Keytruda will work properly.

When used alone by adults, Keytruda can cause a tired feeling, pain in the muscles, bones, joints, or stomach area, lost appetite, itching, diarrhea, nausea, rash, fever, cough, shortness of breath, and constipation.

When used alone by children, Keytruda can cause fever, vomiting, upper respiratory tract infection, headache, and lower levels of white and red blood cells.

When used with certain chemotherapy medicines, Keytruda can also cause hair loss, inflammation of the nerves, weakness, paralysis, swelling in the lining of the mouth, nose, eyes, throat, intestines, or vagina, mouth sores, headache, and weight loss.

When used with axitinib, Keytruda can also cause high blood pressure, liver problems, low levels of thyroid hormone, blisters or rash on the palms of your hand and soles of your feet, and hoarseness.

Tips for taking Keytruda

There are steps you can take to ensure your Keytruda treatment goes as smoothly as possible.

Ask for a medication guide

• Keytruda can sometimes cause your immune system to attack healthy organs and tissue in your body. Ask your healthcare provider for a Keytruda medication guide that includes a list of side effects that may occur during or after treatment. Contact your healthcare provider immediately if you experience any of the listed side effects.

Call your healthcare provider if you experience side effects

• Keytruda side effects include, but are not limited to: stomach problems, skin problems, eye problems, diarrhea, shortness of breath, nausea or vomiting, irregular heartbeat, extreme weight gain or loss, Call your doctor right away if you experience these or other side effects during or after your Keytruda treatment.

Tell your healthcare provider about medications you are already taking

• When considering Keytruda, tell your healthcare provider about all the prescription medications, over-the-counter medicines, vitamins, and supplements you are taking.. Some of these medications may negatively impact your Keytruda treatment.

Use effective birth control

• A negative pregnancy test may be required from women before receiving treatment with Keytruda. Keytruda can harm a developing baby, so an effective birth control method is highly recommended for women that could become pregnant. Women should also withhold from breastfeeding during Keytruda treatment and not continue again until four months have passed from their last treatment.

Do not skip check-ups

• Patients receiving Keytruda treatment will need frequent medical tests to ensure treatment is working. Do not miss any of these follow-up visits and tests with your healthcare provider.

ENROLL NOW How It Works

Article related to Keytruda:

• Keytruda vs Opdivo

How does Keytruda work?

Keytruda is a form of immunotherapy that works with your immune system to fight off cancer. Keytruda stops cancer cells from hiding and enables T cells to find and attack cancer cells. Keytruda helps your immune system work the way it is supposed to.

How is Keytruda administered?

Keytruda is given to adults every 3 to 6 weeks depending on the size of the dose. It is given to children every 3 weeks. Keytruda is administered through an intravenous (IV) line by your healthcare provider. Administration is complete in about 30 minutes.

How successful is Keytruda treatment?

Studies have shown Keytruda to be a very successful treatment for fighting cancer. In patients who have received 35 cycles of Keytruda treatment, there has been a demonstrated clinical benefit in up to 98.7% of patients. Keytruda patients have also been shown to have a survival rate nearly double of patients who underwent chemotherapy treatment.

Is there a Keytruda generic available?

Although Keytruda may be called by its generic name “pembrolizumab,” there is currently no Keytruda generic available in the United States. Please be aware of fraudulent online pharmacies that may be trying to sell you a product that is unsafe, illegal, and potentially harmful. Call your healthcare provider for advice when it comes to purchasing your medications. Prescription Hope can help individuals obtain Keytruda at the set service fee of $60.00 per month.

Can Prescription Hope help me get Keytruda?

Prescription hope can help patients receive Keytruda treatment for a set service fee of $60.00 per month! Prescription Hope is not an insurance plan or a coupon. Prescription Hope works alongside some of the top patient-assistance programs to deliver Keytruda and many other medications at a set service fee of $60.00 per month. Patients that receive their medication through Prescription Hope can save hundreds of dollars a month!