Drug & supplement interaction

Blackthorn + Crizotinib

Crizotinib brand name: Xalkori.

No Known Interaction
Medically reviewed by · Updated July 2026 · Pair last verified Sep 20, 2026
The bottom line No known interaction

We found no known interaction between Blackthorn and Crizotinib in our sources. Absence of a documented interaction is not the same as proven safety, and does not guarantee one does not exist. Do not start, stop, or change a medication or supplement based on this page; confirm with your pharmacist or doctor first. Additionally, although there is no interaction, the two are separately associated with some of the same side effects, which would make a new symptom harder to attribute to one or the other.

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Interaction report

Blackthorn and Crizotinib

We checked these two against our interaction database. Here is what we found.

No Known Interaction Found

We did not find a documented interaction between Crizotinib and Blackthorn in our sources. This does not guarantee that the combination is completely free of risk — there is often limited research on supplements and herbal products, especially around drug interactions.

Worth understanding: our licensed dataset holds no drug-interaction record for Blackthorn at all — not against Crizotinib, and not against any other medication we track. This verdict therefore rests on the absence of any recorded data, not on research that looked at this combination and found nothing. We cannot rule an interaction out.

If you decide to take both, the practical routine is simple: add one new thing at a time and note the date you started it. If the combination is going to disagree with you, it usually shows in the first days to a couple of weeks — and a start date turns “I’ve been feeling off” into something a pharmacist can actually work with. Do not stop a prescribed medicine on your own.

Always talk with your pharmacist or doctor before making changes to your medications or supplements, particularly if you take several medications or have an ongoing health condition.

Blackthorn safety at a glance

Blackthorn overall Use caution Culinary amounts of the fruit are generally well tolerated, but medicinal use is not well studied.
Pregnancy Possibly Unsafe When the seeds or fresh flowers are used orally; avoid using. The seeds and fresh flowers contain small amounts of the cyanogenic glycoside amygdalin, which can... Read the full pregnancy detail
Breastfeeding Avoid Safety has not been established, so avoid medicinal use while breastfeeding.

Pregnancy & breastfeeding ratings are from Natural Medicines (Therapeutic Research Center) — the full detail is in the Special populations card below. Safety guidance is general; always confirm with your pharmacist or doctor for your situation.

Still wondering about combining Crizotinib and Blackthorn? Ask Dr. Brian Staiger, PharmD, BCPS directly ›
What to actually watch for

No Interaction Found — But Data Suggests Blackthorn and Crizotinib May Share a Side Effect

This is not an interaction. Neither one changes how your body handles the other, and nothing here says they react together. What our sources do show is that each has separately been linked to the effects below — so taking both can make those effects more likely to turn up, and harder to pin on one or the other if they do.

  • A skin rash Additional detail

    Blackthorn

    “Avoid contact with the thorns on blackthorn branches. They can break off and become embedded in the deep layers of the skin, the tendons, or in the small joints of the fingers, requiring surgical removal. When left embedded they can cause cysts, abscesses, dermatitis, cellulitis, foreign body granuloma, chronic inflammation, tendinitis, synovitis, and septic arthritis.”

    Blackthorn · Natural Medicines adverse-effect record, reported in dermatitis.

    2 sources cited
    1. 100919. Sharma H, Meredith AD. Blackthorn injury: a report of three interesting cases. Emerg Med J 2004;21(3):392. PubMed
    2. 100920. Sharma H, Meredith AD. A report of 18 blackthorn injuries of the upper limb. Injury 2004;35(9):930-5. PubMed

    Crizotinib

    Listed in the ADVERSE REACTIONS section of the FDA label for Crizotinib. Read the label on DailyMed ›

Reported for Blackthorn but not commonly for Crizotinib: joint pain.

Effects for Crizotinib come from the ADVERSE REACTIONS section of its FDA label; effects for Blackthorn come from the Natural Medicines adverse-effect record, quoted above. Where a percentage is shown, it is the share of 12,638 voluntary FDA FAERS reports for Crizotinib that mention that effect — a reporting proportion, not an incidence rate and not evidence the drug caused it. Wording is matched across sources by our own clinical vocabulary, so treat this as a prompt to pay attention, not a diagnosis.

Special populations

Blackthorn in Pregnancy & Breastfeeding

Pregnancy Possibly Unsafe

When the seeds or fresh flowers are used orally; avoid using. The seeds and fresh flowers contain small amounts of the cyanogenic glycoside amygdalin, which can be teratogenic.

DISCLAIMER: This tool is intended for informational purposes only, and should not be interpreted as specific medical advice. Patients should consult with a qualified healthcare provider before making decisions about therapies and/or health conditions.© 2026 Therapeutic Research Center

Everything else you take

See Every Supplement That Interacts With Crizotinib

This page covers Blackthorn only. If you take other supplements — a multivitamin, a sleep aid, something for joints — the Crizotinib page lists 157 supplements it has a documented interaction with, worst first, each one explained.

The most serious there right now: Activated Charcoal (major), American Hellebore (major), Arsenic (major), Cesium (major) and Ephedra (major).

By severity: 8 major · 112 moderate · 37 minor.

From our pharmacist’s overview on the Crizotinib page

“Grapefruit tops my worry list for crizotinib (Xalkori), a targeted pill for ALK-positive lung cancer. It blocks the enzyme (CYP3A4) that clears crizotinib, letting levels climb and side effects with them, and it is one of eight major-rated entries among the 157 supplements and herbs on file for this drug.”

Reviewed by 2 · Jul 18, 2026

Open the Crizotinib interaction page

One more smart check

Taking Blackthorn as Part of a Dietary Supplement Product? Check It for Interactions

We hold 2 real supplement products containing Blackthorn, each one broken down to its full ingredient list — and combination products often carry several ingredients besides Blackthorn. Even though Blackthorn itself has no known interaction with Crizotinib, another ingredient on your label might. Find your product and we’ll check every ingredient on its label:

How much people look this up

Where Blackthorn and Crizotinib Sit Against Everything Else

Out of every supplement and medication people look up on HelloPharmacist, here is where these two land this week — and which way each has been moving.

Supplement Blackthorn
Steady interest

#1,103 of 1,452 supplements looked up here in the last 7 days

29 days ago today
Medication Crizotinib
Steady interest

#2,222 of 2,830 medications looked up here in the last 7 days

29 days ago today

Position among everything looked up on this site, not a measure of how commonly either one is used or how important it is. A supplement can climb this list because of a news story. It counts every request to the page, automated ones included, and nothing here identifies anyone.

Where does our data come from?
  • Source: the Natural Medicines (TRC Healthcare) clinical database — the evidence-graded professional reference for herb & supplement interactions.
  • Citation library: 103,510 references behind our interaction content, 65,311 of them resolved to verified PubMed/DOI sources. See every Blackthorn reference on this page ↓
  • Freshness: we automatically re-check this combination every week — this pair was last verified September 20, 2026. The Blackthorn and Crizotinib records this page draws on were last updated July 11, 2026.
  • What “no known interaction” means: no documented interaction in the sources above — not a guarantee of safety. Supplements are studied far less than prescription drugs, so we say exactly what the evidence supports, and nothing more.
Data structure & sourcing designed and verified by .
Supplement

About Blackthorn

What is Blackthorn?

  • Digestive upset
  • Mild constipation
  • Cold and cough symptoms
  • Mouth and throat irritation
  • Mild diuretic ('blood cleansing') tonic

Blackthorn is a thorny shrub whose flowers and dark blue-black fruit (sloes) are used in traditional European herbal medicine, mostly for digestive complaints and as a mild tonic. Solid human research is lacking, so its benefits are not proven, though small culinary amounts of the fruit are generally considered safe. Talk to your pharmacist or doctor before using it, especially if you are pregnant, breastfeeding, or taking other medicines.

Prunus spinosa · Rosaceae · Flowers, fruit (sloes), leaves, and bark · Tea, syrup, juice, tincture, jam/preserves, and liqueur (sloe gin)

An interaction check asks whether these two react with each other — it does not ask whether Blackthorn is a good idea for someone in your situation. Here is what our Blackthorn record says about it on its own.

Blackthorn: dosing

There is no established or standardized medicinal dose for blackthorn. Traditional use varies widely depending on whether the flowers, fruit, or other parts are used and how they are prepared.If you choose to use a commercial blackthorn product, follow the directions on the label and do not exceed the recommended amount. Avoid making your own preparations from the seeds, leaves, or bark.

From our Blackthorn monograph — the full record covers uses, side effects and every documented interaction.

Read the full Blackthorn monograph & all interactions
Medication

About Crizotinib

What Is Crizotinib Used For?

Brand name: Xalkori

Xalkori (crizotinib) is used to treat adult patients with metastatic non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) whose tumors test positive for the ALK or ROS1 gene abnormality, as confirmed by an FDA-approved test.

Xalkori is also used to treat pediatric patients aged 1 year and older and young adults with relapsed or refractory systemic ALK-positive anaplastic large cell lymphoma (ALCL). Additionally, it treats adult and pediatric patients aged 1 year and older with unresectable, recurrent, or refractory ALK-positive inflammatory myofibroblastic tumor (IMT). Note: Xalkori's safety and effectiveness in older adults with relapsed or refractory ALK-positive ALCL have not been established.

Most-Reported Side Effects for Crizotinib

From FAERS, the FDA’s public side-effect reporting system (12,638 reports, all brands). Reports are voluntary and are not proof the drug caused the effect.

Disease progression 1,216 reports
Nausea 1,118 reports
Neoplasm progression 1,112 reports
Diarrhea 846 reports
Vomiting 795 reports
See full Crizotinib drug information
Keep checking

Other Drugs & Blackthorn

Browse every other medication we’ve checked against Blackthorn — both the ones with a known interaction and the ones without. Select any drug for the full detail.

0Major
0Moderate
0Minor
2,829No known interaction
2,829 No interaction
No interaction 2,829 drugs checked — show the list

We also checked Blackthorn against these medications and found no known interaction in our sources. Open any page to confirm.

Showing the 60 most looked-up of 2,829 medications checked with no known interaction — see the full Blackthorn list.

See the full Blackthorn interactions page
See every supplement checked against Crizotinib, ranked by severity
Evidence & sources

Blackthorn References

The 3 references that drive our Blackthorn monograph and interaction data, from the evidence-graded Natural Medicines (TRC Healthcare) database. Citations with a link open the study on PubMed or the publisher’s site.

  1. McGuffin M, Hobbs C, Upton R, Goldberg A, eds. American Herbal Products Association's Botanical Safety Handbook. Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press, LLC 1997.
  2. Sharma H, Meredith AD. Blackthorn injury: a report of three interesting cases. Emerg Med J 2004;21(3):392. PubMed
  3. Sharma H, Meredith AD. A report of 18 blackthorn injuries of the upper limb. Injury 2004;35(9):930-5. PubMed

Medication overviews come from MedlinePlus (NIH); supplement label data from the NIH Dietary Supplement Label Database. Content is written and reviewed by licensed HelloPharmacist pharmacists — see our data sources and editorial standards.

Pharmacist Counseling Corner

Taking Blackthorn and Crizotinib Together: Common Questions

Is it safe to take Blackthorn with Crizotinib?
We do not list a known interaction between Blackthorn and Crizotinib. That does not guarantee the combination is risk-free, so confirm with your pharmacist or doctor — especially if you take other medications or have a health condition.
Do Blackthorn and Crizotinib have any of the same side effects?
Yes — our sources link each of them separately to one of the same effects. That is not an interaction: neither changes how your body handles the other. It does mean that if one of those effects turns up, it can be harder to tell which one is behind it. They are listed on this page with the source behind each.
Does Crizotinib interact with any supplements?
Yes. Crizotinib has documented interactions with 157 supplements in our database — Blackthorn is not one of them. The Crizotinib interaction page linked on this page lists every one, ranked by severity.

Written and reviewed by the HelloPharmacist editorial staff. Our editorial policy

Where next

Keep Exploring

Blackthorn monograph Uses, safety profile, and every drug interaction in one place Crizotinib drug information The full plain-English guide to this medication Crizotinib supplement interactions Every supplement checked against Crizotinib, ranked by severity Supplement interaction checker Check any supplement or product against your medications Browse medications A–Z Every drug we’ve checked against herbs & supplements References The 3 citations behind this page Ask a pharmacist Free, personal answer from our licensed team

Still Have a Question About Crizotinib and Blackthorn?

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This information is for education only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice. Always check with your pharmacist or doctor before starting, stopping, or combining supplements and medications.