Drug & supplement interaction

Trailing Arbutus + Pemetrexed

Pemetrexed brand names: Alimta, Pemfexy.

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 Trailing Arbutus and Pemetrexed 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

Trailing Arbutus and Pemetrexed

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 Pemetrexed and Trailing Arbutus 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 Trailing Arbutus at all — not against Pemetrexed, 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.

Trailing Arbutus safety at a glance

Trailing Arbutus overall Not established There is very little human research, so its safety is not well established.
Pregnancy Avoid No reliable safety data exist, so avoid use during pregnancy.
Breastfeeding Avoid No reliable safety data exist, so avoid use while breastfeeding.

Safety guidance is general; always confirm with your pharmacist or doctor for your situation.

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

No Interaction Found — But Data Suggests Trailing Arbutus and Pemetrexed May Share Several of the Same Side Effects

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. One of them is worth acting on rather than waiting out — marked below.

  • Anemia Worth acting on Additional detail

    Trailing Arbutus

    “Orally, chronic use of trailing arbutus may lead to hydroquinone toxicity. Symptoms of toxicity include tinnitus, vomiting, delirium, convulsions, and collapse (11). Liver damage, cachexia, hemolytic anemia, and hair depigmentation may also occur with long term use (18).”

    Trailing Arbutus · Natural Medicines adverse-effect record, reported in anemia.

    2 sources cited
    1. 11. Leung AY, Foster S. Encyclopedia of Common Natural Ingredients Used in Food, Drugs and Cosmetics. 2nd ed. New York, NY: John Wiley & Sons, 1996.
    2. 18. Gruenwald J, Brendler T, Jaenicke C. PDR for Herbal Medicines. 1st ed. Montvale, NJ: Medical Economics Company, Inc., 1998.

    Pemetrexed

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

  • Vomiting Additional detail

    Trailing Arbutus

    Recorded for Trailing Arbutus in the same Natural Medicines adverse-effect record shown under Anemia above.

    Pemetrexed

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

Reported for Trailing Arbutus but not commonly for Pemetrexed: pain or burning when passing urine, bleeding or bruising, liver problems and seizures.

Effects for Pemetrexed come from the ADVERSE REACTIONS section of its FDA label; effects for Trailing Arbutus come from the Natural Medicines adverse-effect record, quoted above. Wording is matched across sources by our own clinical vocabulary, so treat this as a prompt to pay attention, not a diagnosis.

Everything else you take

See Every Supplement That Interacts With Pemetrexed

This page covers Trailing Arbutus only. If you take other supplements — a multivitamin, a sleep aid, something for joints — the Pemetrexed page lists 4 supplements it has a documented interaction with, worst first, each one explained.

The most serious there right now: African Wild Potato (moderate), Banderol (moderate), Caffeic Acid (moderate) and Quercetin (moderate).

By severity: 4 moderate.

From our pharmacist’s overview on the Pemetrexed page

“Every supplement on file for pemetrexed (Alimta, Pemfexy) works the same way. Each can slow how the kidneys pull the drug out of the blood, which would let it linger and build to higher levels than intended.”

Reviewed by 2 · Jul 18, 2026

Open the Pemetrexed interaction page

One more smart check

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

We hold 12 real supplement products containing Trailing Arbutus, each one broken down to its full ingredient list — and combination products often carry several ingredients besides Trailing Arbutus. Even though Trailing Arbutus itself has no known interaction with Pemetrexed, 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 Trailing Arbutus and Pemetrexed 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 Trailing Arbutus
Steady interest

#1,028 of 1,452 supplements looked up here in the last 7 days

29 days ago today
Medication Pemetrexed
Top 25%

#696 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 Trailing Arbutus reference on this page ↓
  • Freshness: we automatically re-check this combination every week — this pair was last verified September 20, 2026. The Trailing Arbutus and Pemetrexed records this page draws on were last updated July 10, 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 Trailing Arbutus

What is Trailing Arbutus?

  • Urinary tract complaints
  • Bladder irritation
  • Kidney support (traditional)
  • Mild diuretic

Trailing Arbutus is a low-growing North American woodland plant traditionally used in folk medicine for urinary and bladder complaints. There is very little modern scientific research on its safety or effectiveness, so it cannot be recommended with confidence. Talk to your pharmacist or doctor before using it, and avoid it during pregnancy and breastfeeding.

Epigaea repens · Ericaceae · Leaves (occasionally the whole flowering plant) · Tea, tincture, dried herb

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

Trailing Arbutus: dosing

There is no established or standardized dose for Trailing Arbutus. It has not been studied enough to know a safe and effective amount, and quality of commercial products is not guaranteed.If you choose to use a product that contains it, follow the directions on the label and do not exceed them.

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

Read the full Trailing Arbutus monograph & all interactions
Medication

About Pemetrexed Injection

What Is Pemetrexed Injection Used For?

Brand names: Alimta, Pemfexy

Pemetrexed Injection is used for non-squamous non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) in several situations: as an initial treatment (combined with pembrolizumab and platinum chemotherapy, or with cisplatin alone), as a maintenance treatment after platinum-based chemotherapy, or as a single agent when the cancer has come back after prior chemotherapy. It is not used for squamous cell non-small cell lung cancer.

Pemetrexed Injection is also used, in combination with cisplatin, for the initial treatment of malignant pleural mesothelioma — a cancer of the lining of the lungs — in patients whose disease cannot be surgically removed or who are not good candidates for surgery.

Most-Reported Side Effects for Pemetrexed

From FAERS, the FDA’s public side-effect reporting system (37,889 reports, all brands). Reports are voluntary and are not proof the drug caused the effect.

Malignant neoplasm progression 3,095 reports
Anemia 2,134 reports
Nausea 1,906 reports
Diarrhea 1,824 reports
Pancytopenia 1,773 reports
See full Pemetrexed Injection drug information
Keep checking

Other Drugs & Trailing Arbutus

Browse every other medication we’ve checked against Trailing Arbutus — 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 Trailing Arbutus 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 Trailing Arbutus list.

See the full Trailing Arbutus interactions page
See every supplement checked against Pemetrexed, ranked by severity
Evidence & sources

Trailing Arbutus References

The 2 references that drive our Trailing Arbutus 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. Leung AY, Foster S. Encyclopedia of Common Natural Ingredients Used in Food, Drugs and Cosmetics. 2nd ed. New York, NY: John Wiley & Sons, 1996.
  2. Gruenwald J, Brendler T, Jaenicke C. PDR for Herbal Medicines. 1st ed. Montvale, NJ: Medical Economics Company, Inc., 1998.

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 Trailing Arbutus and Pemetrexed Together: Common Questions

Is it safe to take Trailing Arbutus with Pemetrexed?
We do not list a known interaction between Trailing Arbutus and Pemetrexed. 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 Trailing Arbutus and Pemetrexed have any of the same side effects?
Yes — our sources link each of them separately to 2 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 Pemetrexed interact with any supplements?
Yes. Pemetrexed has documented interactions with 4 supplements in our database — Trailing Arbutus is not one of them. The Pemetrexed 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

Trailing Arbutus monograph Uses, safety profile, and every drug interaction in one place Pemetrexed Injection drug information The full plain-English guide to this medication Pemetrexed supplement interactions Every supplement checked against Pemetrexed, 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 2 citations behind this page Ask a pharmacist Free, personal answer from our licensed team

Still Have a Question About Pemetrexed and Trailing Arbutus?

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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.