Fenbendazole is a drug that can be used to treat parasitic infections in animals. It can also slow down cancer cell growth in laboratory experiments. It does this by inhibiting the formation of microtubules, a protein scaffold in cells.
However, there is no evidence from randomized clinical trials that fenbendazole cures cancer. This hasn’t stopped people from self-administering the drug, especially in South Korea.
It kills parasites
Fenbendazole (Panacur, Safe-Guard) is a drug used to treat parasites and worms in animals (roundworms, hookworms, lungworms, whipworms, and certain types of tapeworms). It was recently reported that it may help cancer patients. The claim was based on anecdotal evidence from a US patient who claims that he is in remission after taking fenbendazole and other supplements. The patient is also receiving conventional cancer treatments at the same time. Because of this, it is difficult to attribute her remission to fenbendazole alone.
In the lab, fenbendazole is known to interfere with the formation of microtubules, a protein scaffold that provides shape and structure to cells. These structures are responsible for cell division, motility, the transport of organelles between different cells, and the secretion of cellular cargo. The drug is thought to work by binding to the tubulin microtubule subunits and disrupting their polymerization.
The benzimidazole compound also interferes with the energy metabolism of cancer cells, which is important for tumor growth. By blocking glucose uptake, fenbendazole interferes with the production of ATP, the main fuel for cancer cells. The result is apoptosis, the programmed death of cancer cells. The relapse rate is also reduced when fenbendazole is combined with other conventional cancer drugs.
It slows down cancer cell growth
Fenbendazole, a drug used to treat parasites in dogs, has been shown to suppress cancer cell growth in lab experiments. The drug works by interfering with the proper formation of microtubules, which give structure to cells. Microtubules also provide a highway for transporting chromosomes during cell division. Other drugs that target microtubules have been found to be effective against certain types of cancer.
Jones’ video, which has been viewed by millions on TikTok and Facebook, takes clips from a 2019 video in which Joe Tippens claimed that he had been completely healed of a rare form of lung cancer after taking fenbendazole. But it’s impossible to attribute his success to fenbendazole alone, because he was also participating in a clinical trial and receiving conventional cancer treatments at the time.
A recent study has shown that fenbendazole may be able to trigger apoptosis in cancer cells by inhibiting the expression of the protein SLC7A11, which is responsible for ferroptosis. The researchers analyzed SNU-C5 and SNU-C5/5-FUR cells that were either mock-treated or treated with fenbendazole for 3 days. The cells were then immunoblotted with antibodies against the proteins p53, RIP3, phosphor-mixed lineage kinase domain-like protein (pMLKL), and GPX4. GAPDH was used as a loading control.
The results of this study suggest that fenbendazole may trigger apoptosis in cancer cell by preventing SLC7A11-dependent ferroptosis, and this effect is enhanced by the addition of other anticancer agents such as autophagy inhibitors or GPX4 chelators. They also found that fenbendazole can induce apoptosis through its effects on p53 activation and mitochondrial damage.
It kills cancer cells by targeting a protein
A drug called fenbendazole kills cancer cells by targeting a protein that is essential for cell division. It also blocks the cells’ ability to absorb glucose, preventing them from fuelling themselves. This may explain why fenbendazole is so effective against some types of cancer. Scientists have tested fenbendazole on human non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) tumour cells and found that it inhibited their growth by blocking the tumour cell’s microtubule network. In addition, fenbendazole killed cancer cells by targeting the p53 tumour suppressor protein and triggering apoptosis.
Despite this, there is insufficient evidence that fenbendazole can cure cancer. It has not been tested in humans during randomized clinical trials. Moreover, the mechanism of action is not unique, as many drugs already act in this way. These are known as cytotoxic anticancer agents and include vinca alkaloids (vinblastine, vindestine, and vinorelbine) and taxanes (paclitaxel and docetaxel).
A US man who claims to have cured his cancer by taking fenbendazole has spread the word of his success. His story has led to a spike in searches for the drug, which is used to treat parasites in animals. However, the FDA warns that the drug is not approved for use in humans. A specialist cancer information nurse at Cancer Research UK says that fenbendazole does not appear to cure cancer and could cause harm.
It has no side effects
Fenbendazole is a widely used benzimidazole anthelmintic agent with broad antiparasitic activity in humans and animals. It also has a number of pharmacological properties, including antitumor effects and inhibiting microtubule polymerization. It has been shown to act as a cytotoxic agent, and it also enhances the toxicity of other chemotherapeutic agents such as vinca alkaloids and taxanes.
We investigated the anti-cancer effects of fenbendazole, a benzimidazole compound that binds beta-tubulin and disrupts microtubules, in 5-FU sensitive and resistant colorectal cancer (CRC) cells. The results showed that fenbendazole significantly decreased cell proliferation and inhibited cellular growth. Furthermore, it also induced apoptosis and inhibited cell cycle progression through p53-p21 pathways in both 5-FU-sensitive and -resistant CRC cells. In addition, fenbendazole induced autophagy through Beclin-1 activation in 5-FU-resistant CRC cells.
Social media has made it easy for nonmedical people to disseminate medical information, and this has led to the dissemination of bogus claims regarding the effectiveness of fenbendazole as an anticancer drug. In one case, an 80-year-old woman with advanced NSCLC began taking fenbendazole solely on the basis of social media reports and later developed severe liver injury. The patient stopped self-administering fenbendazole, and her liver injury resolved spontaneously. This is the first report of a patient who experienced an adverse reaction to fenbendazole for cancer. Moreover, there is no evidence that fenbendazole has any effect on tumors in patients with advanced NSCLC.