Fenbendazole for humans is a controversial topic, as the drug hasn’t been formally tested in human patients. Nonetheless, there’s a growing interest in using this antiparasitic medication to treat cancer. Some studies show that it can slow down cancer cell growth in cells and animals, while others have shown that it may prevent cancer from spreading and metastasizing.
Fenbendazole is an anthelmintic drug used to treat parasitic infections (roundworms, hookworms, whipworms and a single species of tapeworm called Taenia pisiformis) in livestock such as cattle, sheep and goats. It’s also an important ingredient in commercial baits that control pest populations of mice and rats in agricultural settings.
While fenbendazole has a long track record of safety for human use, it’s not currently approved by the FDA to treat cancer. This is due in part to the lack of randomized clinical trials showing that it can cure cancer in humans. However, it’s not unusual for anthelminthic drugs to be repurposed as anticancer agents. In fact, many benzimidazole carbamate compounds, including albendazole (ABZ) and methiazole (METH), have been shown to have anticancer effects in laboratory experiments.
In one case, a patient named Joe Tippens claimed that self-administering fenbendazole, which he referred to as “The Tippens Protocol,” caused his nonsmall cell lung cancer (NSCLC) to go into remission. His anecdotal experience was widely circulated on social media and triggered widespread interest in using fenbendazole to treat cancer.
Despite the limited research on this medication, some people believe that it has strong anti-cancer effects and is safe for humans to take in high doses. However, there are serious concerns about this treatment method. In addition to the potential side effects of fenbendazole, there are concerns about the quality of the research on this treatment method and how it’s being conducted.
A recent study of colorectal cancer cells showed that fenbendazole causes them to undergo apoptosis, necroptosis, and autophagy via p53-dependent mechanisms. It also increases p53 expression and decreases mutant p53 expression. It also inhibits the proliferation of these cells by blocking the formation of microtubules.
This study is important because it helps to clarify how much fenbendazole can safely be given to human patients. It also provides information that can help guide doctors in determining how conservative the withdrawal interval should be after extra-label fenbendazole administration. In addition, it demonstrates that there are differences in how fenbendazole metabolites are excreted by different organs and tissues, which may have an impact on the duration of the withdrawal interval after the drug is stopped. This information can help guide future studies of fenbendazole for humans. For example, researchers can design studies to better evaluate how long it takes for fenbendazole to stop being active in the liver and other tissues. This can help doctors determine how long to wait before starting a new treatment. This is especially important for patients with advanced cancers who may be more sensitive to the toxic effects of the medication.