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Common NSAID Could Prevent Skin Cancer
Reported January 06, 2010
(Ivanhoe Newswire) -- The widely available anti-inflammatory drug
celecoxib (Celebrex) could protect against certain types of skin cancer.
A new study examining the effects of the non-steroidal anti-inflammatory
drug (NSAID) called celecoxib on skin cancer involved 60 people with a
genetic predisposition to a type of skin cancer called basal cell carcinoma.
About half of the participants received 200 mg of celecoxib twice a day by
mouth for about two years, and the remaining participants received a
placebo.
All study participants continued to develop new cancers, but treatment with
celecoxib decreased the growth of skin tumors by about 50 percent compared
to placebo. Patients receiving celecoxib also experienced a reduced overall
tumor burden. Treatment with celecoxib did not significantly reduce tumor
number or burden in patients who had more than 15 skin lesions upon entering
the study.
Although the trial was discontinued because of concerns over cardiovascular
complications associated with the treatment, no patients in the study died
or suffered adverse cardiovascular events attributed to participation in the
study.
Previous research found celecoxib inhibited the growth of another type of
skin cancer called squamous cell carcinoma in mice.
Source: Cancer Prevention Research, January 5, 2010 |
