The Testing Evidence for Using Ivermectin for Treating Breast Cancer

ByShaun Snapp

Executive Summary

  • Ivermectin is proven to treat a variety of different cancers.
  • Breast cancer is one of them.

Introduction

In a previous article titled How Ivermectin Is Useful for Treating Cancer we covered the evidence for the benefits of Ivermectin for cancer. But the question of which cancers Ivermectin has been proven to be effective is a constant source of questions.

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There are a lot of quotes in this article, but I have a short one for each cancer type. The article uses the term “IVM” to mean Ivermectin.

Cancer Type #3:Breast Cancer

Here are the findings of the study Ivermectin, a Potential Anticancer Drug Derived from an Antiparasitic Drug.

After treatment with IVM, the proliferation of multiple breast cancer cell lines including MCF-7, MDA-MB-231 and MCF-10 was significantly reduced. The mechanism involved the inhibition by IVM of the Akt/mTOR pathway to induce autophagy and p-21-activated kinase 1(PAK1)was the target of IVM for breast cancer [32]. Furthermore, Diao’s study showed that IVM could inhibit the proliferation of the canine breast tumor cell lines CMT7364 and CIPp by blocking the cell cycle without increasing apoptosis, and the mechanism of IVM may be related to the inhibition of the Wnt pathway [33].

Recent studies have also found that IVM could promote the death of tumor cells by regulating the tumor microenvironment in breast cancer. Under the stimulation of a tumor microenvironment with a high level of adenosine triphosphate (ATP) outside tumor cells, IVM could enhance the P2 × 4/ P2 × 7/Pannexin-1 mediated release of high mobility group box-1 protein (HMGB1) [37]. However, the release of a large amount of HMGB1 into the extracellular environment will promote immune cell-mediated immunogenic death and inflammatory reactions, which will have an inhibitory effect on the growth of tumor cells. Therefore, we believe that the anticancer effect of IVM is not limited to cytotoxicity, but also involves the regulation of the tumor microenvironment. IVM regulates the tumor microenvironment and mediates immunogenic cell death, which may be a new direction for research exploring anticancer mechanisms in the future. – NIH

The Importance of The NIH Stopping Any Funding For Ivermectin Studies

Notice that none of the studies on Ivermectin were performed in the US. The US has by far the largest national medical research budget in the world, and so if the US is not performing studies, this is not only a negative but tells us something peculiar about what the NIH is deciding not to fund in the area of cancer research.

Zero is the number of studies funded by the NIH on Ivermectin. The NIH will not fund studies into generic drugs, as the NIH is controlled by pharmaceutical companies and they have deep financial ties to them. Funding research into generic drugs could end up showing those drugs as effective, which is a threat to pharmaceutical profits, which the NIH is dedicated to maximizing. 

Regarding dosage and sourcing of Ivermectin, see the article On the Topic of Ivermectin Dosage and Sourcing.

Why Are Anti Parasitic Drugs Effective Against Cancer?

If you are interested in understanding why this class of drugs works against cancer, see the article The Mechanism of How Anti Parasitic Drugs Work to Mitigate Cancer.