The “little blue pill” may have more power than originally thought. While the erectile dysfunction drug is already being used to help treat heart problems, scientists believe they have uncovered yet another use for the popular sexual enhancer.
A new study shows medications like Viagra may help the body find and attack cancer cells.
How it all works
“Viagra and other “impotence drugs” that boost the production of a gassy chemical messenger to dilate blood vessels and produce an erection now also show promise in unmasking cancer cells so that the immune system can recognize and attack them,” say scientists at the Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center.
Cancer cells can fool the body’s immune system into thinking the cells are good, they create a sort of “fog” that confuses white blood cells that typically attack foreign cells in the body. Viagra is believed to remove this “fog” and allow the immune system to see the danger of the cancer cells and attack.
Not a cure, a step
Right now researchers have seen this progress in mice. “Tests at Johns Hopkins on mice with implanted colon and breast tumors showed that tumor size decreased two- and threefold in sildenafil-treated animals, compared to mice that did not get the drug.”
While it is a unique discovery, more testing will need to be done.
“Impotence drugs won’t cure cancer,” says Ivan Borrello, M.D., assistant professor at the Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center, “but could be used in addition to standard chemotherapy or immunotherapy treatments.”
The investigators are planning human studies to begin in the next year.
Viagra, the wonder drug
This wonder drug has been around for more than a decade and while it may have “hidden powers” its main purpose is to treat erectile dysfunction in men. The pill helps enhance blood flow to the penis and allows a man to get and keep an erection long enough to enjoy sex. Viagra is sold through eDrugstore, learn more on our website.
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