Does Cimetidine Improve Prospects for Cancer Patients?
Autor: | J.P. Keogh, C.-P. Siegers, S. Andresen |
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Rok vydání: | 1999 |
Předmět: |
Oncology
medicine.medical_specialty Colorectal cancer business.industry medicine.medical_treatment Melanoma Gastroenterology Rectum Cancer macromolecular substances medicine.disease Surgery medicine.anatomical_structure Internal medicine medicine Carcinoma Cimetidine business Adjuvant Colonic disease medicine.drug |
Zdroj: | Digestion. 60:415-421 |
ISSN: | 1421-9867 0012-2823 |
DOI: | 10.1159/000007686 |
Popis: | Background: Evidence first appeared in 1988 that cimetidine as an adjuvant may improve the survival of severely ill gastro-intestinal cancer patients when given peri- or postoperatively. Since then, several studies have appeared which suggest an anticancer activity for cimetidine, although few attempts have been made to corroborate their findings in large, placebo-controlled, double-blind studies. Method: We reviewed the literature concerning cimetidine’s potential anticancer activity, particularly with regard to gastro-intestinal cancers. Results: Most studies suggest that cimetidine may improve the outcome in cancer patients by a three-pronged mechanism involving (1) inhibition of cancer cell proliferation; (2) stimulation of the lymphocyte activity by inhibition of T cell suppressor function, and (3) inhibition of histamine’s activity as a growth factor in tumours. Conclusion: Bearing in mind the experimental evidence, as well as the potential and excellent safety profile of cimetidine, more studies are required and justified to clarify cimetidine’s protherapeutic activity. |
Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
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