Fenben and Lung Cancer Self-Administered
Fenben is a medication used to treat parasites and worms (roundworms, whipworms, hookworms, and some tapeworms) in animals. It is also used as part of a cancer treatment protocol known as the Joe Tippens Protocol.
Benzimidazole anthelmintic agents have been recently repurposed to overcome cancers resistant to conventional therapies. The present case report describes a lung cancer patient who self-administered the anthelmintic fenben and experienced tumor shrinkage. We investigated the anticancer effects of fenbendazole and its modified analog 6 on 5-fluorouracil-resistant colorectal cancer cells by monitoring the viability, cell cycle, and apoptosis via flow cytometry.
The results showed that fenbendazole inhibited the proliferation of SNU-C5 and SNU-C5/5-FUR cells in a time-dependent manner. In addition, fenbendazole induced ferroptosis in both cells via the inhibition of iron uptake by SLC7A11 and decreased expression of GPX4, which resulted in the accumulation of free iron leading to lipid peroxidation and activation of caspase-8.
We performed focus group interviews with 21 lung cancer patients to investigate their perception of fenbendazole and the channel through which they acquired the information about this alternative treatment. The interviewees, 13 men and eight women, were in stage one to four of the disease. The semi-structured questionnaire included questions on the acquisition channel, quality of obtained information, and their attitude toward fenbendazole. The interviews were conducted between December 7 and 8, 2020, and were facilitated by a trained moderator. The participants were informed about the purpose of the study and participated voluntarily. fenben