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Viagra could do more than give men a boost in the bedroom, as new research suggests it may have benefits for cancer patients.
The prescription medication, which is manufactured and distributed by Viatris, is commonly used to treat erectile dysfunction by increasing blood flow during sexual stimulation.
It was originally developed to treat high blood pressure and chest pain caused by reduced blood flow to the heart before researchers discovered its unexpected effect on erectile function during clinical trials.
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A new study published by the American Association for Cancer Research found that the pill may have properties that can prevent cancer from spreading.
Researchers at the Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel, led by Dr. Yarden Ariav in the lab of Professor Ayelet Erez, found that Viagra’s active ingredient — sildenafil, a PDE5 inhibitor — may restrict cancer metastasis, or the formation of new tumors.
Viagra’s active ingredient, sildenafil, may restrict cancer cells from spreading, a new study suggests.
The team, which included scientists at the U.S. National Cancer Institute, analyzed human and mouse cancer cells, genetic experiments and 20 years of health data from five million members of Clalit Health Services, Israel’s largest nonprofit healthcare provider and health insurer. They also examined how genes, proteins, fats, cholesterol and cellular energy interact.
The analysis revealed that sildenafil limits the cancer cell’s ability to make use of cholesterol, which is an important mechanism in how the cell breaks away from the primary tumor and migrates throughout the body, according to a press release from the American Committee for the Weizmann Institute of Science.
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Sildenafil was found to block an enzyme called phosphodiesterase type 5, or PDE5, and increase the signaling molecule called cGMP, which dilates blood vessels – the feature that has made Viagra a successful treatment for erectile dysfunction.
According to the researchers, cGMP also binds to a protein that transports cholesterol within cells, reducing the cholesterol available for essential cellular functions. Cancer cells are “particularly vulnerable to this reduction in cholesterol supply,” they noted.
Viagra was originally developed to treat high blood pressure and chest pain caused by reduced blood flow to the heart before researchers discovered its unexpected effect on erectile function during clinical trials. (Alex Segre/UCG/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)
Based on their findings, the researchers suggested that combining Viagra-related drugs with statins, which lower cholesterol, could help slow the spread of cancer by reducing tumor cells’ access to both existing and newly produced cholesterol.
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“We have uncovered a new biological pathway that links a well-known signaling molecule to cholesterol regulation within cells and shown how this pathway can be harnessed to interfere with the ability of cancer cells to form metastases,” Erez, senior researcher and dean of Weizmann’s Miriam and Aaron Gutwirth Medical School, commented in a statement.
Combining drugs from the Viagra family with statins – a class of drugs responsible for reducing cholesterol production in the body – may be even more effective in restricting the spread of cancer, the researchers suggested. (iStock)
“Beyond their therapeutic promise, our findings highlight that cancer biology is shaped not only by mutations in tumor cells, but also by the patient’s metabolic state and by medications they are already taking for other conditions.”
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The researcher added that this study “underscores the importance of treating the whole patient – not just the cancer – when tailoring the most effective therapy.”
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The study’s use of mouse models could pose a limitation to the final implications, as cancer treatment may not always translate similarly to humans, the researchers acknowledged.
The human evidence is also observational, which reveals an association instead of a proven cause and effect.
Digital reached out to the study authors and the medication’s manufacturer for comment.
