Can a Drug For Another Disease Be Used Against Neuroblastoma?
Drugs used for another disease are occasionally found to work against cancer, and sometimes this discovery happens by accident. This was the case with Nifurtimox, a drug used to treat a parasitic disease.
Study Title: Nifurtimox for Relapsed or Refractory Neuroblastoma
Researcher: Giselle Sholler, MD
Institution: University of Vermont/ Vermont Cancer Center
Study Type: Phase I clinical trial
Status: Completed
Drugs used for another disease are occasionally found to work against cancer, and sometimes this discovery happens accidently. This was the case with Nifurtimox, a drug used to treat a parasitic disease called Chagas Disease. One of the co-founders of Solving Kids’ Cancer read a case study reporting how Nifurtimox was used for a child who contracted Chagas Disease from a blood transfusion and that the drug treatment showed a dramatic reduction in the child’s chemo-resistant neuroblastoma. Solving Kids’ Cancer quickly brought researchers together and created a clinical trial with Nifurtimox for children with neuroblastoma. This phase I clinical trial led to the development of a large multi-center phase II trial, which is ongoing.
To learn more about this trial, visit clinicaltrials.gov.