A cheap and widely available antidepressant has shown to be “unexpectedly effective” in treating aggressive brain tumours, a new study reveals.
Vortioxetine is recommended by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) for adults who have major depressive episodes. But lab tests on cancer cells have shown it was effective in treating glioblastoma (GBM) – the most commonly diagnosed high-grade brain tumour in adults.
The findings, published in the journal Nature, will bring hope to those affected by the disease – which has an average prognosis of just 12 to 18 months.
Treatments for GBM have not changed in two decades and there is no cure. Drugs that are effective against brain tumours are hard to find, as many cancer drugs cannot cross the blood-brain barrier to reach the brain.
As part of the study, the researchers tested hundreds of other existing medicines that are able to cross this barrier, such as antidepressants and Parkinson’s medication. Vortioxetine, which costs around £40 for 28 tablets, proved to be the most effective of all the antidepressants that were tested, the researchers said.
Further tests on mouse models showed the drug had “good efficacy” in combination with standard treatment and researchers are looking to recruit patients as part of a clinical trial.
Dr Karen Noble, our Director of Research, Policy and Innovation said: “Although this research is still in its early stages, it is encouraging to see a potential new treatment for glioblastoma – a tumour type that has seen no changes in standard of care for 20 years.
“At Brain Tumour Research we have always been supportive of attempts to boost drug repurposing as they can quickly be translated into the clinic. Repurposed drugs, such as vortioxetine, already have a proven safety profile, which helps reduce the amount of testing required, speeding up the process.
“As with all breakthroughs related to repurposed medications that have yet to go through disease-specific clinical trials, we encourage patients and their families not to self-medicate but to speak with their doctor, as the risks are unknown, especially with strong antidepressants.”
To learn more about what we are doing to find new treatments and improve outcomes for GBM patients, click here.
Related reading:
- Glioblastoma (GBM) patient says breakthrough “gives me hope”
- £40 antidepressant found to be “unexpectedly effective” against brain tumours (inews)
Published Friday 20th September 2024.