A growing number of posts and TikTok videos claim that a dog dewormer called fenbendazole cures cancer in humans. However, the claims are unproven and federal agencies have warned that using a pet drug for human cancer could be dangerous.
Joe Tippens was diagnosed with late-stage lung cancer in 2016 and given three months to live. He contacted MD Anderson and underwent chemotherapy and radiation that shrunk his tumors but did not cure him. Then he heard about a dewormer for dogs—specifically, the anthelminthic drug fenbendazole, which is sold under the brand Panacur—and his life changed.
He followed a protocol that recommended 222 mg of fenbendazole, seven days a week, plus 400-800 ml of liquid curcumin, seven days a week. After just three months on his dewormer for cancer regimen, his oncologist scanned his PET scan and said he was cancer free.
Although research into repurposing benzimidazole carbamate anthelmintic drugs as anticancer agents is increasing, the dosages and efficacy of these drugs for human use are not yet established. These dewormers are used in veterinary medicine to treat ascarids, whipworms, hookworms and a single species of tapeworm, Taenia pisiformis.
Preclinical studies show that fenbendazole, also known as Metronidazole or MFZ, suppresses cancer cells by stopping the growth of microtubules. These microtubules provide structure to all living cells. MFZ also kills cancerous tissue when injected into mice. But a post on social media sites citing a veterinarian and based on an anecdotal account of a patient’s success with the treatment suggests that fenbendazole could be an effective cancer fighter for people who have not responded to standard therapies such as chemo or radiation. dewormer for cancer