Tumor evidence may force rethink on Prozac

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Monday, April 01, 2002 7:14 PM

Tumor evidence may force rethink on Prozac

 

 

Tumor evidence may force rethink on Prozac

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http://www.nzherald.co.nz/storydisplay.cfm?storyID=1291821 & thesection=news & thesu\

bsection=world27.03.2002 - By STEVE CONNOR in London Scientists have

discovered that the antidepressant Prozac, taken by millions of people around

the world, may stimulate the growth of brain tumors by blocking the body's

natural ability to kill cancer cells.

 

An international team of researchers led by John Gordon, professor of immunology

at Birmingham University, found evidence to suggest cancer cells can be killed

by " positive thinking " , which could be blocked when people take Prozac.

 

The study, to be published in the journal Blood, examined the effects of Prozac

and other antidepressants on a group of tumor cells growing in a test tube. The

researchers found that the drug prevented the cancer cells from committing

" suicide " , thereby leading to a more vigorous growth of the tumors.

 

Although an increased risk of cancer has not so far been detected in Prozac

patients, the findings could lead to a re-evaluation of the drug's long-term

safety.

 

Prozac is used for the treatment of depression, obsessive-compulsive disorder

and bulimia nervosa. Doctors in Britain issue about three million prescriptions

for it yearly.

 

Gordon said his results could not be taken as proof that Prozac stimulates tumor

growth.

 

" Although that extrapolation could be valid, there is no direct evidence from

large-scale epidemiological studies currently to back it up. However, it's

important that we look again and again. "

 

The research work was designed to find new ways of treating lymphomas by

investigating how the brain communicates with the immune system to induce

" positive thinking " through a neuro-transmitter in the brain called serotonin, a

natural chemical that regulates people's moods.

 

Prozac, and other members of the class of antidepressants known as selective

serotonin re-uptake inhibitors (SSRIs), works by preventing serotonin from being

quickly reabsorbed by nerve cells in the brain.

 

The scientists tested other SSRIs and found they, too, had the same effect in

stimulating the growth of a type of tumour known as Burkitt's lymphoma.

 

" An exciting property of serotonin is that it can tell some cells to

self-destruct. We have found that serotonin can get inside the lymphoma cells

and instruct them to commit suicide, thereby providing the potential for an

effective therapy, " Gordon said.

 

The researchers found Prozac blocked the entry of serotonin into the test-tube

tumour cells, therefore stopping them from committing suicide.

 

Gordon said it was premature to suggest that the drug was unsafe.

 

A spokeswoman for Eli Lilly, the manufacturer of Prozac, said the research was

too new for it to make a detailed response.

 

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