What My Patients Are Asking: Can Dog Deworming Medicine Treat Breast Cancer?

Brian Wojciechowski, M.D., practices medical oncology in Delaware County, Pennsylvania at Riddle, Taylor, and Crozer hospitals and also serves as Breastcancer.org's medical adviser. A native of South Philadelphia, he trained at Temple University School of Medicine and Lankenau Medical Center. Dr. Wojciechowski is a sought-after speaker on the topics of medical ethics and the biology of cancer.

Blogs and popular media have discussed using fenbendazole (brand names: Panacure, Safe-Guard), a drug used to deworm dogs, to treat cancer. While some studies on cells in petri dishes and in mice suggest that fenbendazole might have anti-cancer properties, no studies have been done in people and it’s not clear what side effects it may cause or what the optimal dose might be.

Listen to the podcast to hear Dr. Wojciechowski talk about:

• the type of drug fenbendazole is and how it might kill cancer cells
• the studies in petri dishes and mice on fenbendazole that have been done so far
• what he tells his patients when they ask about fenbendazole