Celebrex's new role in killing cancer?

IOWA CITY, Iowa, May 17 (UPI) -- While studies have proved that anti-inflammatory drugs do not prevent cancer, research at the University of Iowa shows they may help kill it.

Researchers there conducted two studies to determine whether non-steroidal anti-inflammatories, NSAIDs, and other painkillers had anti-cancer activity.

They found the Cox-2 inhibitor pain drug celecoxib (Celebrex) worked the best, destroying 60 percent of the cells in its cultures, while sulindac sulfide (Clinoril sulfide) also appeared effective at zapping the cancer cells. However, none of the other NSAIDs tested had anti-cancer activity.

The team tested the effects of celecoxib (Celebrex), sulindac sulfide (Clinoril sulfide), aspirin, naproxen (Aleve), and rofecoxib (Vioxx) to cell cultures containing head and neck cancer cells.

The study authors speculated that adding celecoxib to treatment protocols would increase their effectiveness.

Although all NSAIDs can adversely affect the heart and kidneys, even in the short term, the researchers thought that their benefits outweighed their risks in this context.

The study is published in the most recent issues of the journals Molecular Carcinogenesis and Cancer Research.