Common anti-inflammatory drug may prevent skin cancer

Washington, Jan 6 (ANI): A commonly used anti-inflammatory prescription drug can help decrease the risk of a common skin cancer in humans, says a researcher at Stanford's School of Medicine.

According to Jean Tang, MD, PhD, assistant professor of dermatology, although oral administration of the drug, celecoxib, is associated with an increased risk of heart attack and stroke in some people, it's possible that topical application could have a safer, protective effect for people prone to developing the cancers, called basal cell carcinomas.

"Basal cell carcinomas are the most common human cancer in the United States," said Tang, "and their incidence is increasing steadily. This work identifies a possible way to prevent them."

She and her colleagues dovetailed studies in mice with a randomized, double-blinded clinical trial in humans to reach their conclusions.

Tang was an assistant professor at UC-San Francisco and Children's Hospital Oakland when the trial was conducted. She is the lead author of the research, which will be published in Cancer Prevention Research on Jan. 5. (ANI)