# Life-threatening neurotoxicity following off-label ivermectin use in metastatic breast cancer: a case report

Source: https://onco.cc/key-papers/paper-saperstein-ivermectin-neurotoxicity-breast-cancer-2026/  
OnCo record `paper-saperstein-ivermectin-neurotoxicity-breast-cancer-2026` (Key paper). Data CC BY-NC 4.0, attribute "Data from OnCo (onco.cc)"; commercial use needs a licence.

## TL;DR

A 73-year-old woman with metastatic breast cancer took high doses of ivermectin after reading about it online, had seizures and stopped breathing adequately, and spent two days on a ventilator before recovering fully.

## Summary

The patient self-administered high doses of ivermectin based on information obtained online, developed acute altered mental status, generalised seizures and respiratory failure, and was managed with intubation, mechanical ventilation, intravenous fluids and anticonvulsants, recovering to baseline within 48 hours (Saperstein case report 2026). The authors note that the FDA has explicitly discouraged ivermectin for cancer outside clinical trials and ask clinicians to take a thorough exposure history (Saperstein case report 2026).

## Fields

- Kind: Key paper
- Last checked: 2026-09-24
- Journal: Postgraduate Medicine
- Year: 2026
- DOI: 10.1080/00325481.2026.2672183
- Authors: Saperstein Y, Bou Sanayeh E, Boazak P, Itani H, Moussa E, Gut T.
- Findings: Seizures, altered consciousness and respiratory failure after unintentional high-dose self-administration; full recovery within 48 hours with intensive care.
- What it means: The clearest documented case of what the label's neurotoxicity warning looks like in a cancer patient dosing herself.
- Caveats: Single case; the dose taken was not precisely known.

## Sources

- Saperstein case report 2026: https://doi.org/10.1080/00325481.2026.2672183
- PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42170801/

## Connected records

- drugs: [Ivermectin](https://onco.cc/drugs/ivermectin/)
- terms: [Off-label](https://onco.cc/terms/off-label/)
- bottlenecks: [Misinformation and unproven therapies](https://onco.cc/bottlenecks/b-misinformation/)

---
JSON: https://onco.cc/api/v1/entities/paper-saperstein-ivermectin-neurotoxicity-breast-cancer-2026.json