# Ivermectin, a potential anticancer drug derived from an antiparasitic drug

Source: https://onco.cc/key-papers/paper-tang-ivermectin-potential-anticancer-pharmacol-res-2021/  
OnCo record `paper-tang-ivermectin-potential-anticancer-pharmacol-res-2021` (Key paper). Data CC BY-NC 4.0, attribute "Data from OnCo (onco.cc)"; commercial use needs a licence.

## TL;DR

A 2021 review of the pathways through which ivermectin killed cancer cells in the laboratory, written as a case for testing it in people.

## Summary

The review, indexed as a systematic review, collects reports that ivermectin inhibits proliferation of several tumour cell types by regulating multiple signalling pathways and promotes programmed cell death, and discusses prospects for clinical use (Tang review 2021). The evidence it reviews is from cell lines and animal models (Tang review 2021).

## Fields

- Kind: Key paper
- Last checked: 2026-09-24
- Journal: Pharmacological Research
- Year: 2021
- DOI: 10.1016/j.phrs.2020.105207
- Authors: Tang M, Hu X, Wang Y, et al.
- Findings: Laboratory mechanisms catalogued: proliferation inhibition and programmed cell death across cancer cell lines.
- What it means: Useful as a map of the laboratory story; it contains no patient outcomes.
- Caveats: Preclinical evidence only.

## Sources

- Tang review 2021: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.phrs.2020.105207
- PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32971268/

## Connected records

- technologies: [Systematic drug repurposing](https://onco.cc/technologies/drug-repurposing/)
- drugs: [Ivermectin](https://onco.cc/drugs/ivermectin/)
- terms: [In vitro and in vivo](https://onco.cc/terms/in-vitro-in-vivo/), [Preclinical](https://onco.cc/terms/preclinical/)

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