{"entity":{"id":"dmso-dimethyl-sulfoxide","kind":"technology","name":"DMSO (dimethyl sulfoxide)","aka":["DMSO","Dimethylsulfoxide"],"tldr":"DMSO is an industrial solvent with one approved medical use, bladder instillation for interstitial cystitis, and it is used by hospitals to freeze stem cells. It is also sold, sometimes in industrial grade, as a cancer and pain remedy. Evidence that it slows cancer is inconsistent, and it is not approved for over-the-counter use in any form.","summary":"Dimethyl sulfoxide is a highly polar solvent that passes readily through skin and is used as a cryopreservative, including for stored stem cells. Memorial Sloan Kettering's About Herbs entry notes that it is approved only for intravesical treatment of interstitial cystitis and is not approved for over-the-counter use in any form because of insufficient evidence of efficacy and potential toxicities, and that industrial DMSO may be contaminated with other chemicals. In oncology it has been used to prevent and manage extravasation of chemotherapy agents; data on whether it slows cancer progression are inconsistent. Small studies suggest it may relieve peripheral neuropathy and post-thoracotomy pain. A systematic review of 109 studies found mostly mild, transient gastrointestinal and skin effects at small doses; other effects include a garlic taste and breath, sedation, low blood pressure and dizziness, and MSK lists recurrent cerebral haemorrhage in a man using it for mood and nerve damage in mice. It should be avoided in pregnancy. Promotion of DMSO as a cancer cure, sometimes combined with other substances, has no supporting human evidence.","status":"phase-2","asOf":"2026-11-04","links":[{"label":"MSK About Herbs: Dimethylsulfoxide (page last updated 26 July 2023)","url":"https://www.mskcc.org/cancer-care/integrative-medicine/herbs/dimethylsulfoxide"}],"tags":["complementary","supportive-care","evidence:insufficient"],"related":["zeolite-supplements","colloidal-silver"],"cancers":[],"sections":["supportive-care"],"technologies":["alternative-medicine-instead-of-treatment","integrative-oncology"],"targets":[],"drugs":[],"companies":[],"institutions":[],"pathways":[],"terms":["unproven-diet-claims","peripheral-neuropathy"],"trials":[],"people":[],"bottlenecks":["b-misinformation"],"keyPapers":[],"journals":[],"dependsOn":[],"notes":[],"principle":"A solvent that crosses membranes and scavenges hydroxyl radicals; it carries dissolved substances, including contaminants, through the skin.","strengths":["Approved for bladder instillation in interstitial cystitis","Established role in cryopreserving cells"],"limitations":["Inconsistent data on cancer progression","Not approved for over-the-counter use; industrial grades may be contaminated","Case report of cerebral haemorrhage"]},"route":"/technologies/dmso-dimethyl-sulfoxide/","neighbours":{"technology":[{"id":"alternative-medicine-instead-of-treatment","kind":"technology","name":"Alternative medicine used instead of standard treatment","route":"/technologies/alternative-medicine-instead-of-treatment/"},{"id":"colloidal-silver","kind":"technology","name":"Colloidal silver","route":"/technologies/colloidal-silver/"},{"id":"integrative-oncology","kind":"technology","name":"Evidence-based integrative oncology","route":"/technologies/integrative-oncology/"},{"id":"zeolite-supplements","kind":"technology","name":"Zeolite supplements (clinoptilolite, liquid zeolite)","route":"/technologies/zeolite-supplements/"}],"section":[{"id":"supportive-care","kind":"section","name":"Supportive Care & Survivorship","route":"/fronts/supportive-care/"}],"term":[{"id":"peripheral-neuropathy","kind":"term","name":"Peripheral neuropathy (chemotherapy-induced)","route":"/terms/peripheral-neuropathy/"},{"id":"unproven-diet-claims","kind":"term","name":"Unproven diet claims (alkaline, juice, 'anti-cancer' diets)","route":"/terms/unproven-diet-claims/"}],"bottleneck":[{"id":"b-misinformation","kind":"bottleneck","name":"Misinformation and unproven therapies","route":"/bottlenecks/b-misinformation/"}]}}