Which European clinical trials tested ivermectin as a cancer treatment and what were their outcomes?
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Executive summary
European clinical-trial registries and recent reviews show almost no completed European trials testing ivermectin as a cancer therapy; most human work is preclinical and the only active clinical program identified by oncology researchers is a US-based phase I/II trial combining ivermectin with an anti‑PD‑1 antibody for metastatic triple‑negative breast cancer (TNBC) (clinical trial NCT05318469; reporting and reviews state there is "only one active clinical trial" in cancer) [1] [2]. Reviews and fact‑checks emphasize the evidence is limited to laboratory and animal studies and that clinical data in humans are scarce or non‑conclusive [3] [4] [5].
1. What European sources report: almost no European human trials
Searches of European trial registers and recent literature find scant evidence that European clinical trials have tested ivermectin as a cancer treatment; the European Clinical Trials Register is the authoritative EU/EEA database for interventional trials, yet summaries and reviews conclude human clinical evidence in cancer is scarce and do not list completed European cancer trials of ivermectin [6] [3]. Major systematic overviews and reviews consistently describe ivermectin’s anticancer work as preclinical (cell lines, animals) and note a paucity of human trials [3] [7].
2. The single active clinical program investigators repeatedly cite is US‑based
Multiple oncology reports and an Annals of Oncology abstract state there is currently only one active clinical trial testing ivermectin in cancer — a phase I/II U.S. study combining ivermectin with balstilimab (an anti‑PD‑1 antibody) in metastatic TNBC (trial NCT05318469) — and they do not identify active European trials [1] [2]. News and clinical‑summary outlets that track the trial describe dosing schedules and combination regimens but locate the trial in the U.S., not Europe [8] [2].
3. Outcomes: no published positive clinical outcomes from European trials found
Available sources report no European clinical trial results showing clinical benefit of ivermectin in cancer patients; fact‑checks and reviews state investigators know of no clinical trials that produced successful human results and stress that evidence remains preclinical [5] [4]. The only human trial activity highlighted in the recent literature is early‑phase and ongoing, so no completed European trial outcomes are reported in current sources [1] [2].
4. Why the gap exists: preclinical promise, clinical caution
Scientific reviews document multiple mechanisms by which ivermectin shows antiproliferative or pro‑apoptotic effects in cell lines and animal models across cancer types, creating rationale for translation into trials; but authors uniformly call for rigorous in‑vivo validation and human trials before clinical adoption, explaining why European regulators and investigators have been cautious [7] [3]. Commentaries warn against misinformation that pushes patients to self‑medicate outside trials [5] [4].
5. Competing perspectives and implicit agendas to note
Pro‑research outlets and integrative‑medicine pieces emphasize repurposing ivermectin as low‑cost and promising and highlight laboratory synergies (e.g., with recombinant methioninase), sometimes implying more clinical momentum than the registries support [9] [10]. Independent oncology reviews, fact‑checkers and mainstream journals stress the absence of human evidence and the need for phase‑controlled trials, reflecting public‑health caution [4] [5]. These differing emphases reflect vested interests: advocacy for rapid repurposing vs. regulatory and clinical caution about unproven therapies.
6. What to watch next: an early‑phase trial readout and registry updates
Researchers tracking the field advise following the phase I/II U.S. trial (NCT05318469) for safety and preliminary efficacy signals; systematic reviews and registries (ClinicalTrials.gov, EU registries) will be the reliable sources for any new European trials or posted results, since current reviews conclude human clinical data remain very limited [2] [1] [6].
Limitations: available sources do not mention any completed European randomized trials or published European clinical outcomes testing ivermectin in cancer patients; my summary relies exclusively on the provided literature, registries and reviews which characterize the human evidence as scarce and identify only the ongoing U.S. phase I/II study [3] [1] [2].