The role that parasite play in health has been downplayed by the medical industry. The public are more jaded and mistrustful than ever of health advice from official sources. Quick-fix solutions are appealing to people that are suffering from chronic conditions.

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The field has never been riper for new operators to offer "miracle" cures. Long-term natural solutions to eliminate parasites are out. Fast-acting one-stop-shop treatments are in.

Fenbendazole – Miracle Supplement or Potent Pharmaceutical Drug?

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Ivermectin is hardly an unknown drug. A sterling reputation recorded in medical literature, including a history of use in animal parasitic control since 1981, and in human populations since 1987, Ivermectin was at one stage the biggest selling animal health product in the world. It has also shown potential to regulate insulin and cholesterol levels, inhibit growth of malignant cancer cells, suppress viral replication, and to reduce survival of malarial and trypanosome parasite larvae in various animal studies. 5

 

Then there is Fenbendazole.

 

Fenbendazole has stayed largely out of the public eye throughout its history, but nevertheless has had a parallel story to that of Ivermectin. Studies from the early 1970’s showed that adding a phenoxy group to mebendazole, an already established worming drug, increased its efficacy. 6 Immediate success was noted against all sorts of roundworms in livestock, and as the years progressed action against giardia, certain tapeworms and even species of fungus in various animals. 7 8

 

By the way, Mebendazole, the substance that was chemically altered back in the 70’s to create the new drug Fenbendazole, is sold in various countries under the brand name Vermox. I’m sure you’ve seen this drug on pharmacy shelves for use as a pharmaceutical children’s worming formula. It also has a long history as a dewormer for veterinary medicine. 9

 

Things changed in the early 2010’s. Steve Beddingfield, an individual suffering from cancer, Lyme disease and Morgellons, discovered by accident that his symptoms improved when he mistakenly consumed Fenbendazole (instead of ivermectin). After popularising his experiences through social media, he attracted a following of people grappling with all sorts of diseases, including cancer, autoimmune conditions and neurological disorders. 10

 

Others soon took up the mantle, with Caroline Williams, someone with a similar success story to Beddingfield, applying her considerable marketing skills to making Fenbendazole more attractive and accessible to people in general. Rebranding the drug as “Fenben” and bottling it behind a wholistic-looking label helped rehabilitate the reputation of this veterinary drug as a natural supplement in the minds of consumers. Just so the message isn’t lost, Williams’ website is bulked out with beautifully-presented natural supplements (for both humans and animals) to accompany Fenben, which remains the only pharmaceutical drug on offer there.

 

Other suppliers are less subtle in their efforts to cloud over the true nature of this drug, branding their products or company names with the term “supplements” and the like to convey the impression of a natural origin.

 

In 2017 the story of Fenbendazole moved into the fast lane.

 

It is not unusual for drug companies to experiment with repurposing drugs from their brand stable for unrelated conditions:

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‘With repurposing, new drugs could be ready for clinical trials faster, reducing development time; this is also economically appealing by expediting integration into medical practice compared with other drug development strategies.” 11

 

Examples of “repurposed drugs” being investigated for applications in cancer therapy, for example, include Clarithromycin, Mebendazole, Albendazole and Flubendazole. 12 13 It’s not hard to see the connection between the above drugs and why they are considered as potential cancer treatments. Clarithromycin is a now failing antibiotic 14 and the others are benzimidazole class worming drugs, like Fenbendazole. The connection is logical: drugs that contain a mechanism that kill organisms might also be used to destroy cancer cells.

 

The motive is also clear for attempts to repurpose these drugs. It is ‘economically appealing’ to find new applications for synthetic substances as the expensive, time-consuming ground work has already been laid to get them onto the market. 11 Why not kill two birds with the one research-dollar stone?

Interestingly, around the same time that promising research was been undertaken on the drug Mebendazole for cancer applications it was removed from the market in the United States by its manufacturer Teva Pharmaceuticals for “non-safety-related” business reasons. When it was reintroduced 5 years later in 2016 it came back onto pharmacy shelves at 80 times its original price (an 8,223% increase). By the same token, Albendazole increased by 13,785% during the same period. A 3-day course of this anti-worming drug has thus increased from $31.92 to $2,656.80 across this time. 15 16 “Repurposing” these drugs for cancer treatment has obviously value-added to them, too.

 

All of this interest at that time in veterinary antiparasitic drugs led to experiments with Fenbendazole as well. It was a logical step. Cancer sufferer Joe Tippen, after being given a bleak prognosis from the medical community, was contacted by a veterinarian who told him of some promising cancer research being done at Merck on mice with their canine dewormer Fenbendazole. Having nothing to lose, he ordered the drug from a pet supply company and proceeded on a self-regulated regime, scoring tremendous results. Soon Joe’s “protocols” were across the internet as he shared his good news survival story with others. 11 17 Fenbendazole was approaching cult status as a no-risk, fix-all parasite/cancer option for the modern age.

 

Come forward to the 2020’s and the explosion of parasitic infections post-pandemic has created a ripe field for Fenbendazole enthusiasm to take hold. Building on the groundswell of social media promotion of this drug during the decade prior to COVID19, and the cynicism with which the average consumer is now viewing official medical advice, it’s a natural next-step for people not getting answers from the usual channels to throw their hopes on an option that seems safe, effective and (importantly) not endorsed by the establishment.

 

There is a Fenbendazole problem, though: few people really appreciate it for what it is, an aggressive benzimidazole-class drug.

 

Over the last few months I’ve had discussions with health food store operators and naturopaths who were under the impression that Fenbendazole is a natural supplement. We have no problems with folk resorting to drugs to sort out health problems quickly if they feel the need to do so, however there are certainly legal problems for health food stores selling a pharmaceutical drug from under the shelf, or a natural practitioner prescribing it to their clients. A simple misunderstanding can cause some well-intentioned businesses that do a whole lot of good for their communities being sanctioned.

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What difficulties could misrepresenting a drug as a natural supplement have for practitioners and other well-wishers? Are there also dangers for consumers who might be taking something that they think is something else?

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Stay tuned for the conclusion of this article: 

"Fenbendazole - Reasons for Caution"

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REFERENCES:

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2. Victorian Department of Health ‘Gastroenteritis -giardiasis’ https://

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4. Duda, A., Kosik-Bogacka, D., Lanocha-Arendarcyzk, N., Kolodziejczyk, L., Lanocha, A. The Prevalence of Blastocystis hominis and Other Protozoan Parasites in Soldiers Returning from Peacekeeping Missions, J. Trop. Med. Hyg. 92(4), 2015, pp. 805-806

5. Center for Disease Control and Prevention Hookworm FAQs https://www.cdc.gov/parasites/hookworm/gen_info/faqs.html (Sept 17, 2020)

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8. Fenbendazole  Drugbank Online  https://go.drugbank.com/drugs/DB11410 (accessed 20/11/2024)

9. Haroldo C. de Oliveira, Marcio L. Rodrigues  Repurposing benzimidazoles to fight Cryptococcus  Fungal Biology Reviews 37(Pt 6):27-40  DOI:10.1016/j.fbr.2021.04.002  September 2021

10. Velík J, Baliharová V, Fink-Gremmels J, Bull S, Lamka J, Skálová L. Benzimidazole drugs and modulation of biotransformation enzymes. Res Vet Sci. 2004 Apr;76(2):95-108. doi: 10.1016/j.rvsc.2003.08.005. PMID: 14672851.

11. Fenbendazolehelp.org  History of Fenbendazole: A Journey of Discovery & Surprises  https://fenbendazolehelp.org/history-of-fenbendazole-a-journey-of-discovery-surprises/ (accessed 21/11/2024)

12. Sultana T, Jan U, Lee H, Lee H, Lee JI. Exceptional Repositioning of Dog Dewormer: Fenbendazole Fever. Curr Issues Mol Biol. 2022 Oct 17;44(10):4977-4986. doi: 10.3390/cimb44100338. PMID: 36286053; PMCID: PMC9600184.

13. Ferreri AJM, Cecchetti C, Kiesewetter B, Sassone M, Calimeri T, Perrone S, Ponzoni M, Raderer M. Clarithromycin as a "repurposing drug" against MALT lymphoma. Br J Haematol. 2018 Sep;182(6):913-915. doi: 10.1111/bjh.14878. Epub 2017 Aug 2. PMID: 28771670.

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15. Abadi ATB. Resistance to clarithromycin and gastroenterologist's persistence roles in nomination for Helicobacter pylori as high priority pathogen by World Health Organization. World J Gastroenterol. 2017 Sep 21;23(35):6379-6384. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v23.i35.6379. PMID: 29085187; PMCID: PMC5643263.

16. Nath J, Paul R, Ghosh SK, Paul J, Singha B, Debnath N. Drug repurposing and relabeling for cancer therapy: Emerging benzimidazole antihelminthics with potent anticancer effects. Life Sci. 2020 Oct 1;258:118189. doi: 10.1016/j.lfs.2020.118189. Epub 2020 Aug 8. PMID: 32781060.

17. Joo H, Lee J, Maskery BA, Park C, Alpern JD, Phares CR, Weinberg M, Stauffer WM. The Effect of Drug Pricing on Outpatient Payments and Treatment for Three Soil-Transmitted Helminth Infections in the United States, 2010-2017. Am J Trop Med Hyg. 2021 Mar 8;104(5):1851-1857. doi: 10.4269/ajtmh.20-1452. PMID: 33684066; PMCID: PMC8103488.

18. Tippen, Joe  Change of Attitude Starts with a Shange of perspective  https://mycancerstory.rocks/the-blog/  (accessed 22/11/2024)