Fenbendazole vs Mebendazole for Cancer: What is the Difference?

What is fenbendazole used for in humans? 

Fenbendazole (also known as fenben) is a veterinary medication used to treat parasites and worms such as tapeworms, hookworms, roundworms, and whipworms, in animals. It is commonly used under brand names like Panacur C and Safe-Guard.

If you have been diagnosed with cancer, or have a loved one that is suffering from cancer, chances are you have heard about the Joe Tippens Cancer Protocol. The Fenbendazole Cancer Protocol has been gaining rapid interest over the past years following some fenbendazole advanced cancer success stories.

Joe Tippens founded the protocol after he was told a story about a scientist at Merck Animal Health that had been performing cancer research on mice. The research included injecting different types of cancers into different mice body parts. The scientists discovered, through trial and error, a product in their canine product line, fenbendazole, that was batting 1.000 in killing these different cancers in the mice. The scientist was later diagnosed with stage 4 brain cancer and was given a grim prognosis of only three months to live. She decided to try the fenbendazole, and after six weeks, showed a clean scan.

Joe Tippens had been initially diagnosed with small cell lung cancer. The cancer later spread to his neck, right lung, stomach, liver, bladder, pancreas and tail bone. Like the scientist from Merk Animal Hospital, Joe was told he only had three months to live. In 2017, after hearing the story of the scientist who treated her cancer with a canine drug, Joe decided he was going to do the same. However, in addition to taking the fenbendazole, Joe added his own ingredients to the regimen (curcumin, CBD oil, and vitamin E), thus creating the Joe Tippens Cancer Protocol.

Researchers have been experimenting with fenbendazole for humans cancer. Though the studies are limited, what researchers have found so far is promising for cancer patients. Many cancer patients have been following the Fenbendazole for cancer Protocol.

However, fenbendazole isn’t the only worming medication that has the potential to fight cancer. Researchers have also been studying how Mebendazole, a drug that can treat worms in humans, could be just as, or even more, effective at shrinking tumors and killing cancer cells.

Here’s what you need to know about each of these medications:

What is Mebendazole?

Fenbendazole is part of a larger group of drugs known as benzimidazole*, which are anthelmintic drugs (i.e., drugs that kill parasitic worms). Another benzimidazole is mebendazole, which can be prescribed to humans with certain gut infections, including threadworms, whipworms, hookworms, and roundworms.

*The class of drugs known as benzimidazoles includes fenbendazole, mebendazole, albendazole and flubendazole. 

Mebendazole (MBZ; 5-benzoyl-1H-benzimidazol-2-ylcarbamate) first described in 1968, was initially recognized as a broad-spectrum anthelmintic agent and was applied to humans in 1971 (JAMA 1971).

Fast forward two decades, and the focus on anthelmintics shifted towards their potential anticancer properties, primarily due to their interactions with microtubules (Cancers 2019).

MBZ has been shown to potentially suppress tumor growth in various cancer cell lines and animal models through the inhibition of microtubule polymerization, a process that, when interrupted, can lead to the death of rapidly dividing cells. Significantly, the anticancer effects of MBZ extend to inhibiting the invasion and metastasis of malignant tumors. 

MBZ has also been found to restrict the migratory and invasive tendencies of glioblastoma cells, and concurrently modulate pivotal markers in the EMT, suggesting a potential role for MBZ in mitigating glioblastoma metastasis. 

In oral squamous cell carcinoma, MBZ was found to downregulate specific proteins and enzymes, including FAK, Rho-A, and Rac1 GTPase. 

Anecdotal evidence from two case reports (refractory metastatic colon cancer, metastatic adrenocortical carcinoma) has further supported the possibility of MBZ being repurposed as an anticancer drug by documenting its success in managing metastatic patients.

Fenbendazole vs. Mebendazole

Fenbendazole and mebendazole are similar in that they both eliminate parasitic worms, but there is a difference. Mebendazole is approved for human consumption by the FDA, while fenbendazole is only approved for veterinary use and has not been approved for human use.

Mebendazole is the form that is approved for human use while fenbendazole is approved for veterinary use. The main difference is the cost. Mebendazole is expensive ~$450 per pill (two pills of mebendazole cost just $4 in the UK.), while fenbendazole is inexpensive ~48 cents per 222 mg free powder dose (Williams, 2019). Albendazole is the form used to treat intestinal parasites in India and these cost 2 cents per pill. 

Although studies are limited, researchers have found mebendazole to have anti-cancer properties like fenbendazole. It stops worms from absorbing glucose, which they need to grow. Researchers have found that it can also prevent cancer cells from absorbing glucose, keeping them from expanding.

While most of the pre-clinical research uses mebendazole, probably because it is the FDA-approved-for-humans form of fenbendazole, virtually most of the self-treating clinical reports involve the use of fenbendazole.

While fenbendazole for human cancer has gained more popularity with some interesting fenbendazole cancer success stories, some research suggests mebendazole might be more effective for treating different types of tumors. For example, research studies have shown that mebendazole could be more effective for brain, prostate, and ovarian cancers.

Clinical Trials

There are more than 10 studies for mebendazole for cancer in ClinicalTrials.gov but only one for fenbendazole for cancer.

Fenbendazole vs Mebendazole in Pancreatic Cancer, Colon Cancer and Paragangliomas

According to a 2021 Italian Study:

“Current anticancer approaches still largely rely on conventional chemotherapy, the efficacy of which is often hampered by the development of drug resistance...thus, novel and more effective drugs are needed to improve cancer patient outcomes” 

“Intriguingly, the repurposing of non-antitumor drugs to be exploited in cancer therapy represents a valuable and an alternative strategy, since candidate agents have well documented pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic features, together with good safety profiles, which may speed up their approval and implementation in the clinics” 

In this study, we explored the effects of a large series of benzimidazole-based anthelmintics on the viability of different tumor cell lines derived from paraganglioma, pancreatic and colorectal cancer. Flubendazole, parbendazole, oxibendazole, mebendazole, albendazole and fenbendazole showed the most consistent antiproliferative effects.

“Notably, for the two derivatives fenbendazole and mebendazole, target prediction analysis pointed out a few cancer-related molecular targets having very high probability scores, thus suggesting polypharmacological profiles of these drugs.” 

According to Dr William Makis, a Canadian oncologist:

Fenbendazole and Mebendazole both increase p53 tumor suppressor levels, which are impaired in 50-60% of all cancers and even further impaired in those who took Pfizer or Moderna COVID-19 mRNA Vaccines and developed TURBO CANCER.

VERDICT: Fenbendazole has superior cancer killing at higher doses for pancreatic cancer, colorectal cancer and paragangliomas (compared to Mebendazole and Albendazole).

Fenbendazole vs Mebendazole in Pancreatic Cancer

FENBENDAZOLE vs MEBENDAZOLE in Pancreatic Cancer - which is better? Obscure Italian study gives the answer in the battle of the anti-parasitics It's the question everyone is asking.

According to Dr William Makis:

Repurposed anti-parasitics are now being used successfully to treat Stage 4 Cancers and Turbo Cancers. The most popular repurposed anti-parasitics are: Ivermectin, Fenbendazole and Mebendazole! I have developed High Dose Protocols to use these successfully, in situations where conventional Oncology has utterly failed. So which is better? Fenbendazole? Or its sister compound, FDA approved and much more expensive Mebendazole? An Italian team tested them head to head and got a surprising answer. Their published results are very difficult to find. 

The answer: It depends on the dose used, and the type of cancer. That being said, the difference is fairly minor. For a cancer patient, what’s most important is availability and access to these drugs. If you can’t get one, get the other. But make sure you're able to get at least one of them. Because they may just save your life one day. (for Pancreatic Cancer, the winner is Fenbendazole)

Florio et al. Cancers 2019

Mebendazole vs Fenbendazole in treatment of Glioblastoma Brain Cancer

According to this 2011 study from Oxford:

Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM), which has been classified as a grade IV astrocytoma, is a highly aggressive tumor that invades early into surrounding brain tissues, making cure via surgical resection almost impossible...

There is a need to broaden the available treatments for GBM by introducing new therapeutic agents. One possible means to expedite initiation of GBM clinical trials is to examine previously established drugs with known track records of safety in humans, regardless of their intended use...

We accidentally found that fenbendazole, a benzimidazole, reduced brain tumor engraftment in nude mice after the mouse colony was treated for pinworms. Fenbendazole was previously reported to interfere with one lymphoma model in 2008, after we had already noted problems with fenbendazole disrupting brain tumor engraftment" 

We pursued this finding by evaluating whether the 2 most widely used human approved benzimidazoles showed efficacy against glioblastoma models...Subsequent in vitro and in vivo experiments with benzimidazoles identified mebendazole as the more promising drug for Glioblastoma therapy...

Mebendazole disrupted microtubule formation in GBM cells...We showed that mebendazole significantly extended mean survival up to 63% in mouse glioma models...Our findings indicate that mebendazole is a possible novel anti-brain tumor therapeutic that could be further tested in clinical trials.

Fenbendazole is an anti-parasitic drug that increases p53 tumor suppressor levels and blocks glucose utilization by cancer cells. When Joe Tippens got a tip on how to treat his Stage 4 Small Cell Lung Cancer, this was the study that his friend told him about, which helped him cure his Stage 4 Cancer. (source)

We have described two papers (mentioned above) that tested Fenbendazole head to head with Mebendazole.  Although the two anti-parasitics are very similar in efficacy at higher doses, Mebendazole has superior brain cancer cell killing at lower loses compared to Fenbendazole. So for Glioblastoma, it’s Mebendazole if you can get it. Otherwise, you can't go wrong with Fenbendazole. It's still almost as good. (source)

Mebendazole vs Fenbendazole in Osteosarcoma

According to a Master's Degree Thesis by Joanna Schmit (2013):

"The high morbidity and mortality of osteosarcoma despite standard therapy warrants the need to investigate new treatment options" 

“Benzimidazole (BZ) drugs are used routinely as effective anti-parasitics in both human and veterinary medicine. Their safety is well-established and side effects are minimal” 

"Our findings demonstrate that the clinically used veterinary BZs (Albendazole ABZ, Fenbendazole FBZ, and Mebendazole MBZ) possess anti-neoplastic activity in an Osteosarcoma cell line."

"In addition to direct effects on tubulin polymerization, cell cycle, proliferation, and cytotoxicity, BZs demonstrate indirect activity through modulation of a key pro-angiogenic cytokine." 

"Overall Mebendazole shows superior inhibition of proliferation, apoptosis, and inhibition of VEGF secretion. When it comes to OSTEOSARCOMA, Mebendazole is preferred over Fenbendazole. Where the difference was most noticeable, was in inhibiting VEGF secretion - which doesn't allow the cancer to establish new blood vessels to grow."

What Does Science Say About How Fenben Works for Cancer?

A few studies have explored how Fenbendazole for humans can work alongside traditional cancer therapies to decrease cancer cells. For example, one study found that it may be effective in inhibiting the glucose intake of cancer cells, which could help prevent their growth and spread. Additionally, the drug has been shown to interfere with multiple cellular pathways in cancer patients, which could further impede the cancer cells’ ability to survive and replicate.

The positive results of research on fenbendazole for cancer mean the drug could be repurposed for treating human ailments, including cancer. Fenbendazole for humans could save a considerable amount of time and money in developing new cancer-fighting drugs.

 

Is Fenbendazole Safe for Humans?

Fenbendazole for humans is considered safe because of its low toxicity and high safety margin, as indicated by limited studies. However, it is important to remember that the FDA has not approved it.

To determine the proper dosage of Fenbendazole for humans, studies have shown that a single oral dose of up to 2,000 mg per person or multiple doses of 500 mg per person for 10 days are generally safe. It’s important to note that these are only general guidelines, and the appropriate dosage may vary depending on each person’s specific cancer.

Fenben vs Fenbendazole: What's the Difference?

Dewormers, such as Fenben and fenbendazole, play a crucial role in keeping livestock healthy. Many wonder if these terms refer to different products or are interconnected. The truth is that Fenben is not merely another name for fenbendazole but rather a brand that harnesses the active ingredient fenbendazole to combat parasitic infestations in animals.

Yes, Fenben is the brand name for the active ingredient fenbendazole. (source)

Adapted from: https://healnavigator.com/blog/fenbendazole-for-humans-vs-mebendazole/

Disclaimers: 

• Please do not consider this guide as personal medical advice, but as a recommendation for use by professional providers. Consult with your doctor and discuss with her/him. 
• Our aim here isn't to replace your doctors' advice. It is intended as a sharing of knowledge and information. Do take note that most treatments are not 100% protective or curative against cancer. It's a continuous struggle between the immune system and the cancer cells. Cancer treatments are meant to assist the immune system in this battle.
• Cancer treatment should be part of a multi-modal approach in order to provide the best possible outcome. Diet and lifestyle changes are meant to run alongside conventional treatment. They are complementary, not alternative. That said, there is no miracle diet or treatment that can cure all cancers.

New & Improved Joe Tippens Protocol

• Fenbendazole (300 mg, 6 days a week) or in the case of severe turbo cancers up to 1 gram.
• Ivermectin (24 mg, 7 days a week) or in the case of severe turbo cancers up to 1mg/kg/day.
• Removing sugar from one’s diet is crucial during this protocol.
• Bio-Available Curcumin (600mg per day, 2 pills per day 7 days a week). 
• Vitamin D (62.5 mcg [2500 IU] seven days a week).
• Tocotrienol and Tocopherol forms (all 8) of Vitamin E (400-800mg per day, 7 days a week). A product called Gamma E by Life Extension.
• CBD oil (1-2 droppers full [equal to 167 to 334 mg per day] under the tongue, 7 days a week) CBD-X: The most potent full spectrum organic CBD oil, with 5,000 milligrams of activated cannabinoids and hemp compounds CBD, CBN & CBG per serving.

Adapted from: 2ndsmartestguyintheworld.com/p/synergistic-pairing-of-ivermectin

Read More: This article is part of the Winning the War on Cancer series.

Related: 

Ivermectin vs Fenbendazole for Cancer

Best Anti Cancer Supplements

Repurposed Drugs for Cancer: What You Need to Know

What are the Best Cancer Fighting Foods

Benefits of Vitamin C in Cancer Treatment

CAR-T vs CAR-NK - The Cancer Cell Therapy Showdown

Fenbendazole: One Packet a Day

Fenbendazole 222 mg (1 gm of Panacur™) per day every day. It can be mixed with food such as yogurt or simply taken by itself.

It is advised to purchase Panacur C (powder) brand only, as Panacur is regulated and has been consistent in third-party lab results.

Click here to buy Fenbendazole (Panacur C) on Amazon

* Please take note that the Panacur C on Amazon is available in three sizes (1 gram, 2 grams and 4 grams) of single dose packets.

Do not follow the weight-dependent dosing (for dogs) that is given on the back of the packaging!