Ecstasy Can Treat Cancer: Study

Researchers find a way to drastically boost its effectiveness
By Kevin Spak,  Newser Staff
Posted Aug 19, 2011 3:27 PM CDT
Ecstasy Can Treat Cancer: Study
A mock 'ecstasy' lab for teaching purposes at the National Clandestine Laboratory Training and Research Facility at the DEA Training Academy in Quantico, Virginia.   (Getty Images)

Could ecstasy cure cancer? The idea suddenly doesn’t seem so farfetched. Researchers at Birmingham University have found a way to boost its cancer-suppressing powers 100-fold, making it a potentially viable treatment for leukemia, lymphoma, and myeloma, the Telegraph reports. Ecstasy was already known to fight many white blood cell cancers, but treating patients with it would have required a dose so large it would also kill the patient.

Now, it may be a viable treatment—if scientists can devise a version of the drug that's safe enough to use. “This is an exciting next step,” the lead author said. “While we would not wish to give people false hope, the results of this research hold the potential for improvement in treatments in years to come.” (More ecstasy stories.)

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