Vidatox 30 CH has tumor activating effect in hepatocellular carcinoma

Abstract

Complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) is the term used to describe many kinds of products, practices, and systems that are not part of conventional medicine. Cancer patients usually do everything they can to combat the disease, manage its symptoms, and cope with the side effects of treatment. Unfortunately, patients who use CAM underestimate the risk of interaction with cancer therapy or worse they omit conventional therapy thus reducing the possibility of cancer remission. Herein we analyzed the effects of Vidatox 30 CH (venom extracted from the Junceus Rhopalurus scorpion) on hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), the second leading cause of cancer-related deaths. We found out that Vidatox increases HCC proliferation and invasion whereas it does not seem to interact with sorafenib, the orally active multikinase inhibitor approved for the treatment of advanced hepatocellular carcinoma. Our results suggest that the concentration of Vidatox used in the present study has not anti-neoplastic effects and care must be taken in hiring Vidatox in patients with HCC.

Therapeutic Anticancer Uses of the Active Principles of “Rhopalurus junceus” Venom

“…The studies included for qualitative analysis were the following: Garcia-Gomez et al 2011 [ 1 ], Rodriguez-Ravelo et al 2013 [ 8 ], Diaz-Garcia et al 2013 [ 2 ], Rodriguez-Ravelo et al 2015 [ 9 ], Diaz-Garcia et al 2015 [ 10 ], Giovannini, C. et al 2017 [ 11 ], Diaz-Garcia et al 2017 [ 12 ], Diaz-Garcia et al 2019 [ 3 ], Lagarto et al 2020 [ 4 ], Diaz-Garcia et al 2019 [ 13 ], Di Lorenzo et al 2012 [ 14 ], Yglesias-Rivera et al 2019 [ 15 ], and Lozano-Trujillo et al 2020 [ 16 ].…”

“…We included seven studies in the quantitative analysis: Diaz-Garcia et al 2013 [ 2 ], Diaz-Garcia et al 2015 [ 10 ], Giovannini et al 2017 [ 11 ], Diaz-Garcia et al 2017 [ 12 ], Diaz-Garcia et al 2019 [ 13 ], Yglesias-Rivera et al 2019 [ 15 ], and Lozano-Trujillo et al 2020 [ 16 ]. Four of these were the studies from which the data for the meta-analysis were extracted ( Table 2 ).…”

“…The studies presented in Table 3 were excluded from the meta-analysis. Giovannini et al 2017 reported the effects of Vidatox 30, which is the hematopoietic derivative of venom [ 11 ]. Yglesias-Rivera et al 2019 reported data regarding a synergistic effect between antineoplastic drugs and scorpion venom.…”

“…Another consideration is to be made on the ineffectiveness described by Giovannini et al 2017 [ 11 ], for the homeopathic drug Vidatox 30-CH, which is an alcoholic solution at 33% resulting from five low molecular weight peptides (Escozul). The drug was used on a hepatic carcinoma cell line (HepG2-Snu449 and BRL-3A cells) resulting in ineffectiveness in inhibiting proliferation and an absence of a synergistic effect with the drug sorafenib in rats with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).…”

LncRNAs as novel players in hepatocellular carcinoma recurrence

“…Cell cycle analysis in HCC cells silenced for LUCAT1 and CASC9 was performed in triplicate by flow cytometry (FACSaria cell sorter, BD Biosciences) as previously described [ 34 ].…”