A recent study suggests that the antipsychotic medication aripiprazole may have potential as a new bladder cancer treatment. Researchers found exposure to the drug reduced the survival of bladder cancer cells in laboratory experiments, while preserving normal bladder structure and function in animal tissue models.
The research, published in Pharmacology Research & Perspectives, focused on providing insights into whether aripiprazole, a medicine currently approved to treat psychiatric conditions such as schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, could be repurposed as an intravesical therapy for bladder cancer.
Intravesical therapy involves delivering medication directly into the bladder through a catheter, and is a common treatment approach for non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC). Current intravesical treatments, such as Bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG) treatment, can often cause irritation, pain and damage to the bladder lining, leading some patients to stop treatment early.
Read more What is BCG treatment for bladder cancer?
“Drug repurposing offers a pragmatic approach to address this gap, enabling accelerated translational trajectories by leveraging existing clinical safety, pharmacokinetic, and drug–drug interaction data,” the researchers noted.
In the study, researchers tested aripiprazole in two different bladder cancer cell types, one representing low-grade non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer and another representing more aggressive muscle-invasive bladder cancer. The drug reduced cancer cell survival in both models, with stronger effects at higher concentrations and longer exposure times.
Researchers found that aripiprazole appeared to activate several processes involved in programmed cell death in bladder cancer cells, suggesting the drug may engage multiple anti-tumor pathways.
Importantly, the drug appeared to spare healthy bladder tissue in experiments using pig bladder models. Aripiprazole did not significantly damage the bladder lining or interfere with normal bladder muscle and nerve function after short-term exposure.
The authors said the findings support further research into aripiprazole as a possible bladder-sparing treatment for NMIBC. However, they noted that additional preclinical and clinical studies are still needed to confirm its safety and effectiveness in patients.
Sign up here to get the latest news, perspectives, and information about bladder cancer sent directly to your inbox. Registration is free and only takes a minute.
