TUBERCULOSIS: thioridazine

Multiple-resistant tuberculosis (TB) is a global problem. It is most common in the former Soviet states and South Africa but it also occurs in the Netherlands, usually in tandem with HIV-AIDS.
In what is believed to be a remarkable breakthrough in the fight against TB, Dutch scientists have discovered a medicine that appears to be very effective against multiple-resistant tuberculosis. The drug is called thioridazine. A discovery? Well, not exactly.
Thioridazine has been around for decades as a treatment for psychosis. Its effectiveness against two of the most feared forms of tuberculosis – multi-resistant tuberculosis and super-resistant tuberculosis - was recently discovered by accident.
Psychosis
Research scientist Martin Boeree from the St. Radboud University Medical Centre in Nijmegen says the drug was developed in the mid 1950s as an antibiotic but was rejected when it became clear that such high doses were necessary that it would be dangerous or possibly even lethal to patients. In low doses, it did prove to be an effective treatment for psychosis.
The effects of the drug against TB have also been known for quite some time. According to Dr Boeree: “In the 1950s or 1960s, someone discovered that one of two nursing homes showed a far lower incidence of TB. He launched an investigation to find out the reason for the marked difference, and eventually discovered that one of the possible factors was that thioridazine was being used in one of the nursing homes but not in the other. And where thioridazine was being used, there were fewer cases of TB.
The results of the research again attracted attention in the 1990s. Portuguese scientists confirmed the drug’s effectiveness against tuberculosis. It even seemed to have few side effects while being effective against the most serious forms of the disease.
Cheap
An added advantage is that the drug is old, and therefore free of patents. So it can be produced quite cheaply, which is of great importance to developing countries.
However, researcher Dr Boeree says that unfortunately thioridazine will not become available immediately. As is standard procedure in the medical world, years of research will be needed to guarantee a safe and effective treatment.
“Yes, you are looking at – optimistically – a five-year period and – pessimistically – at a ten-year period. All research is linked to money, and – as you know – money is scarce in this world, or that at least is the general perception. And we really have to approach institutes such as the Bill Gates Foundation to get funds for this type of research.”
The outcome will be anxiously awaited, as TB still claims thousands of lives across the world every day.
http://www.rnw.nl/english/article/new-old-medicine-against-tuberculosis