Anti-cancer drug shows promise in treating skin allergy — AIIMS

NEW DELHI, SEPT 29: An anti-cancer drug has been shown to be effective in curing a skin allergy caused by the common nuisance-weed Parthen...

NEW DELHI, SEPT 29: An anti-cancer drug has been shown to be effective in curing a skin allergy caused by the common nuisance-weed Parthenium, popularly known as Congress grass, reseachers at All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) here report.

The drug, Azathioprine, used to treat cancer and prevent graft-rejection in kidney-transplant patients, cures the allergy within one or two months, Dr K K Verma from AIIMS’ Department of Dermatology and Venereology, said. The drug is also used in the West to treat many autoimmune disorders.

The allergy, known as air-borne contact dermatitis (ABCD), affects exposed skin areas of face and hands but, when severe, may also extend to unexposed parts resulting in itchy red rashes which turn blackish with time.

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Conventional treatment of ABCD needs regular use ofcorticosteroids (drugs used against inflammation and itching), without which relapse occurs. Corticosteroids, taken for long, may lead to side effects like diabetes, weight-gain, rise in blood pressure, swelling on face and other body parts, muscle weakness, cataract and osteoporosis (fragile bones).

Two 50 milligram tablets of azathioprine daily with a booster dose of 300 mg once every 30 days is required to cure the disease. But the treatment should be continued for three years to avoid relapse, Verma said.

Verma and colleagues Dr J S Pasricha and Dr Y Manchanda reported the finding in Acta Dermato Veneriologica

, an international journal, published from Sweden.