Red Flag, Black Box , Health Sciences Institute e-Alert , March 22, 2005
Protopic is a topical treatment for eczema that may cause stinging, burning and an increased risk of skin infections (according to the Protopic web site).
As someone who copes with eczema (a common inflammatory skin condition accompanied by rashes and itching) the prospect of adding stinging and burning is not very inviting, to say the least. And you have to wonder: If a topical treatment stings, burns and infects some patients, maybe that's a red flag that something is not quite right.
Last week the FDA issued a public health advisory to inform consumers that the use of two topical eczema creams - Protopic and Elidel - may pose a cancer risk. Both of these products address eczema by suppressing the immune system. (Talk about a red flag!)
The FDA advisory is based on animal studies that revealed the cancer risk. Human studies may take more than a decade to confirm or disprove a similar risk among us non-lab animals. Product packaging for Protopic and Elidel will be required to carry a black box warning about the potential cancer danger, and consumers will be advised to use these products on a short-term basis.
Meanwhile, before eczema patients apply a cream that may cause cancer, they might want to try a natural alternative that doesn't sting, burn, infect or suppress the immune system.
One side and the other
Cytokines are inflammatory agents that prompt the body to produce nitric oxide; the primary culprit behind eczema's itching and rashes. And because vitamin B-12 is known to be a natural scavenger of nitric oxide, scientists at Ruhr University in Germany devised a study to test a vitamin B-12 cream in the treatment of eczema.
Nearly 50 subjects with eczema were recruited. For a period of eight weeks, each subject applied the B-12 cream to all the eczema-affected areas on one side of their body, two times each day. A placebo cream was applied twice a day to the other side of the body. A team of doctors examined the subjects at the beginning and end of the study, and every two weeks during the study period, to assess changes in eczema-affected areas. At each of these examinations, subjects gave a self-assessment and reported on any side effects.
After analyzing all the assessments, researchers reported that both the investigating doctors and the subjects had rated the effectiveness of the B-12 cream as "good" or "very good." Both groups rated the placebo cream as "moderate" or "poor." And in stark contrast to the potential problems with Protopic and Elidel, the researchers reported that the vitamin cream was "very well tolerated."
If you can't find B-12 cream at your local vitamin shop, there are several sources on the Internet that carry different brands. If you do try a B-12 cream to treat eczema, please send an e-mail and let us know how it worked for you. Note that the subjects in this study had a specific type of eczema called atopic eczema, so this treatment may not work for everyone. My eczema, for instance, is triggered by stress, so it's not atopic and doesn't respond to remedies designed to address atopic eczema.
To Your Good Health,
Jenny Thompson
Health Sciences Institute
Sources:
"Elidel (pimecrolimus) Cream and Protopic (tacrolimus) Ointment" FDA Public Health Advisory, 3/10/05, fda.gov
"Topical Vitamin B12 - A New Therapeutic Approach in Atopic Dermatitis - Evaluation of Efficacy and Tolerability in a Randomized Placebo-Controlled Multicentre Clinical Trial" British Journal of Dermatology, Vol. 150, No. 5, ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
"Vitamin B12: A New Treatment for Eczema" Kimberly Beauchamp, N.D., Healthnotes Newswire, 8/19/04, pccnaturalmarkets.com
"U.S. Won't Ban Junk-Food Ads for Kids: Official" Reuters Health, 3/14/05, reutershealth.com
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