Arthritis drugs like Celebrex and the recently withdrawn Vioxx may boost the immune system’s ability to attack brain tumors, and possibly other types of cancer, researchers said on Friday. Doctors at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles have shown that the COX-2 enzyme is responsible for triggering a cellular process that disrupts the body’s immune response, allowing cancer cells to multiply. COX-2 blockers -- a class that includes Pfizer Inc.'s Celebrex and Merck & Co Inc.'s late Vioxx -- work to fight arthritis pain by blocking the inflammation-causing COX-2 enzyme. Results of the Cedars-Sinai study, which appear in the Oct. 1 issue of the Journal of Immunology, support the idea that medications attacking the enzyme may also boost the immune system’s ability to recognize and target cancer cells.
