DRUGS used in Viagra could make chemotherapy more effective for cancer patients, a Southampton study has shown.

Currently only one in ten survive oesophageal cancer for ten years or more but now it is hoped that PDE5 inhibitors, used in Viagra, can improve survival. 

Research conducted at University Hospital Southampton showed that the drug can help break through a barrier of cells that sit around the tumour. 

This then enables chemotherapy drugs to reach the cancer cells. 

Prof Tim Underwood, who is also a professor of gastrointestinal surgery at the University of Southampton, led the research.

READ MORE: Southampton research finds cancer drug can improve survival

He said: “The chemotherapy resistant properties of oesophageal tumours mean that many patients undergo intensive chemotherapy that won’t work for them.

“Finding a drug, which is already safely prescribed to people every day, could be a great step forward in tackling this hard-to-treat disease.”

Oesophageal cancer affects the food pipe that connects your mouth to your stomach. 

Though it is a rare form of cancer, the UK has one of the higher rates in the world, with 9,300 new oesophageal cancer cases every year.

The study, published in Cell Reports Medicine, is still in its early stages but it is hoped that combining PDE5 inhibitors with chemotherapy will shrink some oesophageal tumours more than chemotherapy alone.

Terry Daly, 60, who was diagnosed with oesophageal cancer last October welcomed the news.

He said: “I think the new research is brilliant news and perhaps if the drugs had been available alongside my first chemo, it could have shrunk my tumour more before my operation and made that whole process a lot better.

The research was funded by Cancer Research UK and the Medical Research Council. 

Michelle Mitchell, chief executive of Cancer Research UK, said: "Developing new drugs for cancer is incredibly important, but doing so from scratch is a challenging process, and many fail along the way.

"Progress in treatment for oesophageal cancer over the last 40 years has seen only limited improvement, which is why we’ve made it a research priority.

"We’re looking forward to seeing how the combined treatment of PDE5 inhibitors with chemotherapy performs in clinical trials.”

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