Interesting, I must have missed it. They must have a thing about Tagamet. I seem to recall another article from LEF about its potential for cold sores or herpes or some such thing. The idea was that when Tagament suppresses the same histamine receptors responsible for over acid product, it alleviates the histamine related suppression of the immune system, or something like that. That nicely summarizes it. References and _link_s: Griswold DE, Alessi S, Badger AM, Poste G, Hanna N. Inhibition of T suppressor cell _expression_ by histamine type 2 (H2) receptor antagonists. J Immunol. 1984 Jun;132(6):3054-7. PMID: 6202771 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&... Nanda NK, Nath I. Characteristics of histamine receptors present on suppressor T cells in healthy individuals . Int J Immunopharmacol. 1985;7(4):587-95. PMID: 2931386 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&... Griswold DE, Alessi S, Badger AM, Poste G, Hanna N. Differential sensitivity of T suppressor cell _expression_ to inhibition by histamine type 2 receptor antagonists. J Immunol. 1986 Sep 15;137(6):1811-5. PMID: 2875110 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&... Evaluation of Histamine2-Receptor-Antagonists (H2-Antagonists)
http://dacc.bsd.uchicago.edu/drug/Bulletins/n1096.html H2-antagonists have been found to improve the function of various parts of the immune system.(6,7) There have been anecdotal reports of the usefulness of histamine-antagonists in the treatment of various cancers refractory to standard treatments (eg, lung cancer, malignant melanoma). The proposed mechanism of immunomodulative effects is the inhibition of suppressor T- lymphocyte activity, an increase in interleukin-2 production, and an enhancement of natural killer cell activity. Hahm and colleagues compared the in vitro effects of cimetidine, ranitidine and famotidine on peripheral blood mononuclear cells in normal controls and patients with gastric cancer. They concluded that cimetidine had the strongest and famotidine had the weakest immunomodulating effect. Cimetidine was found to proliferate peripheral blood mononuclear cells and increase cytotoxic capability. Famotidine had no effects on lymphoproliferation and cytotoxicity. Ranitidine and famotidine were also inferior to cimetidine in inhibiting suppressor T-cell activity, increasing interleukin-2 production and enhancing natural killer cell activity. The authors speculated that this difference may be due to the fact that famotidine and ranitidine lack the imidazole nucleus common to histamine and cimetidine. Kumar A, Cleveland RP. Immunoregulatory effects of cimetidine: inhibition of suppressor cell effector function in vivo . Immunopharmacol Immunotoxicol. 1988;10(3):327-32. PMID: 2974050 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&... Kumar A. Cimetidine: an immunomodulator. DICP. 1990 Mar;24(3):289-95. Review. PMID: 2138376 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&... Brockmeyer NH, Kreuzfelder E, Bluhm C, Shen G, Scheiermann E, Keinecke HO, Ohnhaus EE. Immunomodulation of cimetidine in healthy volunteers. Klin Wochenschr. 1989 Jan 4;67(1):26-30. PMID: 2522158 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&... Gifford RR, Voss BV, Schmidtke JR, Ferguson RM. Histamine type-2 receptor antagonist immune modulation. I. Increased cell-mediated cytotoxicity in normal and in down-regulated systems. Surgery. 1988 Feb;103(2):184-92. PMID: 2963399 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&... Brockmeyer NH, Kreuzfelder E, Guttmann W, Mertins L, Goos M, Ohnhaus EE. Cimetidine and the immuno-response in healthy volunteers. J Invest Dermatol. 1989 Dec;93(6):757-61. PMID: 2573637 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&... (ATN) Cimetidine (Tagamet) As Immunomodulator, Antitumor Treatment? AIDS TREATMENT NEWS #80, June 2, 1989 Denny Smith
http://www.aegis.com/pubs/atn/1989/ATN08005.html Hirai N, Hill NO, Motoo Y, Osther K. Antiviral and antiproliferative activities of human leukocyte interferon potentiated by cimetidine in vitro. J Interferon Res. 1985 Summer;5(3):375-82. PMID: 2997335 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&... Zeng P, Xiao J, Lei Y. [Cell-mediated immune function in NPC patients treated with cimetidine] Zhonghua Zhong Liu Za Zhi. 1995 May;17(3):223-5. Chinese. PMID: 7656832 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&... Miller A, Harel D, Laor A, Lahat N. Cimetidine as an immunomodulator in the treatment of herpes zoster. J Neuroimmunol. 1989 Mar;22(1):69-76. PMID: 2521868 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&... Segal R, Dayan M, Epstein N, Zecler E, Peller S, Michalevitch R, Brautbar C, Moses E. Common variable immunodeficiency: a family study and therapeutic trial with cimetidine. J Allergy Clin Immunol. 1989 Nov;84(5 Pt 1):753-61. PMID: 2530265 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&... Richtsmeier WJ, Eisele D. In vivo anergy reversal with cimetidine in patients with cancer. Arch Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg. 1986 Oct;112(10):1074-7. PMID: 3755977 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&... Flodgren P, Sjogren HO. Influence in vitro on NK and K cell activities by cimetidine and indomethacin with and without simultaneous exposure to interferon. Cancer Immunol Immunother. 1985;19(1):28-34. PMID: 3844972 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&... Uotila P. Inhibition of prostaglandin E2 formation and histamine action in cancer immunotherapy. Cancer Immunol Immunother. 1993 Sep;37(4):251-4. Review. PMID: 8102321 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&... Siegers CP, Andresen S, Keogh JP. Does cimetidine improve prospects for cancer patients?. A reappraisal of the evidence to date. Digestion. 1999 Sep-Oct;60(5):415-21. Review. PMID: 10473965 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&... Takahashi K, Tanaka S, Ichikawa A. R Effect of cimetidine on intratumoral cytokine _expression_ in an experimental tumor. Biochem Biophys Res Commun. 2001 Mar16;281(5):1113-9. PMID: 11243850 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&... Hirai N, Hattori N, Hill NO, Osther K. Effects of cimetidine on various biological activities of human leucocyte interferon and on interferon production in lymphocytes. Tohoku J Exp Med. 1985 Oct;147(2):199-212. PMID: 2934865 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&... Kabuta H, Yamamoto S, Shingu M. The effect of cimetidine on survival of mice infected with herpes simplex virus type 2, murine encephalomyelitis virus and vesicular stomatitis virus infections. Kurume Med J. 1989;36(3):95-9. PMID: 2561403 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&... Parsad D, Pandhi R, Juneja A, Negi KS. Cimetidine and levamisole versus cimetidine alone for recalcitrant warts in children. Pediatr Dermatol. 2001 Jul-Aug;18(4):349-52. PMID: 11576414 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&... Franco I. Oral cimetidine for the management of genital and perigenital warts in children. J Urol. 2000 Sep;164(3 Pt 2):1074-5. PMID: 10958744 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]