ReviewJournal of International Society of Preventive & Community Dentistry
Repurposing Antifungal Drugs for Oral Cancer Treatment: Mechanistic Insights and Clinical Potential-A Narrative Review.
Review in Journal of International Society of Preventive & Community Dentistry. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
1 citing paper in PubMed.
- Repurposing antifungal drugs for Oral squamous cell carcinoma using network pharmacology, molecular docking and molecular dynamics approaches.Journal, genetic engineering & biotechnology · 2026Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
7 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Objective: Oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) continues to pose significant therapeutic challenges due to high recurrence rates and treatment-related toxicity. Drug repurposing offers an accelerated, cost-effective pathway to discover novel therapeutic indications for established medications. This narrative review evaluates the mechanistic rationale and clinical potential of repurposing antifungal agents, such as azoles and allylamines, as adjuvant therapies for OSCC. Methods: A comprehensive literature search was performed across PubMed and Scopus (up to November 14, 2025). Studies were selected based on their focus on antifungal-mediated inhibition of OSCC growth and metastasis. Methodological quality was assessed using the Scale for the Evaluation of Narrative Review Articles. Results: Antifungal agents, particularly itraconazole and terbinafine, exhibit potent antitumor activity by targeting key oncogenic pathways, including the Sonic Hedgehog (SHH) and phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase/protein kinase B/mammalian target of rapamycin signaling axes. Preclinical evidence indicates that these agents induce apoptosis, inhibit angiogenesis, and sensitize OSCC cells to standard chemotherapy and radiotherapy. Specifically, itraconazole shows promise in treating SHH-high tumors, while terbinafine reduces tumor proliferation through antiangiogenic mechanisms. Conclusion: Antifungal drugs represent a biologically viable and resource-efficient strategy for enhancing OSCC treatment outcomes. To maximize clinical translation, future research must prioritize the development of nanoformulations and liposomal azoles to overcome existing bioavailability limitations.
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What Socratic holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.