Hirudin Disrupts Breast Cancer CTC Clusters — Anti-Metastatic Potential

Preclinical study demonstrating that hirudin, the prototypical leech-derived thrombin inhibitor, disrupts circulating tumor cell (CTC) cluster formation in breast cancer models. CTC clusters are key drivers of metastasis; hirudin’s ability to disaggregate them suggests a novel anti-metastatic mechanism independent of its anticoagulant activity.

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More peer-reviewed studies in Arzneimittelentwicklung.

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• Hirudotherapy in Medicine and Dentistry — Jha K et al. (2015)
• Medicinal leech therapy (hirudotherapy): a brief overview — Singh A (2010)
• HIRUDOTHERAPY IN PRESBYACUZIS PRAECOX IN CLEAN-UP WORKERS AFTER THE CHORNOBYL ACCIDENT DURING THE POST-CATASTROPHE YEARS — Zabolotnyi D, Mishchanchuk N (2019)