Florida has announced that it will begin formally investigating ivermectin as a potential cancer treatment. The state is launching its own research program, arguing that since the drug is inexpensive and no longer under patent, pharmaceutical companies have little financial incentive to study it. Because of this, Florida plans to conduct independent research—something many see as a smart move, especially considering how heavily ivermectin has been demonized in recent years. During COVID, much of the media and pharmaceutical industry dismissed it as merely a “horse medication,” even though it has a long history of human use. Part of that backlash stemmed from the fact that no one can profit from it in the same way they profit from expensive patented drugs.
Yet ivermectin, though originally developed as an antiparasitic, has shown potential in other areas—including cancer. One of the leading figures studying this is Dr. William Makis, a Canadian radiologist, oncologist, and cancer researcher with over 100 peer-reviewed publications. He runs the largest ivermectin-based cancer clinic in the world and has published peer-reviewed papers documenting cases where stage IV cancer patients achieved long-term remission using combinations of ivermectin, mebendazole, and fenbendazole.
Dr. Makis joined the show to discuss the significance of Florida’s decision. He called it “very exciting” and emphasized that this type of research is exactly what major cancer centers—MD Anderson, Sloan Kettering, Mayo Clinic, Cleveland Clinic, Dana-Farber—should have been doing for years. According to him, ivermectin in cancer is not a fringe idea: more than 400 preclinical studies have been published, many of them calling for human trials due to strong evidence of anticancer activity. Yet major cancer centers aren’t pursuing it.
Why not? Dr. Makis explains that these institutions follow treatment guidelines created by national medical associations—associations heavily funded by pharmaceutical companies. The medications that make it onto guidelines are typically high-priced drugs such as Keytruda, Kisqali, or Opdivo, which can cost patients hundreds of thousands of dollars annually. As a result, oncologists often function as strict guideline-followers: they prescribe the drugs on the list, and deviating from those protocols can get them in trouble with medical boards—boards that are also influenced by pharmaceutical funding.
When asked what someone like Robert F. Kennedy Jr., as Secretary of Health and Human Services, could do, Dr. Makis pointed to Florida as a model. Governor Ron DeSantis and Surgeon General Dr. Joseph Ladapo publicly supported research into ivermectin, mebendazole, and other repurposed drugs, and allocated significant funding—at least $60 million for repurposed drug research and close to $300 million for broader cancer research. Political support, he said, is crucial: it not only provides funding but helps legitimize and accelerate research efforts.
Dr. Makis also noted that ivermectin has an extraordinary safety record. It’s a human medication, not merely a livestock drug, and it won the Nobel Prize in 2015. It appears on the World Health Organization’s list of essential medicines, as does mebendazole. Yet the public rarely hears this, which is why political backing matters so much.
He added that vitamins and natural therapies deserve more study as well. In his own protocols, vitamin C and vitamin D play important roles. Other compounds—such as sweet wormwood (Artemisia annua), which also earned a Nobel Prize for its role in malaria treatment—show medical promise. Numerous repurposed drugs, including metformin and even aspirin, have demonstrated anticancer effects in research. There’s tremendous potential, he argued, but it requires support from policymakers willing to push beyond the pharmaceutical status quo.
Florida, he said, is showing that such a shift is possible. Communities there have shown strong enthusiasm for exploring new cancer treatment directions rather than relying exclusively on expensive new pharmaceuticals like mRNA cancer vaccines.
Asked whether other countries—China, Russia, India—are conducting similar research, Dr. Makis noted that some of the 400 ivermectin-in-cancer studies have been carried out in China, which appears more open to exploring non-pharmaceutical-industry-driven research. He has seen fewer studies from India or Russia, but China does seem to support research that goes beyond big-pharma interests.
He believes the United States should be leading this research effort and that drugs like ivermectin should eventually be made available over the counter. The safety data, he said, is overwhelming, with four billion human doses administered worldwide. Several U.S. states—Tennessee, Idaho, and others—have already made ivermectin available OTC. Treatment with repurposed antiparasitics typically costs only hundreds of dollars per month, in sharp contrast to conventional cancer drugs that can cost tens of thousands.
Dr. Makis then explained how ivermectin, mebendazole, and fenbendazole function. All three are antiparasitic medications, but they act differently against cancer. Ivermectin blocks tumor-growth pathways, including a key proliferative pathway known as PAK1. This allows it to inhibit not only malignant tumors but also some benign growths like fibroids and lipomas. It also targets cancer stem cells—cells that standard chemotherapy rarely kills. Because chemo attacks only rapidly dividing cells, cancer stem cells can lie dormant for years before re-emerging and causing recurrence or metastasis.
This is why oncologists use terms like “remission” rather than “cancer-free,” and why chemotherapy is almost never described as curative in stage IV disease. According to Dr. Makis, adding ivermectin or benzimidazoles to standard treatments can enhance outcomes by targeting the cancer stem cells traditional therapies miss. He emphasized that patients do not need to choose between conventional treatments and repurposed drugs—they can combine them, and many do.
He sees particularly strong responses in patients who combine conventional therapies with repurposed drugs: tumors shrink rapidly, sometimes disappearing after only a few chemotherapy cycles—results that leave oncologists stunned. Some patients, however, choose to avoid chemotherapy entirely due to side effects, and even those patients sometimes experience meaningful improvement using antiparasitics alone.
But timing matters. Dr. Makis often sees patients very late—after they have gone through four or five lines of conventional therapy and have been sent home with months to live. At that point, even though miracles sometimes occur, outcomes are naturally more limited. Early-stage patients, by contrast, sometimes experience dramatic benefits. He described prostate cancer patients who became cancer-free after using ivermectin and fenbendazole for a few months, without undergoing surgery or radiation. He also mentioned breast cancer patients whose tumors shrink enough to allow less invasive surgery and downstaging.
If patients wait until they’re told they have only months left to live, he said, it becomes harder to achieve the best results—and critics sometimes use those late-stage cases to claim the drugs don’t work, ignoring the fact that conventional treatments also failed in those same situations.
This is why Florida’s $60 million in research funding is so important: it will allow scientists to test these medications in early-stage cancers, late-stage cancers, and everything in between. His own fenbendazole study followed patients for up to three years, documenting cases of stage IV cancer patients who remained cancer-free long-term. Aside from Stanford, his clinic is the only group to have published such findings.
He concluded by stressing the importance of research, collaboration, and political support to move cancer treatment in a more accessible, affordable, and innovative direction.
Source from: Kim Iversen YouTube channel published on Oct 7, 2025; 169,377 views
Summary
Florida’s New Research Initiative
- Florida announces funding to study ivermectin and other repurposed drugs for cancer.
- Motivation: pharmaceutical companies avoid studying off-patent medications with low profit potential.
- State allocates $60M for repurposed drugs and nearly $300M for broader cancer research.
Dr. William Makis’ Work
- Canadian radiologist/oncologist with 100+ peer-reviewed papers.
- Runs the world’s largest ivermectin-based cancer clinic.
- Has published cases where stage IV cancer patients achieved long-term remission using ivermectin, mebendazole, and fenbendazole.
Big Cancer Centers Aren’t Studying It
- Over 400 preclinical studies show anticancer potential.
- Major cancer institutions follow guidelines heavily influenced by pharmaceutical funding.
- Drugs that make it into guidelines tend to be expensive (Keytruda, Opdivo, Kisqali).
- Oncologists are restricted by these guidelines and risk reprimand if they depart from them.
Political and Public Health Implications
- Dr. Makis says political support (like Florida’s) is crucial.
- Ivermectin is extremely safe: 4 billion human doses, WHO essential medicine, Nobel Prize winner.
- Some states now allow over-the-counter ivermectin.
Why Repurposed Drugs Matter
- Ivermectin blocks tumor-growth pathways and kills cancer stem cells—cells chemo often misses.
- Combining ivermectin with standard therapies may accelerate remission.
- Early-stage patients may benefit the most; late-stage patients too often arrive after all conventional options fail.
International Research
- Some cancer-related ivermectin studies come from China.
- Fewer from India or Russia.
The Bigger Picture
- Repurposed drugs like ivermectin, mebendazole, fenbendazole, metformin, aspirin, and even nutrient therapies (vitamin D, vitamin C) deserve more research.
- Florida may be pioneering a shift toward more affordable, accessible cancer treatment strategies.
佛罗里达州开展伊维菌素抗癌研究
- 佛罗里达宣布投入资金研究伊维菌素及其他“旧药新用”的抗癌潜力。
- 由于药物已过专利、无利润空间，制药公司不愿主动研究。
- 州政府拨款 6000 万美元用于旧药研究，并额外接近 3 亿美元支持癌症研究。
William Makis 医生的研究
- 加拿大放射科及肿瘤科专家，发表论文百余篇。
- 经营全球规模最大的伊维菌素癌症治疗诊所。
- 已发表研究：有数名四期癌症患者在使用伊维菌素、甲苯达唑、芬苯达唑后进入长期缓解。
为何大型癌症中心不研究？
- 目前已有 400 多项实验室研究显示伊维菌素对癌症具有潜力。
- 大型癌症中心遵循的指南由受制药公司资助的协会制定。
- 指南上多为昂贵药物，如 Keytruda、Opdivo、Kisqali。
- 肿瘤科医师若偏离指南，可能遭医学委员会追责。
政治推动的重要性
- Makis 指出：政治支持非常关键，佛州就是示范。
- 伊维菌素极为安全：40 亿人次使用、入选 WHO 基本药物、2015 年获诺贝尔奖。
- 美国部分州已允许 OTC（非处方）购买伊维菌素。
旧药的优势
- 伊维菌素可抑制肿瘤增殖途径并杀死癌症干细胞（传统化疗难以消除的细胞）。
- 与常规治疗并用效果更佳。
- 早期患者反应通常更好；许多晚期患者是在耗尽传统治疗后才求助。
国际研究状况
- 中国已有部分相关研究；印度和俄罗斯相对较少。
总体意义
- 许多旧药（伊维菌素、甲苯达唑、芬苯达唑、二甲双胍、阿司匹林）及营养素（维生素 D、C）都值得深入研究。
- 佛州可能正在引领一种更可负担、更可及的癌症治疗方向