Common heart drug repurposed to treat rare cancer in Europe

A drug that's commonly used to treat high blood pressure is being repurposed for a rare tissue cancer in Europe. The medication, named propranolol, was recently granted Orphan Drug Designation by the European Commission (EC).

The designation signifies that the EC supports the use of a drug to treat patients because of its significant benefit to those living with a rare disease -- in this case, soft tissue sarcoma. The cancer affects approximately one quarter of a million people living in Europe, and is generally considered difficult to treat.

Original propranolol was marketed in 1965 under the brand name Inderal and manufactured by ICI Pharmaceuticals (now AstraZeneca).