iStock / Getty Images Plus
A medicine that people hoped would treat chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) has failed its first large placebo-controlled trial.
The drug, called rituximab, is used to treat cancer and autoimmune diseases in which the immune system makes antibodies that turn against the body. The medicine works by killing the cells that make antibodies.
A few people who had cancer and also happened to have CFS saw their symptoms of fatigue resolve after taking rituximab. Øystein Fluge of Haukeland University Hospital in Norway thought rogue antibodies could be involved in CFS, also known as myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME).
These initial findings were…
