PDE5 inhibitors and melanoma

[thisAngelBites]

Hello everyone!

I haven't been around much lately, but I have thought about you when I get time to catch up on medical news. I was wondering if anyone has posted about ED drugs like viagra, cialis and levitra and possible connections to melanoma in the medical literature. There has even been a meta analysis done, and while it is not certain yet what is happening, there appears to be a small risk of increased melanoma in men who take these drugs.

PDe5 inhibitors work by releasing nitric oxide (NO) in skin. It's the same thing that happens when you get your skin in the UVA sunlight (you know that wonderful relaxed, sleepy feeling you get when you lie in the sun for a short while? That's the effect of NO release, lowering your blood pressure and making you feel good).

However, I have this developing worry that when we do things in which there is normally sunlight involved, but we cut out the actual sunlight and just try to mimic its effects, we create biological mismatches that don't produce the same effect or even cause problems.

Sunlight is involved in hormone signaling, cortisol production, NO production, and production of antioxidants. So if we use meds that make it seem as though our skin has been exposed to the sun, without the rest of the effects we would normally see in someone exposed to sunlight, we could have issues.

For example, using a PDE5 inhibitor to increase NO levels will cause an increase in reactive oxygen species (free radicals). But when you get an increase in NO from sun exposure, your body also produces enzymatic antioxidants that counteract the increase of free radicals. When you take tadalafil, you miss out on the antidote.

Obviously the situation will be more complex than this, and the production of free radicals in general is turning out to be far more complicated than previously thought, but it's clear that they're important, and us just taking antioxidants is not looking good until we understand more about how the process works.

There are similar concerns about taking oral vitamin D and it is not looking like it mimics what the human body does in sunlight to make vitamin D and doesn't confer the same benefits as having healthy natural blood levels does (from UVB exposure).

So think carefully about your PDE5 use, and try to use sensible amounts of sunlight when you can to get the effects of natural increases of NO without the risks of PDE5 inhibitors all the time. Eventually we will know more about what the mechanisms are, but I think there's enough writing on the wall to indicate a little caution.

[kelkel]

Interesting concept TAB. And great to see you around. I'm a big proponent of low dose daily cialis as well as Vit D and would be greatly interested in anything more that you can find. First thing that comes to my mind though is why would someones lifestyle change due to taking either of these substances? Meaning just because I take both I would not then reduce the amount of natural sunlight. I would like to hear more though.

Stick around this time. At least pop in more often. Miss your contributions here!

[RaginCajun]

Wow, hello stranger! I actually read something you posted the other day, your ears must have been ringing to come back!

Like to see what people's thoughts on this.

Great topic!

[David LoPan]

Omg......look who is the poster. Hey you

[clarky.]

Hi tab, hope your good and well. I was just talking about you to AG the other week there.

[Couchlock]

I got a source of sample packs of us non generic cialis. Prior to that I was using Indian pharma. Haven't had any for about 2 months

Yesterday I took my usual eca 50mg stack, with 1/2 dose pre workout and 5mg Cialis. About an hour after my chest muscle left leg was jumping about 30 times a second. I thought "shit, its my heart beating through my chest, I'm going to die"

But it was just muscle jumping,is this to be concerned Bout?

[thisAngelBites]

Hi Kel, RC, BigTahl and clarky,

I missed all of you and being on the board and I am hoping to spend a bit of time here at least a few times a week. So many of you know so much more than me about bodybuilding and steroid use , but sometimes I hope I have something to add from a different perspective, and I very much enjoy doing that.

Kel, I will try and put some bits together for you about my more recent thinking about these things concerning supplementing with chemicals that the body itself makes. I've been on quite a journey the last two years: lots of stress, founding a charity that's gone from zero to a projected turnover over £1m this year, a 25 lb weight gain from the massive pressure when we launched a year ago, and the subsequent loss of that weight and more, and getting myself to a state closer to optimal health, meaning much sharper mentally, fitter of body, sleeping like absolute rock, which is like every day being christmas! I really haven't felt this good in years and I'm taking no chemicals of any kind. So my perspective has changed from one of trying to tweak my hormones to getting my body to make what I need by changing my environment.

There's some interesting biophysics being done concerning electromagnetic fields, changes in cellular calcium ions and vitamin D production, which might be suppressed for many of us due to our environment, and I think people are getting suspicious that having chemical messengers in our body that signal that we have had sun exposure (when we have had no such exposure, or when our environment prevents the conversion of 7-dehydrocholesterol in our skin to vitamin D even when we are exposed to sun) might be having other downstream effects.

There's a lot of stuff to share, but I will try and put together some bits that might be provocative without being too verbose. Interestingly, this year's nobel prize in medicine went to some researchers that are working in the field of circadian biology, which I think shows that the influence of light on biology is very much at the cutting edge of medicine. There's lots of amazing work being done. Give me a little time and I will try and post some interesting bits.

I hope all of you are very well!

[NACH3]

What's up TAB! Great to hear your doing so well and everything is going even better than expected it seems. And of course Great to see you and thank you for the post... very interesting indeed!

[kelkel]

I'm very interested in this TAB! Particularly anything new regarding circadian rythms and light / biology. I remember you speaking of the charity and very happy it flourished! Very glad you got yourself back in order personally as well. As I said before, I miss your intellect around here!

[thisAngelBites]

Hi Nach!

[NACH3]

Hi Nach!

What's up how are you besides all the great things going on? Really glad to hear this b/c you of all people deserve it.

[songdog]

Nice to see you back!

[RaginCajun]

TAB, i am now working with some Dermatopathologists and will ask them about this since they deal with melanoma. maybe they know of some studies i can pass along.

[hammerheart]

TAB you better find some support to your hypothesis cause I can't get it up halfway without cialis jk try to stick around...