Oldest blood pressure medicine Hydralazine may reduce brain tumour and cancer risk, reveals new study

Hydralazine, an old blood pressure medication, may reduce brain tumour risk and improve pregnancy outcomes.

It’s interesting how a common medication in our medicine cabinets may have potential for improving our health. Researchers have recently found some exciting information about hydralazine. This drug has been used for over 70 years to treat high blood pressure, especially in pregnant women. This old medication might not only lower blood pressure but could also help in the fight against aggressive brain tumours.

One of the world's oldest blood pressure drugs may also halt aggressive brain tumour growth (Adobe Stock)

By Tavishi Dogra

Tavishi Dogra is a Deputy Chief Content Producer, Health & Wellness, at Hindustan Times. She has over 9 years of experience writing about fitness, nutrition, and mental well-being, translating medical research and expert insights into practical advice readers can trust.

Career journey and experience
Tavishi began her health journalism journey in 2017, and has since reported for RSTV, Financial Express, Jagran, HT Media Labs and Zee. She joined Hindustan Times to simplify wellness subjects by cutting through jargon.

From decoding health trends and interviewing doctors to testing fitness routines herself, Tavishi always approaches content with one filter: “Will this help someone make a better decision today?”

Subject expertise
With 9+ years tracking India’s health conversations, Tavishi knows the gap between clinical advice and daily life. She knows fads from fundamentals and curates science-backed, expert-recommended solutions.

In fitness, she breaks down bodyweight training, recovery, and posture fixes for desk-bound readers. In nutrition, she translates guidelines into affordable, desi meal tweaks. In mental well-being, she focuses on stigma-free, actionable tools — all backed by research, expert input, and lived context.

Education and professional background
Tavishi holds a Master’s degree in Journalism and Mass Communication and began her career reporting on public affairs for broadcast. Those early years in policy and TV shaped how she writes today: fast, factual, and human-first.

Editorial Philosophy
I write with one single goal: To simplify health in a world full of noise by finding what’s actually doable, safe, and evidence-based for my readers. I test claims against research and user experiences. When all else fails, I speak to the expert who sees 50 patients a day, not the one with the most followers.

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Is hydralazine used for blood pressure in pregnancy?

Hydralazine is commonly used to treat very high blood pressure, especially during pregnancy. Until recently, how it works in the body was not fully understood. Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania have discovered the biological mechanism underlying this phenomenon. Their study, published in Science Advances, reveals an interesting connection between high blood pressure during pregnancy and brain cancer.

Kyosuke Shishikura, a doctor involved in the research, calls hydralazine "one of the earliest vasodilators ever developed." It is still a primary treatment for pre-eclampsia. “This serious condition causes high blood pressure during pregnancy and contributes to a significant number of maternal deaths”, Dr Satnam Singh Chhabra, Neurosurgeon, Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, tells Health Shots. This highlights the importance of hydralazine, particularly given its discovery during a period when people relied more on observation than scientific understanding.

What is pre-eclampsia?

Pre-eclampsia usually affects women in the second half of pregnancy. It is characterised by high blood pressure and the presence of protein in the urine. This condition poses significant health risks to both the mother and the child, making effective treatment required. Recent discoveries about hydralazine are of great importance. Meghan Matthews, an Assistant Professor of Chemistry at Penn, notes that understanding how hydralazine works could lead to safer and more targeted treatments for high blood pressure during pregnancy. This could improve outcomes for women at higher risk, especially in minority groups that face greater health challenges.

How does hydralazine fight cancer?

This study has demonstrated that hydralazine directly affects a critical enzyme known as 2-aminoethanethiol dioxygenase (ADO). This enzyme acts like a switch for blood vessels, instructing them to constrict when oxygen levels decrease. Matthews explains that "ADO is like an alarm that goes off the moment oxygen starts to fall," highlighting how quickly it responds. This rapid response can impact the body's cellular conditions.

Researchers found that hydralazine attaches to a molecule called ADO, which acts like an alarm for cells. When hydralazine binds to ADO, it effectively turns off this alarm. This action disrupts the survival signal that cancer cells depend on. “Most cells require time to respond to changes, such as copying DNA and producing proteins”, shares the doctor. However, ADO allows cells to adjust right away, skipping these time-consuming steps. In brain tumours, stopping ADO means cutting off support for aggressive cancer cells. This discovery is promising for cancer treatment.

This discovery has important implications that go beyond the historical use of hydralazine. It opens up possibilities for creating new and safer medications to treat brain cancer effectively. As Matthews points out, "An old cardiovascular drug rarely ends up teaching us something new about the brain." This suggests that these unexpected connections could help lead to new cancer treatments.

(Note to readers: This article is for informational purposes only and not a substitute for professional medical advice. Always seek the advice of your doctor with any questions about a medical condition.)