How a US$1 cancer drug may stop cells from ageing; why scientists and biohackers are taking it despite the unknown risks

Rapamycin is a medicine typically used for kidney transplants and some cancers; researchers are studying whether it can slow ageing

While biohackers and scientists are trying it themselves, and it has been proven to work in mice, the risks are still unknown.

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Rapamycin is usually prescribed to treat some cancers and reduce rejection after kidney transplants, but some biohackers are taking it, hoping to benefit from its potential anti-ageing properties, despite the unknown risks. Photo: Shutterstock

Published: 11:19am, 15 Mar 2023

About a year ago, Dan started biohacking. The 44 year-old Australian exercises, tries to eat “pretty healthy”, tracks his sleep with a fitness ring, meditates, and tests his blood regularly, all in the name of staying fit and well as he gets older.

And, once a week, Dan pops a few milligrams of rapamycin in his mouth. It’s an immunosuppressive drug that is typically taken daily to help treat some cancers, or encourage organ recipients’ bodies to accept new kidneys.

Dan started taking a little bit every week, hoping to help his body stay young.

His family, he says, thinks he’s “crazy” for taking off-label rapamycin, but he says he just didn’t want to wait until he’s old and sick to play pharmaceutical “whack-a-mole” with his body.

Dan asked not to publish his last name because he’s not prescribed all the drugs he takes to combat ageing. Instead, he gets some of his pills on the internet, through foreign pharmacies.

He takes the cheap diabetes drug metformin daily, and pops several US$1 to US$2 rapamycin pills each week.