Colchicine’s History and Present Day Uses

Colchicine is a drug with an interesting history and impressive present day uses.  It has been in use in one form or another since the first century, for the treatment of gout or gout arthritis.  At first colchicum extract was used.  It was used to treat rheumatism and swelling.  Colchicum was brought to the United States by Benjamin Franklin, who suffered from gout himself.  Then, in 1820, two French chemists isolated colchicine.  It was later identified as an alkaloid.  It can relieve the symptoms of gout because it is able to combine with tubulin.
Tubulin is necessary for the process of mitosis.  Because colchicine inhibits that process, it is being researched as a chemotherapeutic treatment for cancer.  The cancer cells are the ones that grow the fastest, so they are the most affected.

Colchicine is an extract from the autumn crocus or meadow saffron.  It has been used longer than any other medication for relief from the debilitating pain and symptoms of gout and remains the most effective anti-gout medication. Gout is caused by an excess of uric acid in the blood.  This causes uric acid crystals to form in the liquid of the joints.  Gout has been described through the centuries as debilitating, the flare-ups characterized by sudden sharp, shooting pains.  It particularly affects the feet.  Although historically it has been associated with rich living: eating lots of meat and drinking alcohol, this is not always the case.

Colchicine’s anti-inflammatory qualities are beneficial in the treatment of Mediterranean fever, an inherited disorder that causes inflammation of the lungs, the stomach and the joints. 

While colchicines does not cure either Mediterranean fever or gout, it does relieve the symptoms and pain associated with the two diseases.  In fact, patients who take colchicines for gout experience relief within the first twenty four hours.
Colchicine is available as intravenous treatment or as a prescription drug.