Decryption of the Feminization Drug on the Internet

The real scientific name (generic name) for stilbestrol or stilboestrol is diethylstilbestrol (DES), but not the "biethylstilbestrol" often mentioned online. It is in fact a typical prescription drug, with those marketed in China including Diethylstilbestrol Tablets and Diethylstilbestrol Injection, etc. DES mainly treats and supplements estrogen deficiency in females, and can also treat breast cancer and prostatic cancer, however, DES tablets may increase the incidence of vaginal cancer in female offspring and genital tract abnormity and sperm abnormity in males.

Fig. 1 Molecular Structure of DES

The source of a notable drug misadventure in the history, the cancerogenic substance at the fetal stage

As an estrogen analogue, DES was first made through artificial synthesis in a pharmaceutical laboratory in 1938, therefore, it is called a kind of "synthetic estrogen". During 1938 and 1971, doctors in many countries prescribed DES for pregnant women owing to its estrogen efficacy, to prevent miscarriage and avoid other pregnancy issues, such as fetus protection. According to estimation, about 5 million to 10 million pregnant women used DES and gave birth to babies. At that time, doctors considered DES to be safe for pregnant women and to prevent miscarriage and premature birth, and some pregnant women were advised to use DES for healthcare because they were found to not produce sufficient estrogen level at the later period by test, resulting in a wider affected population thereafter.

There was already published research indicating that DES could not prevent miscarriage or premature birth in 1953, however, DES was still in use clinically for nearly 20 years, until the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a Drug Bulletin in 1971, advising doctors to stop prescribing DES to pregnant women, which was based on a study published in 1971 that identified DES as a cause of a rare vaginal cancer in girls and young women who had been exposed to DES before birth (in the womb). The drug was banned for pregnant women in the U.S. after 1971.

The cancer type and special mechanism induced by DES have been made clear

Generally, vaginal cancer is not common in females, and is generally of the squamous cell carcinoma that usually occurs in elderly females but is rare in young patients, with the average age of onset diagnosed to be 60-65 years old; however, the vaginal cancer induced by DES is an extremely rare type—clear cell adenocarcinoma which is seen only in the female offspring borne by females who take DES during their pregnancy in order to prevent miscarriage and protect fetuses. Such special clear cell adenocarcinoma of vaginal cancer occurred in the special female group born between 1938 and 1973, whose mothers had the DES use history (to prevent miscarriage and premature birth, etc.) during their pregnancy. It’s been decades since this drug misadventure, and its carcinogenic mechanism has been made clear: DES enters the fetus’ body via the womb placental barrier; there is already estrogen receptor developing in the vagina of fetus during early pregnancy; DES cannot be metabolized in the fetus’ body as synthetic estrogen, and thus accumulates, which affects the development of reproductive organs of the fetus such as vagina, sowing the "seed" for the occurrence of cancer in the future. The incidence of special vaginal cancer in the offspring is between 1% and 4%.

The prescription drug DES, a hot feminization/impotence drug on the internet

Despite the fact that pregnant women being exposed DES may result in cancer of their offspring, DES is often used as a drug for the feminization of males in the modern society, namely, making the skin of males smoother, shrinking pores, and making them look feminine, due to the multiple estrogen effects of DES; it is termed a feminization drug. And this drug is abusable. It is maliciously used to induce male impotence, etc., which may be also a self-directed advertising act of merchants. DES is considered as a feminization drug due to its possession of the general effects of estrogen: it acts like estrogen in female bodies, and long-term use thereof may cause impotence and feminization of male patients.

To sum up, hormones can be good and bad to human reproduction. It has been proved that irrational use of hormone analogues such as DES may plant a "time bomb" in the lives of future babies. DES is now associated with the increased risks of breast cancer, clear cell adenocarcinoma and reproduction abnormality of vagina and cervix, and reproduction abnormality. All people, not only females, exposed to DES may have increased risks of certain health problems, for example, DES can cause certain fluid retention in human body, and asthma, seizure, migraine, and cardiac and renal insufficiency. Such drugs made by imitating the secretory regulation substances in human body may cause damage that is more difficult to find for a long time.

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