DRUG HUNTER
Doctor’s anaesthetic is helping patients all over world battle back to health
When the heroes of the Covid-19 outbreak are finally indexed, a vet perhaps won’t be the most obvious candidate for the roll of honour.
But Dr Iain Glen – dubbed The Drug Hunter – is the pharma expert whose anaesthetic has helped coronavirus patients around the world battle back to good health.
He discovered propofol, nicknamed “milk of amnesia”, which is being used to gently sedate victims of the killer bug being treated on ventilators.
The veterinarian no doubt cringed at seeing his invention’s misuse linked to the death of megastar Michael Jackson and remained cool over the controversy of Death Row inmates’ final moments being subdued by its efficacy.
But now the Arran-born medic is getting used to the drug he developed mormore than 45 years ago helpinhelping people fight back to fitnefitness during the global health crisis.
PrPropofol is one of the most widely used sedsedatives for intensive cacare patients who havhave been hit hard by coronavirus. Speaking exclusively to the Sunday Mail, Dr Glen revealed its status as a wonder drug has left him with conflicting emotions.
The dad of two said: “It’s rewarding in a bittersweet way to see propofol being so widely used now.
“It’s used in artificial ventilation as it’s rapidly metabolised. It took 13 years from seeing how it worked to getting it launched as a product so it was a labour of love.
“It looks like milk. There were many battles to go through to get it out there. We had to fight to convince people that it was worthwhile and to see it being used to help so many is satisfying.”
Propofol gained public attention as the drug singer Jackson used before he died in 2009.
In 2012, it was approved for use in the execution of prisoners in the US.
But experts say it has transformed people’s lives and eased trauma in operating rooms, intensive care units, emergency departments and outpatient clinics.
Propofol, developed in 1973, is now the standard intravenous anaesthetic in the world and has made a huge array of operations and medical tests comfortable and less damaging for patients.
It was not officially launched until 1986
My first job choice was to be a farmer but our farm was too small to make a living
in New Zealand. Dr Glen’s drug puts people to sleep quickly but does not stay in their system long.
Patients can be kept lightly sedated and woken up quickly, free of the hangover produced by previous anaesthetics.
It means Covid-19 sufferers can be taken off a ventilator and moved from intensive care sooner, lowering the risk of infection or side effects including delirium and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).
Propofol has been on the market for almost 30 years but its importance has soared during the pandemic.
The drug is now on the World Health Organisation’s essential list and was recently placed on the US Food and Drug Administration’s shortage list “following a surge in demand due to the increase in hospital ised, venti lated patients resulting from the Covid-19 pandemic”.
Glasgow University graduate Dr Glen said: “You can never really predict all the ways that a drug will be used.
“Michael Jackson apparently developed an aff inity for using it to help him sleep at night but it was never intended for that use. It was not meant to be a bedroom sedative.
“There is a difference between using a drug and abusing it. When it comes to use on Death Row, I think people have just looked to use the anaesthetic that is most widely used and that is propofol. That process is a mess as medical people do not want to be associated with it. Any drug can be used positively or abused in a different way than was intended.”
He originally qualified as a vet and became interested in veterinary anaesthesia.
Dr Glen said: “When I was growing up, I helped in the f ields and with the animals so I was keen on working with animals.
“My first career choice was to be a farmer but our farm was too small for me to make a living. So I went after my second choice, veterinary medicine at Glasgow University, and became a practising animal surgeon. Then, in 1968, I became the first person in the UK to earn a diploma in veterinary anaesthesia.
“I went to work for ICI Pharmaceuticals and was working on anaesthesia.
“Propofol was potent but did not create a kind of hangover. The recipient was very clear-headed.
“When tested on animals, it was special. We had mice walking on little rods like tightropes and they regained their balance three minutes after waking up from propofol.”
During his remarkable career, Dr Glen, who has homes in Arran and Cheshire, has knocked out cats, dogs, horses, sheep, pigs – and even pelicans.
He said: “Dealing with a pelican was quite tricky. I remember the pelican was actually hard to anaesthetise.
“The animal had a broken beak at the veterinary hospital and we inserted a pin through the bones to support the jaw.”
He added: “You could say that drug hunting is quite creative. It is applied pharmacology and looking at what works best . Sometimes it works very well. About nine out of 10 patients who get a general ana e s thet ic get propofol.
“I am up and down to Scotland a lot. It is still very much home.”
Professor Ewan Cameron, of Glasgow Univers it y, nominated Dr Glen for an honorary degree last year.
He said: “Iain’s story is an epitome of having a vision, working hard and overcoming setbacks to bring his discovery to the clinic and enhancing healthcare around the world.”