Could a milk thistle extract help Parkinson's patients?

NCT ID NCT07001150

What the study statuses mean

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Recruitment status, easiest to join first

Recruiting now This study
This trial is taking on new participants right now.
Not yet recruiting
Registered, but not yet taking participants.
By invitation only
Not open to general applications. Only people the study team invites can take part.
Paused
Paused for now. It may or may not start again.
Ongoing
Running, but no longer taking on new participants.
Completed
The trial has finished. Results may not be published yet.
Stopped early
Stopped early, before it reached the end. That can be for many reasons, including safety.
Cancelled
Cancelled before anyone took part.

Expanded access (not trials)

Expanded access
Not a trial. This treatment can be requested outside a study, case by case, for people who qualify.
Expanded access (paused)
Not a trial. The treatment can normally be requested outside a study, but is unavailable right now.
Expanded access (ended)
Not a trial. The treatment could once be requested outside a study, but no longer can.
Approved
The treatment has been approved, so it is available normally rather than through this programme.

When the status isn't known

Details not published
The full record has not been published yet, so there is little to show here.
Status unknown
This status has not been confirmed recently, so it may be out of date.

First seen Jun 25, 2026 · Last updated Jun 26, 2026 · Updated 1 time

Summary

This Phase 2 trial is testing whether silymarin, an antioxidant from milk thistle, can protect brain cells and improve symptoms in people with Parkinson's disease. Researchers will give 50 adults either silymarin or a placebo alongside their usual Parkinson's medications. The goal is to see if silymarin can slow the disease's progression and ease movement problems.

What this could mean

Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.

Active substance
silymarin (milk thistle extract)
What this could lead to
If it works, this could point toward a new way to slow Parkinson's progression and improve symptom control when added to standard treatment.
What could go wrong
This is a small, early Phase 2 trial, so results may not apply to everyone. Silymarin is generally safe, but it may not provide meaningful benefit for Parkinson's symptoms or nerve protection.

This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.

Study facts

What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.

Phase

Phase 2

Tests whether the treatment actually works, and watches for side effects, in a larger group.

Participants

About 50 people

The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.

Started

May 2025

Expected to finish

May 2026

An estimate. End dates often move.

Lead sponsor

Other sponsor

The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.

Who can take part

This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.

Ages

45 to 65 years

Sex

Anyone

Healthy volunteers

Not accepted

This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.

Show the full entry requirements

Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.

Inclusion Criteria: * Age between 45 and 65 years old * Both sexes * Patients with Parkinson's disease on dopamine replacement therapy * Modified Hoehn and Yahr stage, MHY 1-4 (29) Exclusion Criteria: * Subjects \< 18 years of age * Pregnant or breastfeeding women * Suspected hypersensitivity to silymarin or multivitamins * Advanced liver disease (e.g., ascites, bleeding esophageal varices, and hepatic encephalopathy) * Subjects with morbid obesity, i.e., a Body Mass Index (BMI) \> 40 * Subjects with severe illness, e.g., multisystem failure, cancer, or poorly controlled diabetes, i.e., known diabetic with Hemoglobin A1C (HbA1C)\>7% * Current use of Silymarin or recent use within the past two weeks. * Other conditions, which, in the opinion of the investigators, make the patient unsuitable for enrollment.

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Conditions

The condition(s) this trial relates to.

As listed by the trial registrant

The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.

How to take part

Only the study team decides who joins. These are the ways to reach them.

  1. The places running it

    1 site. The list below names each one and where it is.

  2. The official record

    ClinicalTrials.gov lists the study team's own contact details, including names and phone numbers. We don't republish those.

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  3. A doctor treating you

    A doctor who knows your case can contact a study site on your behalf, and can tell you whether this study is worth pursuing at all.

Contacts and locations

Locations

  • Tanta Hospital for Mental Health

    RECRUITING

    Tanta, Tanta, Qism 2, 31511, Egypt

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