Elemental arsenic is a well-known poison. Surprisingly, arsenic can also have medicinal applications. In Victorian times, Dr Fowler’s Solution (potassium arsenite dissolved in water) was a popular cure-all tonic that was even used by Charles Dickens. Fowler’s solution itself was a substitute for another “patent medicine”.
Today there is renewed interest in inorganic arsenic compounds as pharmaceuticals: Pharmaceutical Compositions Comprising Sodium Or Potassium Arsenite For The Treatment Of Urogenital Cancer And Its Metastasis (2006). Furthermore, organoarsenic compounds can also be used in medicine:
- Improvements In Or Relating To Therapeutically Active Organoarsenic Compounds (1962),
- Use Of Organoarsenic Or Organoantimony Derivatives For Their Anticancer Properties (2005), and
- Organoarsenic Compounds And Methods For The Treatment Of Cancer (2010).
An example of a simple organoarsenic compound is the 5 membered heterocycle arsole. Arsenic compounds can be used to make special glass (Arsenic Sulphide Glasses (1962)), and preserve wood (Improvements Relating To The Impregnation Of Wood With Arsenic Preparations (1952)).
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All patent information has been obtained from Espacenet (European Patent Office).