"Suramin has got to be injected to a vein, and can have serious side effects. It is used to inhibit growth of some protein. See WISE-GEEK website.
It is a drug commonly used in the treatment of African sleeping sickness and onchocerciasis, also known as river blindness. It is an odorless, tasteless, white powder which is dissolved in saline and administered intravenously. It is an effective remedy for a number of parasitic diseases, and has been widely used for this purpose since the early 1920s. More recently, suramin has shown some promise in the treatment of certain cancers."