GW501516 (Cardarine)_Dosage, benefits & legal status
Also known as Cardarine, GW-501516, GW1516, Endurobol
A discontinued drug whose development stopped over cancer in multiple organs.
Common vial size is what vendors typically sell, not a recommendation. Enter your own vial in the calculator.
What is GW501516 (Cardarine)?
Plain language first. The technical label stays, but it never stands alone.Overview
Developed as a real drug, then dropped after animal testing found tumors. It is still sold online for endurance.
GW501516 (cardarine), a selective PPAR-delta agonist developed for dyslipidaemia and metabolic disease. A published rat carcinogenicity study reported tumor findings, and pharmaceutical development was discontinued. Named explicitly in WADA prohibited list section S4.4. No approved use in any jurisdiction.
What it's used for
Sold for endurance and fat loss. Development was discontinued after animal carcinogenicity findings.
How does GW501516 (Cardarine) work?
What it does in the body, and where.This is the compound in this library with the clearest reason not to take it.
- 01PPAR-delta shifts fuel use toward fatThe receptor regulates genes involved in fat burning and muscle fiber type, which is why the endurance results in animals were dramatic.
- 02The carcinogenicity finding ended itA published rat carcinogenicity study of GW501516 reported tumors, and the pharmaceutical development program was discontinued. This is not an ambiguity in the record. It is why the drug does not exist.
- 03Anti-doping authorities took the unusual step of warning the publicWADA names GW501516 explicitly in the prohibited list, spelling out its full chemical name, and the agency issued a public health warning about it, which it does not normally do for banned substances.
What else is it used for?
Each use below carries its own evidence level. Approved means regulators have cleared it for that purpose. Investigational means it is in trials. Early research means it is being studied and is not established.
- Endurance and exercise capacityEarly research
- Fat oxidation and blood lipids, its original development targetInvestigational
The published record
Papers and trials about GW501516 (Cardarine)
177 papers tagged human · 102 not reviews or lab · 6 clinical trial publications
3 registered trials · none with posted results
Furthest stage reached: Phase 2, completed, no results posted
Counted from Europe PMC indexing, not read by a person; a human tag can land on reviews, commentary or lab papers; clinical trial publications is the narrower count.
At a glance
Four things to know about GW501516 (Cardarine)
Evidence
Category
Weight loss and metabolic
Common vial
Varies
Half-life
Nothing published
How much, and do you cycle it?
The range, and whether you take breaks.2.5 up to 10 mg per day, once daily in the trials. Not established No range
No schedule has been studied for this compound in people.
Nothing publishedNo figure
No current human pharmacokinetic reference is recorded here. Development was discontinued.
You can compare this against the whole library to see where it sits.
What does it cost?
Typical dose and cost, in plain numbers.GW501516 (Cardarine) is not injected
It is taken by mouth (oral). The phase 2 dose-ranging trial gave 2.5, 5 or 10 mg once a day by mouth for 12 weeks to 268 people with low HDL cholesterol. HDL rose up to 16.9 percent at 10 mg.
GW501516 (Cardarine) starts at $62.99 across 5 vendors, typically $8.20 per mg.
7 listings, last read Oct 10, 2026. Shipping and card fees are not included.
How do you store it?
Before mixing, and after.Room temperature. Cool, dry, out of light.
GW501516 (Cardarine) is taken as a pill or capsule. Keep it in its original container at room temperature, away from heat, humidity, and direct sun. No fridge or mixing needed. Check the expiration date on the bottle.
What are the side effects and cautions?
Known cautions and warnings for this compound.This compound's development was stopped because of cancer findings in animal testing. That is the single most important fact about it and it belongs above any discussion of dosing.
Who should avoid it
- Anyone, on the basis of the carcinogenicity findings that stopped its development
- Pregnancy or breastfeeding
- Any history of cancer
- Anyone competing in drug-tested sport
- Anyone who wants established safety data, because none exists for this compound in humans
Stop and get help
- Signs of an allergic reaction, including spreading hives, facial or throat swelling, or trouble breathing
- Anything unusual, since there is no known safety profile to compare it against
Common effects
- Unknown in people. No completed human trial has reported a safety profile
Where this page says nothing is established, that means nobody has studied it, not that a compound is safe.
Is GW501516 (Cardarine) approved?
And where the numbers on this page come from.No. GW501516 (Cardarine) is not approved for any use, anywhere. It is sold labeled for laboratory research only, and there is no legal route to buy it for human use.
- Approval statusResearch only
- RouteBy mouth (oral)
- Checked22 September 2026
- DoseFrom published clinical trials. Not approved by a regulator for this dose.
- Vial sizeFrom what vendors typically list; not a recommendation.
- SourcesNone traced yet.
What has happened recently
Not approved for any use anywhere, and pharmaceutical development was discontinued following animal carcinogenicity findings. Prohibited in sport at all times by WADA under section S4.4, where it is named explicitly.
Banned in drug-tested sport. Most research peptides are prohibited under WADA's S0 category, which covers any substance with no approval from any regulatory authority for human use. That means a compound can be banned without ever being named on the prohibited list. Check with your own anti-doping authority rather than assuming absence from the list means permitted.
You can compare this against the whole library, or read how to check a seller.
If you're weighing GW501516 (Cardarine), it's worth reading ATX-304 (O-304), SR9009 (Stenabolic), and 710GO in the same class.
A discontinued drug whose development stopped over cancer in multiple organs.
- Dose
- 2.5 up to 10 mg per day
- How often
- Once daily in the trials
An exercise mimetic that got through a phase 2a trial and then went quiet.
- Dose
- 400 mg per day
- How often
- Once daily in the trial
A body clock drug sold as a workout replacement, with an oral absorption problem.
- Dose
- Research only
- How often
- Not established
An experimental weight-loss pill aimed at two melanocortin receptors instead of one, so far tested only in animals.
- Dose
- No human dose disclosed
- How often
- Not established (daily in monkeys)
Guides for this compound
- mcg vs mg: The Peptide Dosing Mistake to Avoid
Your vial says mg and your protocol says mcg. Here is the conversion and how to check it.
- Why Does My Peptide Injection Itch or Welt
Injection-site irritation, a histamine reaction, or a true allergy, and how to tell them apart.
- How to Read a Peptide COA
What the purity number does and does not tell you, and how to spot an edited report.
- How to Vet a Peptide Vendor
Independent COAs, HPLC purity, and the red flags that mean walk away.
- Semaglutide vs Tirzepatide vs Retatrutide
One receptor, two, or three. Mechanism, trial weight loss, side effects, and real cost.
Sources
No primary source has been traced for this compound yet. Treat everything on this page as unverified until one is. How we grade evidence
Beyond these, 351 records are indexed. Browse the records