“Radiotherapy combined with chemotherapy is the major treatment modality for human glioblastoma multiforme (GBM). GBMs eventually relapse after treatment and the average survival of GBM patients is less than two years.
There is some evidence that cannabidiol (CBD) can induce cell death and increases the radiosensitivity of GBM by enhancing apoptosis. Beside initiation of death, CBD has been demonstrated as an inducer of autophagy.
In the present study, we address the question whether CBD simultaneously induces a protective effect in GBM by upregulating autophagy. Addition of chloroquine that suppressed autophagic flux to 2D GBM cultures increased CBD-induced cell death, presenting proof for the protective autophagy.
Blockage of autophagy upregulated radiation-induced cytotoxicity but only modestly affected the levels of cell death in CBD- or CBD/γ-irradiated 3D GBM cultures. Furthermore, CBD enhanced the pro-apoptotic activities of JNK1/2 and MAPK p38 signaling cascades while partially downregulated the pro-survival PI3K-AKT cascade, thereby changing a balance between cell death and survival.
Suppression of JNK activation partially reduced CBD-induced cell death in 3D GBM cultures. In contrast, co-treatment of CBD-targeted cells with inhibitors of PI3K-AKT-NF-κB, IKK-NF-κB or JAK2-STAT3 pathways killed surviving GBM cells in both 2D and 3D cultures, potentially improving the therapeutic ratio of GBM.”
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/32060308
“Killing efficiency of cannabinoids (CBD, THC and their combination CBD+THC) against GBM in vitro and in animal experiments has been elucidated in numerous studies during the last 15 years. Additional investigations also confirmed a cytotoxic role of cannabinoids for several other types of cancer. A number of studies demonstrated the efficiency of combined treatments of cannabinoids together with γ-irradiation in both cell culture and in animal experiments.”
“Cannabinoids are a group of structurally heterogeneous but pharmacologically related compounds, including plant-derived cannabinoids, synthetic substances and endogenous cannabinoids, such as anandamide and 2-arachidonoylglycerol.
“In recent years, the endocannabinoid system has received great interest as a potential therapeutic target in numerous pathological conditions.
“Glioma-related epilepsy significantly impact on patients’ quality of life, and can often be difficult to treat. Seizures cause significant morbidity for example neurocognitive deterioration, which may result from seizures themselves or due to adverse effects from antiepileptic drugs. Management of tumour with surgery, radiotherapy and chemotherapy may contribute to seizure control, but tumour related epilepsy is often refractory despite adequate treatment with standard anti-epileptic medications. Given the increasing interest in medicinal cannabis (or 
“Grade IV glioblastoma multiforme is a deadly disease, with a median survival of around 14 to 16 months. Maximal resection followed by adjuvant radiochemotherapy has been the mainstay of treatment since many years, although survival is only extended by a few months. In recent years, an increasing number of data from in vitro and in vivo research with cannabinoids, particularly with the non-intoxicating cannabidiol (CBD), point to their potential role as tumour-inhibiting agents. Herein, a total of nine consecutive patients with brain tumours are described as case series; all patients received CBD in a daily dose of 400 mg concomitantly to the standard therapeutic procedure of maximal resection followed by radiochemotherapy. By the time of the submission of this article, all but one patient are still alive with a mean survival time of 22.3 months (range=7-47 months). This is longer than what would have been expected.”
“Cannabinoid receptors have been detected in human gliomas and cannabinoids have been proposed as novel drug candidates in the treatment of brain tumors.
“Phytocannabinoids are unique terpenophenolic compounds predominantly produced in the glandular trichomes of the cannabis plant (Cannabis sativa L.). The delta-9- tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) is the main active constituent responsible for the plant’s psychoactive effect and, together with the non- psychoactive cannabidiol (CBD), the most investigated naturally occurring cannabinoid.
