Tag Archives: THC

Marijuana May Stall Brain Tumor Growth – WebMD

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“Active Ingredient in Marijuana Inhibits Cancer Growth in Early Study.
 
The active ingredient in marijuana may help fight brain tumors, a new study suggests.
 

Researchers say the cannabinoids found in marijuana may aid in brain tumor treatment by targeting the genes needed for the tumors to sprout blood vessels and grow.

Their study showed that cannabinoids inhibited genes needed for the production of vascular growth factor (VEGF) in laboratory mice with glioma brain tumors and two patients with late-stage glioblastoma multiforme, a form of brain cancer.

VEGF is a protein that stimulates blood vessels to grow. Tumors need an abundant blood supply because they generally grow rapidly. So when VEGF is blocked, tumors starve from lack of blood supply and nutrients.

Blocking of VEGF constitutes one of the most promising tumor-fighting approaches currently available, says researcher Manuel Guzman, professor of biochemistry and molecular biology, at the Complutense University in Madrid, Spain, in a news release.”

More:http://www.webmd.com/cancer/news/20040815/marijuana-stall-brain-tumor-growth 

“Cannabinoids Inhibit the Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor Pathway in Gliomas”:  http://cancerres.aacrjournals.org/content/64/16/5617.long

 

Unhappy Couple
 

Pot Slows Cancer in Test Tube – WebMD

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“THC and another marijuana-derived compound slow the spread of cervical and lung cancers, test-tube studies suggest.

The new findings add to the fast-growing number of animal and cell-culture studies showing different anticancer effects for cannabinoids, chemical compounds derived from marijuana.

Cannabinoids, and sometimes marijuana itself, are currently used to lessen the nausea and pain experienced by many cancer patients. The new findings — suggest that cannabinoids may have a direct anticancer effect.

“Cannabinoids’ … potential therapeutic benefit in the treatment of highly invasive cancers should be addressed in clinical trials,” conclude Robert Ramer, PhD, and Burkhard Hinz, PhD, of the University of Rostock, Germany…

Doses of THC that reduce pain in cancer patients yield blood concentrations much higher than the concentrations needed to inhibit cancer invasion.

“Thus the effects of THC on cell invasion occurred at therapeutically relevant concentrations,” Ramer and Hinz note…

Ramer and Hinz report the findings in the Jan. 2, 2008 issue of the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.”

More: http://www.webmd.com/cancer/news/20071226/pot-slows-cancer-in-test-tube

“Inhibition of Cancer Cell Invasion by Cannabinoids via Increased Expression of Tissue Inhibitor of Matrix Metalloproteinases-1”: http://jnci.oxfordjournals.org/content/100/1/59.long

Marijuana Inhibits Tumors

Towards a better Cannabis drug.

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“Opium smoking has been mostly replaced by i.v. injection of morphine and heroin and we see cocaine sniffing rather than chewing of coca leaves. Cannabis use – be it of marijuana, hashish or bhang – differs.

Any cannabis cognoscente will insist that the crude material is ‘much better’ than pure Δ9 – tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the only major psychoactive constituent of cannabis (Mechoulam et al., 1970).

Indeed, although pure THC is available as a drug (named Dronabinol) it is apparently not used illicitly.

The pharmacological/biochemical basis for this difference is not clear and is presumably due to several factors. A major reason seems to be the pharmacokinetic difference between cannabis smoking and the oral administration of THC.

 On smoking, the cannabis effects are noted almost immediately, while a 1.5 – 2 hour delay is observed on oral administration.

A further factor may be conditioning to the smell, although there are no published data along these lines. A further factor may be the presence of the terpenoid CB2 agonist beta-caryophyllene in cannabis (Gertsch et al., 2008).

CB2 agonists are well known to cause numerous effects (mostly of a protective nature) which may counteract some of the effects of THC (Pacher & Mechoulam, 2011).”

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24024867

Therapeutic potential of cannabinoid medicines.

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Drug Testing and Analysis

“Cannabis was extensively used as a medicine throughout the developed world in the nineteenth century but went into decline early in the twentieth century ahead of its emergence as the most widely used illicit recreational drug later that century. Recent advances in cannabinoid pharmacology alongside the discovery of the endocannabinoid system (ECS) have re-ignited interest in cannabis-based medicines.

The ECS has emerged as an important physiological system and plausible target for new medicines. Its receptors and endogenous ligands play a vital modulatory role in diverse functions including immune response, food intake, cognition, emotion, perception, behavioural reinforcement, motor co-ordination, body temperature, wake/sleep cycle, bone formation and resorption, and various aspects of hormonal control. In disease it may act as part of the physiological response or as a component of the underlying pathology.

In the forefront of clinical research are the cannabinoids delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol and cannabidiol, and their contrasting pharmacology will be briefly outlined. The therapeutic potential and possible risks of drugs that inhibit the ECS will also be considered. This paper will then go on to review clinical research exploring the potential of cannabinoid medicines in the following indications: symptomatic relief in multiple sclerosis, chronic neuropathic pain, intractable nausea and vomiting, loss of appetite and weight in the context of cancer or AIDS, psychosis, epilepsy, addiction, and metabolic disorders.”

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24006213

http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/dta.1529/abstract

Cannabis Kills Cancer Cells

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“Marijuana also found to prevent pain associated with chemotherapy”

Cannabis Kills Cancer Cells

“Studies in Spain have shown findings that Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the active ingredient found in marijuana, can induce the death of brain cancer cells, according to scientist Guillermo Velasco and his research team from the School of Biology at Complutense University in Madrid.

In a laboratory study where mice were “engineered” to carry three varying kinds of human cancer tumor grafts, THC was introduced into the brain, triggering a self-digestion development on a cellular level, known as “autophagy.” Within this process, the research team managed to isolate the particular activation route from which this process evolved.

The research team was also conducting clinical trials in concert, on two consenting brain cancer patients, said to be suffering from a rapidly aggressive form of cancer, known as “recurrent glioblastoma multiforme.”

The team, using electron microscopes to analyze brain tissue extracted before and after the 26 to 30-day regime, found that the THC had eradicated cancer cells, leaving the healthy cells undamaged.

The findings can now lend themselves to future design in newer cancer therapies, using the concept of autophagy activation.”

More: http://guardianlv.com/2013/08/cannabis-kills-cancer-cells/

Cannabis Can Prevent Cancer Caused By Cigarette Use, According To New Study

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tobacco cigarettes marijuana cannabis

“A new study published by the journal J-Stage, and funded by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology of Japan, has found that cannabinoids – whether THC, CBD or CBDV – were effective at blocking a certain enzyme which is known to cause cancer, and is produced in large amount when cigarettes are consumed.”

“These results suggest that the pentylresorcinol structure in CBD may have structurally important roles in direct CYP1A1 inhibition, although the whole structure of CBD is required for overall inhibition”, according to researchers.

CYP1A1 is an enzyme which isn’t dangerous at low-levels, but is produced in large quantities when someone smokes cigarettes; at large doses, the enzyme has been linked to cancer.

Researchers state that; “Accordingly, CBD and its related compounds, which are potent inhibitors of CYP1A1 activity, would be useful as a lead compound in anticancer chemotherapy.””

http://www.theweedblog.com/cannabis-can-prevent-cancer-caused-by-cigarette-use-according-to-new-study/

“Marijuana Disrupts Cancer Pathway of Cigarettes: Study” http://www.truthonpot.com/2013/08/19/marijuana-disrupts-cancer-pathway-of-cigarettes-study/

Chemicals in marijuana block the activity of a cancer-causing enzyme present in cigarette smokers.
 
“Chemicals in marijuana can block the activity of a cancer-causing enzyme commonly found in cigarette smokers.”
 
 

“Cannabis Can Prevent Cancer Caused by Cigarette Use, According to New Study” http://thejointblog.com/cannabis-can-prevent-cancer-caused-by-cigarrette-use-according-to-new-study/ 

“Marijuana Can Prevent Millions of Tobacco Deaths” http://salem-news.com/articles/august122013/tobacco-marijuanapl.php

Active Ingredient in Marijuana Kills Brain Cancer Cells

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“New research out of Spain suggests that THC — the active ingredient in marijuana — appears to prompt the death of brain cancer cells.”

 
“The finding is based on work with mice designed to carry human cancer tumors, as well as from an analysis of THC’s impact on tumor cells extracted from two patients coping with a highly aggressive form of brain cancer.”
 

THC is anticarcinogenic: marijuana may be cancer cure!

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“Toxicology and Carcinogenesis Studies of 1-Trans-[Delta.sup.9]-Tetrahydrocannabinol

Summation of above:

“Thus, in our studies, rats and mice that received THC for 2 years exhibited body weight reductions, enhanced survival rates, and decreased tumor incidences in several sites, mainly organs under hormonal control. These earlier experimental carcinogenesis results on THC clearly lend further validity to the notion that cannabinoids may indeed be anticarcinogenic.””

 link
http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Antitumor+Effects+of+THC-a06814…

http://www.sodahead.com/united-states/thc-is-anticarcinogenic-marijuana-may-be-cancer-cure/question-1031413/?link=ibaf&q=THC+anti-carcinogenic+news

Cannabis, a complex plant: different compounds and different effects on individuals.

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“Cannabis is a complex plant, with major compounds such as delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol and cannabidiol, which have opposing effects. The discovery of its compounds has led to the further discovery of an important neurotransmitter system called the endocannabinoid system.

This system is widely distributed in the brain and in the body, and is considered to be responsible for numerous significant functions.

There has been a recent and consistent worldwide increase in cannabis potency, with increasing associated health concerns. A number of epidemiological research projects have shown links between dose-related cannabis use and an increased risk of development of an enduring psychotic illness. However, it is also known that not everyone who uses cannabis is affected adversely in the same way.

What makes someone more susceptible to its negative effects is not yet known, however there are some emerging vulnerability factors, ranging from certain genes to personality characteristics.

 In this article we first provide an overview of the biochemical basis of cannabis research by examining the different effects of the two main compounds of the plant and the endocannabinoid system, and then go on to review available information on the possible factors explaining variation of its effects upon different individuals.”

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23983983

Texas A&M Pharmacy Researcher Fights Cancer, Pain With New Cannabinoid Receptor Drug

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DrDaiLu

“Dr. Lu has been working to find new types of chemotherapeutic drugs that both kill pancreatic cancer and suppress the cancer pain at the same time by targeting a special G-protein coupled receptor that belongs to the biological system responsible for the effects of Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), a compound derived from some varieties of cannabis (hemp) or made synthetically, that is the primary psychoactive agent in marijuana and hashish.

 Dr. Lu says pancreatic cancer cells have more type 2 cannabinoid receptors than do healthy cells.

 Consequently, drug molecules that selectively activate this receptor can induce cancer cell death without affecting normal pancreatic cells, noting that when given to mice with pancreatic tumors, the molecule prevented tumor growth and suppressed the spread of cancer to healthy organs.

 Meanwhile, this class of compounds also generates painkillers comparable to morphine’s pain killing effect…”

More: http://www.bionews-tx.com/news/2013/08/20/texas-am-pharmacy-researcher-fights-cancer-pain-with-new-cannabinoid-receptor-drug/