Marijuana Cuts Lung Cancer Tumor Growth In Half, Study Shows
Tuesday, March 24th, 2009 at 7:49 am | By: Justice
Marijuana Cuts Lung Cancer Tumor Growth In Half, Study Shows
The active ingredient in marijuana cuts tumor growth in common lung cancer in half and significantly reduces the ability of the cancer to spread, say researchers at Harvard University who tested the chemical in both lab and mouse studies.
They say this is the first set of experiments to show that the compound, Delta-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), inhibits EGF-induced growth and migration in epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) expressing non-small cell lung cancer cell lines. Lung cancers that over-express EGFR are usually highly aggressive and resistant to chemotherapy.
That’s right stashers, It cut growth in half of cancers that are highly aggressive and resistant to chemotherapy. When you put good ol’ THC on the case, it steps right up and punches the toughest cancer in the lab in the face. They put THC to the test, and it proved it’s worth.
“The beauty of this study is that we are showing that a substance of abuse, if used prudently, may offer a new road to therapy against lung cancer,” said Anju Preet, Ph.D., a researcher in the Division of Experimental Medicine.
Do I hear a “recognized medicinal value” in that statement? A “new road to therapy” certainly sounds like enough information to me to justify a reclassification of the Schedule 1 drug.
In the present study, the researchers first demonstrated that two different lung cancer cell lines as well as patient lung tumor samples express CB1 and CB2, and that non-toxic doses of THC inhibited growth and spread in the cell lines. “When the cells are pretreated with THC, they have less EGFR stimulated invasion as measured by various in-vitro assays,” Preet said.
Then, for three weeks, researchers injected standard doses of THC into mice that had been implanted with human lung cancer cells, and found that tumors were reduced in size and weight by about 50 percent in treated animals compared to a control group. There was also about a 60 percent reduction in cancer lesions on the lungs in these mice as well as a significant reduction in protein markers associated with cancer progression, Preet says.
These kind of results are normally enough to be heralded as a “breakthrough” and the media takes such statements and elevates them to “magic bullet” status. If this were a drug manufactured by Eli-Lilly this study would have been on your local news, but it’s just marijuana. I guess we need more studies…
Preet doesn’t disappoint,
“THC offers some promise, but we have a long way to go before we know what its potential is,” she said.
If my job was testing pot, I’d call for more testing every time. But that’s just me…
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So sorry, It was late and I didn’t examine the post date. I occasionally get old links during my searches. Thanks for the correction and the update.
I agree that it would be quite a shame that Dr. Preet would have to give up his research due to political pressure.
This study was done in 2007, almost 2 years ago. There have been advances since this time, although this is the mainstay of the significant headline of the research thus far.
From what I understand, immediately following the publication of this article, Dr. Preet was verbally accosted and chastised by his Harvard chain of command because John Fuckwad Walters used his influence to try and punish Preet for his work.
I’ve tried to get in touch with Dr. Preet’s office for any follow up, but they won’t return my calls or answer my questions….. It’s sad if he was intimidated enough to abandon his research.