3 New Studies Published Showing Cannabis Effectively Helps Treat Cancer

3 New Studies Prove Cannabis Effectively Helps Treat Cancer

Cancer is the second biggest killer in the world, just next to cardiovascular disease. It is a serious burden globally and takes a toll not just on patients, but on their families because of its devastating symptoms and oftentimes poor prognosis.

It was always thought that cancer had no cure…. Until the research on cannabis came along. Cancer may be a killer, but cannabis kills cancer.

There is a growing body of evidence that supports this, and now we have three new ones to further cement these claims.

Patients Self-Report Significant Improvements In Cancer Symptoms For Minnesota Study

A study of the Minnesota medical cannabis program has revealed promising results. What makes the Minnesota medical cannabis program different is that it regularly collects patient-reported data based on their symptoms.

For this study, cancer patients enrolled in the program had difficulties with 8 main cancer symptoms: lack of appetite, anxiety, depression, fatigue, disturbed sleep, pain, nausea, and vomiting. These symptoms were all at their most intense just 24 hours prior to each patient buying cannabis.

Researchers compared the baseline scores for each symptom, then were compared to the symptom scores that the patients reported within their first 4 months in Minnesota’s medical cannabis program. It’s good to note that patients also reported how intense each symptoms were.

They found a substantial reduction in scores among all the symptoms when the researchers compared their baseline scores against the average patient score that was given after their first 4 months. Specifically, 27% of patients reported 30% or more reduction in symptoms for fatigue, and 50% for vomiting. Overall, all the cancer patients that were analyzed for this study revealed significant reductions for all the 8 symptoms after just 4 months of using cannabis. The researchers also noted that cannabis seemed to be well tolerated by a majority of the patients.

Pair Of Cancer-Cannabis Studies Prove CBD’s Anti-Cancer Activity

British and Brazilian researchers have proven CBD’s valuable anti-cancer properties.

For the first study, UK investigators assessed an 81-year-old patient with lung cancer who opted out of chemotherapy. Instead, he used CBD and the researchers noted that his tumor size decreased after medicating with CBD extracts.

“The data presented here indicate that CBD may have had a role in the striking response in a patient with histologically proven adenocarcinoma of the lung as a result of self-administration of CBD oil for a month and in the absence of any other identifiable lifestyle, drug or dietary changes. Further work is needed both in vitro and in vivo to better evaluate the various mechanisms of action of CBD on malignant cells, and its potential application in the treatment of not only lung cancer but also other malignancies,” they concluded.

The second study, conducted by Brazilian researchers, assessed the anti-cancer activity of CBD for 2 38-year-old patients suffering from brain cancer. Both patients decided to use CBD on top of conventional anti-cancer treatment, resulting in a “significant improvement” based on clinical data as well as inhibited cancer progression for the two years that followed.

The authors concluded that, “These observations are of particular interest because the pharmacology of cannabinoids appears to be distinct from existing oncology medications and may offer a unique and possibly synergistic option for future glioma treatment.”

Conclusion

With millions of people around the world now enjoying improved access to cannabis, it’s clear that it can help save lives even when taking in varying forms. There is also strong evidence suggesting that cannabis may have a better outcome for cancer patients when used in conjunction with conventional therapies such as chemotherapy, particularly because it can help mitigate the notorious side effects that it comes with while improving a patient’s prognosis.

As of now, we need more studies to help us understand which compounds in the cannabis plant are better suited for treating certain types of cancers. While some cancers respond well to THC and others to CBD, we are aware of the entourage effect and thus need more clarity on how best to medicate with cannabis for greater success in treating the Big C. Cancer patients can also benefit from developing more options by which to take cannabis for cancer, since not everyone is open to the idea of smoking it.

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