Can Marijuana Treat Gallbladder Cancer?
The gallbladder plays a significant role in our bodies. One of its main functions is to store a digestive juice called bile. Bile is necessary to break fat down. When our body needs this function, bile gets released into the small intestines to break down fats. Sometimes it happens that the bile gets trapped in the gallbladder because of some sort of blockage. Swelling and irritation are usually caused by gallbladder stones, the cause of the blockage. Cholecystitis is the name of this condition and can be acute or chronic. Today, we are rather going to look at gallbladder cancer. What is the cause of this cancer and how can it be treated?
An overview of gallbladder cancer
The gallbladder is a small, pear-shaped organ on the right side of the abdomen, just below the liver. As we have seen above, the main function is to store bile, the digestive fluid produced by the liver. A more common problem with the gallbladder is stones or inflammation. Gallbladder cancer is quite uncommon and because of that, often diagnosed late. If it is identified early, there is a particularly good chance for it to be healed. In later stage diagnoses, the outcome is not very favorable. It is not easy to identify as it doesn´t show any specific signs, especially early on. It does not help that the organ is small and hidden either. For this reason, it grows often undetected and is discovered too late.
Symptoms of gallbladder cancer
The unfortunate problem with gallbladder cancer is that the symptoms only manifest much later. By then, the disease has progressed significantly. Sometimes, if a person is lucky, the symptoms start showing earlier, which allows for early diagnoses. Some of the symptoms are:
Nausea and vomiting – these are some of the most common symptoms of gallbladder cancer. Nausea often leads to vomiting
Abdominal pain – cancer goes hand-in-hand with pain. When the cancer is in the gallbladder, it would be experienced in the upper right section of the abdomen
Lumps in the stomach – when the gallbladder gets blocked, the inflammation causes it to swell up significantly. The bile ducts always need to be open to release the bile. If not detected early on, the cancer can also spread to the liver and adjacent organs. It is sometimes possible to detect these lumps in a physical examination or through ultrasound imaging tests
Jaundice – when the white part of the eyes and the skin turns yellow, it is called jaundice. This is when the chemical bilirubin is released due to the blockage of the bile ducts. Liver bile can´t be drained from the intestines. Bilirubin builds up in the blood and settles in various parts of the body.
Some other less common symptoms could also be detected. These are:
Weight loss
Lack of appetite
Itchy skin
Fever
Swelling in the abdomen
Dark urine
Greasy or light-colored stools
But because gallbladder cancer is rare, something other than cancer could portray the symptoms. Many of the above symptoms are related to gallbladder stones. Abdominal pain is an underlying symptom of many problems. Jaundice could also be a symptom of viral hepatitis. But most importantly, if any of the above-mentioned symptoms are experienced, go see a doctor.
The cause of gallbladder cancer
There is no clear-cut answer to the cause of gallbladder cancer. Doctors only know that gallbladder cancer develops when healthy gallbladder cells develop mutations in their DNA. These mutations allow the cells to grow out of control and to keep on living where they otherwise were to die. The accumulated cells form then a tumor that can spread to adjacent areas. Most gallbladder cancer begins in the glandular cells that line the inner surface of the gallbladder. Some risk factors leading to gallbladder cancer are your sex (women are more prone to gallbladder cancer), age, history of gallstones, other gallbladder diseases.
How Can Cannabis Help?
Patients often fall back on cannabis in many ways. Some would use marijuana to ease their pain, nausea, and vomiting. This is all due to the antiemetic properties of cannabis. Others prefer to use marijuana to lift them up. Energizing strains help a lot against fatigue.
One other way to use medical cannabis is to use highly concentrated medical cannabis oil. Raw cannabis juice is also helpful in treating this disease. It is a known fact that THC reduces tumor growth in patients. Cannabis treatment is also beneficial to treat other symptoms a person with gallbladder might suffer from. These include symptoms like:
Insomnia
Sleep problems
Fatigue
Inflammation
Pain
Loss of appetite
Concentration problems
Anxiety and depression
Most of these symptoms are connected to chemotherapy. Medical cannabis is significantly effective against symptoms related to chemo. Apart from bringing relief, it also has no real side effects and elevates the mood of the patient.
Afterthought
Cannabis is a good way to help in the treatment of gallbladder cancer. Whichever way a person prefers to include cannabis in the treatment, be sure to speak to the doctor about it. Certain medications might be influenced by CBD specifically.
CANNABIS FOR ORGAN CANCER, READ MORE...
CANNABIS FOR COLON CANCER PATIENTS, READ MORE.
OR..
