Pancreatic cancer is the third greatest cause of cancer death in the United States, and has an extremely low five-year survival rate of just 8%. Since pancreatic tumors rarely cause any symptoms, pancreatic cancer patients often receive their diagnosis when their disease has dramatically progressed. Once the cancer is metastatic, or has spread to other parts of the body, typical treatments for cancer, including surgery, radiation, and chemotherapy, are not options. Patients suitable for such therapies still face the progression of their cancer as pancreatic tumors are immunosuppressive, meaning they can resist treatments. However, in August of 2019, the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute shared its findings in a study demonstrating the potential benefits of cannabis in treating pancreatic cancer patients.
Researchers at Dana-Farber concluded that drugs made from a specific cannabis flavonoid can kill pancreatic as well as metastatic tumor cells. “Flavonoids” are natural chemicals in fruits, vegetables, and plants. The specific flavonoid used in this study does originate from cannabis, but does not cause any of the psychoactive behaviors commonly associated with the use of marijuana. Instead, researchers turned the compound into a drug named FBL-03G, which they discovered can to stop tumor growth and prevent metastasis. During the study, researchers tested the flavonoid “in vitro” or literally “in glass,” and also
“in vivo” within mice. Data from the non-living trials showed a higher number of cancer cells killed themselves, causing the cancerous growth to conclude faster than expected. Researchers also administered the cannabis-flavonoid to mice with pancreatic cancer and compared their lifespans with other mice with pancreatic cancer to test the effects of the drug. Mice injected with a FBL-03G sample while also undergoing radiation therapy lived significantly longer than control sample mice, and the growth of their local and metastatic tumors definitively slowed. Essentially, this form of cannabis successfully killed cancer cells and slowed the spread of cancer growth. These results potentially establish cannabis as an important aspect of achieving remission in the future, and certainly encourage further research.
This isn’t the first time cannabis has served as a source of relief for the ill. For a minimum of 3,000 years, in fact, doctors and other members of the medical field have used cannabis to help patients. People with cancer, specifically, frequently turn to medicinal cannabis to regain a healthy appetite, ease pain, aid sleep, and prevent vomiting. While this study, like others before it, focuses its research upon cannabis, it is unique in its discovered use of cannabis flavonoids to block the actual progression of cancerous growth, rather than addressing side effects of the cancer or cancer treatment. While alleviating patients’ suffering is vital, an individual with advanced pancreatic cancer will have far better chances of remission if treatments to kill cancer cells and prevent metastasis become available. Ultimately, this study exemplifies the extension of accepted treatments to propel science further forward and provide patients with improved care.