When combined with radiation therapy, low doses of THC and CBD helped to kill high-grade glioma masses, among the most aggressive brain cancers there is, according to a report from St. George’s University in London.
Researchers say the THC and CBD made the cells more receptive to the radiation and that the tumors shrank up to 90 percent of their original size.
The study, done on mice, was very encouraging to researchers.
“Our results showed that the dose of irradiation we used had no dramatic effect on tumor growth, whereas CBD and THC administered together marginally reduced tumor progression,” Dr. Wai Liu, researcher in the study, wrote in an op-ed earlier this week in the Washington Post. “However, combining the cannabinoids with irradiation further impeded the rate at which tumor growth progressed and was virtually stagnant throughout the course of the treatment. Correspondingly, tumor sizes on the final day of the study were significantly smaller in these subjects compared with any of the others.”
Basically, the stuff works – but we already knew that. Liu pointed out to HuffPo that the scientific community recognizes that cannabis and certain cannabinoids are beneficial, it’s time that the politics catches up.
“The results are promising,” Liu said. “There may be other applications, but for now, it could provide a way of breaking through glioma and saving more lives.