MGC Pharmaceuticals (LON: MXC), a publicly-traded cannabis company, recently finalized pre-clinical trial research of cannabinoids as a potential treatment for glioblastoma, an aggressive brain cancer. The results were positive, reported CityA.M.
The European-based bio-pharma company specializing in the production and development of phytomedicines said that the three-year in-vitro trial delivered “outstanding results.”
Study Highlights
The research, conducted in collaboration with the National Institute of Biology in Slovenia with 30 biopsy samples from 18 patients, first examined how cannabinoids such as CBD can be used as a treatment for cancerous tumors. MGC also researched THC and later replaced it with cannabigerol, known as CBG, which has no known psychotropic effects.
The study took more than 5,800 cell tests to determine the most efficient concentration and ratios of CBD and CBG in the treatment formulation.
The results revealed the efficacy of cannabinoids in treating glioblastoma, as well as the most efficient ratio of CBD:CBG in inhibiting the tumor’s viability, causing a cascade of biological processes resulting in the death of glioblastoma and stem cells, reported BusinessCann. This is important because glioblastoma stem cells are the primary cause of the disease’s progression and are resistant to standard treatments. Glioblastoma is the most common, fast-growing, and aggressive brain tumor. Composed of diverse cell types, the prognosis is always poor.
“The results of this trial are enormously exciting both for the company, and for the treatment of fatal cancerous tumors,” said Roby Zomer, co-founder and managing director at MGC Pharmaceuticals.
“MGC Pharma’s research has demonstrated the effect of naturally derived cannabinoid products on stage IV brain tumors without the use of toxic chemotherapy components. We are proud of the work achieved thus far and are looking forward to advancing our proprietary formulation to the next stage of clinical trials.”
Previous Research
This is not the first successful research on the potential of CBD as a treatment for this type of brain tumor.
Researchers at the Medical College of Georgia at Augusta University, released a study in December revealing that inhaled CBD shrunk the size of glioblastoma tumors in an animal model.
The study suggested that inhaled CBD reduces the size of glioblastoma through the reduction of the essential support of its microenvironment. Researchers chose the inhaled approach to make sure the compound found in the cannabis plant reached the brain.
"We saw a significant reduction in the size of the tumor and its microenvironment was different," after only seven days of treatment, said Dr. Babak Baban, immunologist and associate dean for research at the Dental College of Georgia at Augusta University.
In eight days the aggressive brain tumor was formed in the brain of the mice, and the following day they started treating them with CBD via inhalation or placebo. The researchers discovered that CBD altered the tumor’s ecosystem, or supportive tumor microenvironment, and restored levels of inflammation that attack glioblastoma.
“It is about immune balance," said Baban, the corresponding author of the study.
He explained that the human immune system is regularly fighting cancerous or precancerous cells, but when a tumor is completely established, it takes charge. This means that the tumor creates a state of more chronic inflammation that ends up protecting it from the immune system.
While further research is needed, these results are a great start as they offer hope to the approximately 250,000 people worldwide struggling with this devastating condition.
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