You may wonder how CBD and Lung Cancer work together. Lung cancer, the most common cause of cancer in the world is typically treated with surgery or chemotherapy but recent research suggests the phytocannabinoid Cannabidiol (CBD) may help in the fight. Each year over 160,000 people die from lung cancer in America and over 35,000 in the UK with smoking seen as the single biggest factor in 9/10 cases. Common symptoms of lung cancer can include:
- A cough that persists for 2-3 weeks
- Worsening or changing of cough
- Repeated chest infections
- Unexplained Breathlessness
- Chest or shoulder pain
- Coughing up blood
- Tiredness and lack of energy/ weight loss
The stage (extent of damage) is determined by the size of the tumour and whether it has spread to the lymph nodes and other organs of the body. Depending on the stage, the options for treatment vary from:
- Surgery
- Chemotherapy
- Biological Therapy
- Immunotherapy
- Radiotherapy
The earlier the cancer is found the more successful the treatment can be, but shockingly 70% of people diagnosed will not survive the first year and survival rates have not shown an increase in the past 40 years. New treatments such as targeted therapies and immunotherapy are being used as an alternative to chemotherapy and are showing some improved clinical outcomes but are still partial to tumours recurring.
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Table of Contents
CBD Research on Lung Cancer
Research is ongoing to find more successful treatments and scientists are encouraged by the potential of the non-intoxicating ‘CBD’.
CBD has been shown to have anti-neoplastic effects in vitro and/or in vivo in lung cancer cells. In 2008 Korean researchers cultured different cancer cells into various concentrations of ‘CBD’ for 6-48 hours. Cytotoxicity of ‘CBD’ increased in a dose-dependent manner with growth inhibition of all cancer cells.
In June 2014, researchers from the Institute of Toxicology Rostock, Germany showed how ‘CBD' can have an antitumorigenic effect on cancer cells serving to counteract the formation of tumours. Promising results from research into cell cultures but the following case report will surely spurn academics into human clinical trials.
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CBD effect on 82-year-old man
In October 2016 an 82-year-old man presented to his practitioner with shortness of breath but no cough. A CT scan revealed lung adenocarcinoma, the most common subtype of non-small cell lung cancer.
An ex-smoker 45 years previous, the man declined chemotherapy and radiography fearful of its effect on his quality of life. A CT scan in December 2016 showed an increase in lung mass. The patient was again offered treatment but declined. A chest x-ray in July 2017 showed progressive changes but no significant collapse.
A further CT scan in November 2017 remarkably revealed near-total resolution of the left lower lobe mass with only a small area of residual spiculated tissue remaining and a significant reduction in the size of mediastinal lymph nodes.
In January 2018 another CT scan showed stable appearances of the small residual opacity in the left lower lobe and mediastinal lymph nodes. Upon further questioning, the patient revealed that he self-medicated ‘CBD’ oil (200mg in 10ml) from the beginning of September 2017.
He took two drops (1.32mg ‘CBD’) of CBD Oil twice daily for a week, then 9 drops (6mg ‘CBD’) twice daily until the end of September, after which he had to stop as he did not like the taste and it caused him nausea but was never physically sick. Other factors may have been involved in his progress and only a double-blind placebo-controlled clinical trial can determine this.
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Conclusion
Encouraging research such as that presented in this article warrant human clinical trials given CBD’s purported safety and efficacy. CBD and Cancer and in particular lung cancer has reached epidemic proportions and if a non-intoxicating phytocannabinoid from the cannabis sativa plant has the potential to reduce or eliminate cancerous tumours surely we are compelled to at least investigate. Best places to buy CBD in UK and Ireland are online.
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