J Natl Cancer Inst. 1975 Sep;55(3):597-602.
Antineoplastic activity of cannabinoids.
Munson AE, Harris LS, Friedman MA, Dewey WL, Carchman RA.
Lewis lung adenocarcinoma growth was retarded by the oral administration of
delta9-tetrahydrocannabinol (delta9-THC), delta8-tetrahydrocannabinol
(delta8-THC), and cannabinol (CBN), but not cannabidiol (CBD). Animals treated
for 10 consecutive days with delta9-THC, beginning the day after tumor
implantation, demonstrated a dose-dependent action of retarded tumor growth. Mice
treated for 20 consecutive days with delta8-THC and CBN had reduced primary tumor
size. CBD showed no inhibitory effect on tumor growth at 14, 21, or 28 days.
Delta9-THC, delta8-THC, and CBN increased the mean survival time (36% at 100
mg/kg, 25% at 200 mg/kg, and 27% at 50 mg/kg, respectively), whereas CBD did not.
Delta9-THC administered orally daily until death in doses of 50, 100, or 200
mg/kg did not increase the life-spans of (C57BL/6 times DBA/2)F1 (BDF1) mice
hosting the L1210 murine leukemia. However, delta9-THC administered daily for 10
days significantly inhibited Friend leukemia virus-induced splenomegaly by 71% at
200 mg/kg as compared to 90.2% for actinomycin D. Experiments with bone marrow
and isolated Lewis lung cells incubated in vitro with delta9-THC and delta8-THC
showed a dose-dependent (10(-4)-10(-7)) inhibition (80-20%, respectively) of
tritiated thymidine and 14C-uridine uptake into these cells. CBD was active only
in high concentrations (10(-4)).
PMID: 1159836 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
