I Fucking Love Science - Cannabis and Cancer

[rickolasnice]

Interesting article (/blog) looking at the evidence for cannabis vs cancer..

http://www.iflscience.com/health-and-medicine/cannabis-cannabinoids-and-cancer-–-evidence-so-far

Can cannabinoids treat cancer?

There is no doubt that cannabinoids – both natural and synthetic – are interesting biological molecules. Hundreds of scientists around the world are investigating their potential in cancer and other diseases – as well as the harms they can cause – brought together under the blanket organisation The International Cannabinoid Research Society.

Researchers first looked at the anticancer properties of cannabinoids back in the 1970s, andmany hundreds of scientific papers looking at cannabinoids and cancer have been published since then. This Wellcome Witness seminar is also fascinating reading for aficionados of the history of medical cannabis, including the scientific, political and legal twists. [Updated KA 26/03/14]

But claims that this body of preclinical research is solid “proof” that cannabis or cannabinoids can cure cancer is highly misleading to patients and their families, and builds a false picture of the state of progress in this area.

Let’s take a closer look at the evidence.

 

[Vurtual]

Interesting article which seems to be needed scientific caution on a subject usually talked about on less than 'scientific' blogs and what not. It seems on a quick skim to be cautiously looking at the evidence, although i detect a bit of a possible conflict of interest with who wrote it: "Note: This article [...] first appeared as a blog post on Cancer Research UK.". This will be dismissed by the aforementioned blogs as 'being in the pay of bigpharma' or something (maybe correctly - what do you think?) (i'll have a proper read when i get time)

 

[StoneHappyMonday]

I fucking love the title of the blog.

Thing is, you can't quantify cancer as a single entity. Some are worse than others, some are slower moving than others, some we are more prone to than others. So you can't really have "cannabis vs cancer". It implies there's some singular answer to it all, that cannabis is either effective or not effective against "cancer". Whereas the truth is more likely to be closer to something like 'cannabis is effective/ineffective at preventing/treating/curing x,y or z cancer'.

What cannabis is undoubtedly good at is providing pain relief, by altering consciousness. That's where early research should start.

 

[Shambles]

What SHM said. I think the whole "cannabis cures cancer" thing is waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay overstated and find it quite annoying when I see stoners who insist on insisting that it does. It doesn't. That's not to say there's not potentially interesting cannabinoids which could provide beneficial effects - perhaps even up to the level of actually fighting against certain cancers. It's not quite as simple as smoking a few joints or munching on hash brownies though. If it were nobody who uses cannabis would ever get cancer which is clearly not the case. I also agree with SHM on the pain relief thing - also the anti-nausea properties - as Occasional Mrs Shambles found both those effects to be far superior and with far less undesirable side-effects than the drugs she was prescribed. Some doctors give a certain tacit approval but it would be much better if it could be given with full blessing or at the very least used with zero chance of prosecution.

 

[Bare_head]

yeh basically what shammy and stm have said i will echo , interesting article thanks for the link though,

Bare_head

 

[ddhats]

What SHM said. I think the whole "cannabis cures cancer" thing is waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay overstated and find it quite annoying when I see stoners who insist on insisting that it does. It doesn't. That's not to say there's not potentially interesting cannabinoids which could provide beneficial effects - perhaps even up to the level of actually fighting against certain cancers. It's not quite as simple as smoking a few joints or munching on hash brownies though. If it were nobody who uses cannabis would ever get cancer which is clearly not the case. I also agree with SHM on the pain relief thing - also the anti-nausea properties - as Occasional Mrs Shambles found both those effects to be far superior and with far less undesirable side-effects than the drugs she was prescribed. Some doctors give a certain tacit approval but it would be much better if it could be given with full blessing or at the very least used with zero chance of prosecution.

Well worth pointing out that smoking cannabis and particularly synthetic cannabis in the form of cannabinoids are surely likely to have the opposite effect when burned and inhaled i.e. when oxidised you are changing the substance and it is much more likely to have a carcinogenic effect than curing cancer. At the end of the day, breathing any type of smoke into your lungs regularly is surely not going to be good for you! I remember reading a John W Huffman quote saying he thought his JWH compounds could well have carcinogenic properties when burned and inhaled. Though I don't think this has ever been proven.