Stockholm, Sweden: Cannabinoids selectively target cancer cells and inhibit tumor growth, according to a review published in the journal Seminars in Cancer Biology. Investigators at the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm reported, "[C]annabinoids may have inhibitory effects on tumor growth, angiogenesis (the formation of new blood vessels), migration and metastasis (the transfer of malignant cells from one site to another). Remarkably, these effects may be selective for the cancer cells, while normal cells and tissues are spared."

Authors concluded, "Such apparent tumor cell selectivity makes the endocannabinoid system an attractive potential target for cancer therapy."

In January of 2008, investigators at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health reported in the journal Cancer Research that the administration of cannabinoids halts the spread of a wide range of cancers, including brain cancer, prostate cancer, breast cancer, lung cancer, skin cancer, pancreatic cancer, and lymphoma.

Researchers at the California Pacific Medical Center Research Institute reported that the administration of the non-psychoactive cannabinoid cannabidiol limits the activity of the breast cancer metastasis gene Id-1, stating, "[Cannabidiol] offers hope of a non-toxic therapy that could [treat aggressive forms of cancer] without any of the painful side effects [of chemotherapy.]"

Full text of the study, "The endocannabinoid system in cancer - potential therapeutic target?", will appear in Seminars in Cancer Biology. Additional information on the use of cannabinoids as potential anti-cancer agents is available in the online report "Cannabinoids as Cancer Hope" at: http://norml.org/index.cfm?Group_ID=6814

Brain cancer:  http://www.expert-reviews.com/doi/abs/10.1586/14737175.8.1.37

Prostate cancer:  http://www.expert-reviews.com/doi/abs/10.1586/14737175.8.1.37

Breast cancer:  http://mct.aacrjournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/6/11/2921

Lung cancer:  http://www.nature.com/onc/journal/v27/n3/abs/1210641a.html

Skin cancer:  http://cancerres.aacrjournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/66/13/6748

Pancreatic cancer:  http://cancerres.aacrjournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/66/13/6748

Lymphoma:  http://molpharm.aspetjournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/70/5/1612