A Pilot Clinical Study of D9-Tetrahydrocannabinol in Patients With Recurrent Glioblastoma Multiforme
Manuel Guzman et al, "A pilot clinical study of D9-tetrahydrocannabinol in patients with
recurrent glioblastoma multiforme," British Journal of Cancer 95, issue 2 (July 17, 2006): 197-203.
Despite extensive lab and animal evidence of the antitumor actions of cannabinoids (See "Cannabinoids: Potential Anticancer Agents," below), this small pilot study was the first published trial of THC as an anticancer therapy in humans. Spanish researcher Dr. Guzman and colleagues injected THC directly into brain tumors in a handful of patients with recurring, inoperable gliomas -- patients considered terminal. It was primarily a safety study, and the THC injections proved completely safe. Although the researchers concluded that the injection method they used may not have adequately distributed the medicine to all parts of these large tumors, two patients seemed to show definite (albeit temporary) improvement due to the treatment. The researchers call for additional trials.
Full text available for free at http://www.nature.com/bjc/journal/v95/n2/full/6603236a.html.
