Combining cannabis with known cancer treatments increases the success of the treatment
Cannabidiol (CBD) is attracting increasing interest as an antitumor agent. The compound has been promoted as an alternative treatment and even a cure for many diseases, including cancer. In fact, some people with cancer say that CBD has helped them as a complementary therapy in managing their symptoms and side effects of standard cancer treatment. New studies continue to highlight that CBD is quite effective in treating different types of cancer, helping these patients achieve a better quality of life.
Osteosarcoma is a bone cancer that destroys the tissue and weakens the bone. It develops from immature bone cells that normally form new bone tissue. Its incidence is higher in adolescents, commonly affecting the distal femur, proximal tibia, and metaphyseal proximal humerus. CBD has been shown to be effective against osteosarcoma due to its pain-relieving effects.
CBD is believed to reduce symptoms in patients undergoing chemotherapy by binding to 5-HT receptors and blocking the action of serotonin. CB receptor antagonists such as CBD are neutral, and inverse agonists actually cause nausea. All of this suggests that CBD plays a role in controlling nausea and vomiting, which is also part of osteosarcoma.
Osteosarcoma patients undergoing chemotherapy often report pain, including headaches, muscle aches, stomach pain and neuralgia (nerve pain). Much of the pain resulting from chemotherapy is caused by inflammation, although it can also arise due to the formation of lesions or ulcers in the mucous membranes. CBD is widely used in the treatment of chronic pain resulting from a wide variety of diseases not limited to cancer.
The ability of CBD combined with doxorubicin to reduce inflammation is of vital importance in the treatment of pain arising from chemotherapy. In turn, both develop a synergistic anticancer effect on OS cells, and their combined application may be a promising treatment strategy for osteosarcoma.