Harvard Study: Cannabis Chemical Kills Pancreatic Cancer Cells

Harvard University’s Dana Farber Cancer Institute recently conducted a study regarding pancreatic cancer and a cannabis flavonoid called FBL-03G. The study found that the flavonoid possesses therapeutic potential.

Harvard assistant professor Wilfred Ngwa, PhD., said, “The most significant conclusion is that tumor-targeted delivery of flavonoids, derived from cannabis, enabled both local and metastatic tumor cell kill, significantly increasing survival from pancreatic cancer,” Yahoo! reported. “This has major significance, given that pancreatic cancer is particularly refractory to current therapies.”

The study is the first of its kind. The FBL-03G flavonoid was shown to attack and kill pancreatic cancer cells successfully – as well as other cancer cells.

“We were quite surprised that the drug could inhibit the growth of cancer cells in other parts of the body, representing metastasis, that were not targeted by the treatment,” Ngwa stated. “This suggests that the immune system is involved as well, and we are currently investigating this mechanism.”

Pancreatic cancer is very hard to treat and is often not detected until the later stages. The findings of the study suggest that the use of this flavonoid could increase the life expectancy of pancreatic cancer patients. The 1-year survival rate for pancreatic cancer patients is 20%.