Lung cancer and COPD
THC has been found to reduce tumor growth in common lung cancer by 50 percent and to significantly reduce the ability of the cancer to spread, say researchers at
Harvard University, who tested the chemical in both lab and mouse studies. The researchers suggest that THC might be used in a targeted fashion to treat lung cancer.
[75]
In 2006, Donald Tashkin, M.D., of the
University of California in Los Angeles, presented the results of his study,
Marijuana Use and Lung Cancer: Results of a Case-Control Study. Tashkin found that smoking marijuana does not appear to increase the risk of lung cancer or head-and-neck malignancies, even among heavy users. The more tobacco a person smoked, the greater their risk of developing lung cancer and other cancers of the head and neck. But people who smoked more marijuana were not at increased risk compared with people who smoked less and people who didnt smoke at all.
[76] Marijuana use was associated with cancer risk ratios below 1.0, indicating that a history of pot smoking had no effect on the risk for respiratory cancers. In contrast,
tobacco smoking had a 21-fold risk for cancer. Tashkin concluded, "It's possible that
tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) in marijuana smoke may encourage
apoptosis, or programmed cell death, causing cells to die off before they have a chance to undergo malignant transformation".
[77][78]
Similar findings were released in April 2009 by the Vancouver Burden of Obstructive Lung Disease Research Group. The study presents that smoking both tobacco and marijuana synergistically increased the risk of respiratory symptoms and
COPD. Smoking only marijuana, however, was not associated with an increased risk of respiratory symptoms of COPD.
[79][80] In a related commentary, Dr. Donald Tashkin writes that "we can be close to concluding that marijuana smoking by itself does not lead to COPD".
[81]
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sources : 75
- ^ "Marijuana Cuts Lung Cancer Tumor Growth In Half, Study Shows
76 "Pot Smoking Not Linked to Lung Cancer"
77 washingtonpost.com.
Study Finds No Cancer-Marijuana Connection - washingtonpost.com. Retrieved on 2009-04-26.
78
^ "Medical News: ATS: Marijuana Smoking Found Non-Carcinogenic - in Hematology/Oncology, Lung Cancer from". MedPage Today. 2006-05-24.
Medical News: ATS: Marijuana Smoking Found Non-Carcinogenic - in Hematology/Oncology, Lung Cancer from MedPage Today. Retrieved on 2009-04-26.
79
"Marijuana smoking increases risk of COPD for tobacco smokers". Physorg.com. 2009-04-13.
Marijuana smoking increases risk of COPD for tobacco smokers. Retrieved on 2009-04-2
Medical cannabis - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
