How Cannabis Can Help Prevent Cancer: A Simplified Explanation
Understanding the Role of Angiogenesis and the Way that Cannabinoids May Work
In the human body, cancer occurs more frequently than many people realize, with approximately 6,000 potentially cancerous cells arising in the human body each and every day. Our T-cell immune system, which can be compromised by diseases like HIV/AIDS, works tirelessly to keep rogue cells in check. Errant cancer cells can form due to accidental mutations during cellular reproduction (oops, the wrong base pair got duplicated) or from external damage such as UV rays, free radicals, genetic factors, or other environmental causes that alter a healthy cell into overdrive. Our T-cells constantly battle these cells to maintain balance, preventing them from becoming a significant threat.
There is a certain point, beyond when one cell becomes a small group of cells, when real danger begins. This is typically when cancer cells gain access to a blood supply. This connection allows them to receive the nutrients they need to grow rapidly and or break through tissue barriers to spread into dangerous territory, becoming potentially life-threatening. This process of new blood vessel formation is called angiogenesis.
Cannabis, much like many vegetables and fruits, possesses properties that can inhibit angiogenesis. By consuming vegetables or fruits, or cannabis regularly, you can help push against the normally even-keel balance in the body of formation of new blood vessels to or around cancer cells, making it harder for them to grow and spread rapidly. The more time they have without a blood supply, the more likely they are to meet their match with a healthy immune system. Similarly, the healthier the immune system, the more likely it will be to seek and destroy these wayward cells. Essentially, cannabis can help tip the scales in favor of less blood vessel formation, acting as a preventive measure in the fight against cancer.
Inhibitors of Angiogenesis (pushers for LESS blood vessel formation)
It’s important to keep in mind that new blood vessel formation is sometimes necessary, and a wonderful thing. After after a heart attack, where the body needs to repair damaged tissue, for example, or in wound healing for tissue repair, new blood vessel formation can spare or protect healthy body tissue quickly and with lasting support. In these cases, angiogenesis helps supply nutrients to damaged or wounded areas, helping to heal and recover. Therefore, while inhibiting angiogenesis can help prevent cancer, maintaining a balance is crucial for the body’s overall health and ability to repair itself. This matched yin/yang, a body in balance with systems not too much weighed one way or another, is called equilibrium. This is a truly healthy body, one that is in equilibrium. When people talk about cannabis, you’ll often hear them label cannabis as a system unifier or effective balancing agent. For many systems out of balance, it does have the effect of making a tipped balance more even. But, in certain circumstances, there may be reasons one would want a balanced system kicked slightly out of balance, for instance here, to help prevent cancers.
Promoters of Angiogenesis (pushers for MORE blood vessel formation)
So many people express concern about increasing their cannabis consumption, fearing dependence or intolerable side effects similar to those of traditional pharmaceuticals. I hear, almost daily, from men and women of all ages that the gummy they used to enjoy simply no longer works the way it used to. This is so common that it is truly the rule more than the exception. Habituation, the process of building tolerance to a thing, is a perfectly normal human phenomenon. We become habituated to shower water that is no longer as warm as it started out, and we become habituated to the taste of one food group and crave a change. Truly, one can become so habituated to a sensation (sounds, sights, tastes, feelings) that after a time, the body will almost completely ignore them. This is one of inherent beauties of cannabis - by the sheer randomness of the biological machinery making it, rarely are two plants built or producing the same material, in the same way. This multivariable nature is thus an ideal match for a body that is programmed to eventually disregard the same inputs too heavily stuck on repeat. This is another important way in which cannabis distinguishes itself from many conventional medicines; cannabis changes over time, just as our body’s need for change grows too.
Back to cannabis and its preventive benefits against cancer:
In the United States, approximately 50% of men and 33% of women will develop cancer in their lifetime. Globally, the statistics are somewhat different - about 20% of people will face a cancer diagnosis. By incorporating cannabis into your routine, as I’m describing here, you may support your body’s natural defenses against cancer by preventing the formation of new blood vessels that would otherwise nourish and support cancer cells.
In summary, cannabis can play a vital role in cancer prevention by inhibiting angiogenesis, thereby depriving cancer cells of the nutrients they need to grow and spread. This natural property of cannabis, shared with many fruits and vegetables, underscores its potential benefits beyond its recreational or medicinal uses for other conditions. By understanding and utilizing these benefits, you can take proactive steps in supporting your long-term health.
If you’re concerned about building up a tolerance to cannabis over time, or if you feel guilty about consuming more than you used to, consider the advantages of increased cannabis consumption I’m describing here. One hundred years of cultural stigma have overshadowed what was once a normal part of human life: using cannabis as therapy or simply to unwind and enjoy oneself. Every medicine has its risks and benefits. While it's important to consider what cannabis may be costing you (both literally and figuratively), it's equally important to have a clear understanding of the benefits it brings, to make an informed choice based on a full view.
Note: believe it or not, the balance of angiogenesis I describe here is just a single example of the mechanisms by which cannabis can help prevent/treat/manage cancers. Below is a bullet list of 33 others.
Simplified Explanations and Evidence Summary for 33 Antineoplastic Mechanisms of Cannabis
Apoptosis Induction
Inhibition of Proliferation
Anti-Angiogenesis
Inhibition of Metastasis
Anti-Inflammatory Effects
PPAR Gamma Activation
Autophagy Induction
Endocannabinoid System Modulation
Modulation of Glycolysis
Epigenetic Modifications
Inhibition of Cancer Stem Cells
Modulation of Immune Response
Interference with Cancer Cell Adhesion
Inhibition of Histone Deacetylases (HDACs)
Reduction of Oxidative Stress
Activation of Transient Receptor Potential (TRP) Channels
Inhibition of Cyclooxygenase (COX) Enzymes
Enhancement of Chemotherapy and Radiotherapy
Inhibition of Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor (EGFR)
Interference with Notch Signaling Pathway
Inhibition of Signal Transducer and Activator of Transcription 3 (STAT3)
Modulation of Wnt/β-Catenin Pathway
Disruption of the Tumor Microenvironment
Inhibition of the mTOR Pathway
Inhibition of Heat Shock Proteins (HSPs)
Modulation of Autocrine and Paracrine Signaling
Inhibition of NF-κB Pathway
Induction of Cellular Senescence
Inhibition of Telomerase Activity
Disruption of Calcium Homeostasis
Regulation of Apoptosis-Related Proteins
Inhibition of Tumor-Promoting Enzymes
Modulation of the Tumor Microenvironment
BC: For a concise summary of the rest of the above 32 other mechanisms, to get a sense of the amount of evidence that is published to support them, and to read some specific articles, read this post HERE - (I’m working on making these posts shorter!)
If you like this information about cancer, you’ll love chapter 15 of The Doctor-Approved Cannabis Handbook, “Treating Cancer and the Symptoms of Traditional Cancer Therapies”
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References:
References for Cancer Statistics:
Support the statistics regarding the lifetime risk of developing cancer:
United States:
1. American Cancer Society (ACS):
- Source: American Cancer Society. "Cancer Facts & Figures 2021."
- URL: https://www.cancer.org/research/cancer-facts-statistics/all-cancer-facts-figures/cancer-facts-figures-2021.html
- Statistic: According to the ACS, the lifetime risk of developing cancer is about 1 in 2 for men and 1 in 3 for women.
Global Statistics:
2. World Health Organization (WHO):
- Source: World Health Organization. "Cancer."
- URL: https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/cancer
- Statistic: The WHO states that approximately 1 in 5 people worldwide will develop cancer in their lifetime.
3. Global Cancer Observatory (GCO) - International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC):
- Source: International Agency for Research on Cancer, World Health Organization. "Global Cancer Observatory (GCO)."
- URL: https://gco.iarc.fr/
- Statistic: The GCO provides comprehensive data on cancer incidence, mortality, and prevalence worldwide, supporting the global lifetime risk estimates.
These sources provide a foundation for understanding the lifetime risk of developing cancer and are widely recognized for their authoritative data and analysis.
Showing My Math:
Below are my calculations and assumptions to arrive at my suggestion that humans develop as many as “6000 errant cells per day:”
Estimate Over a Given Period:
To calculate this over a 30-day month:
Potentially Cancerous Cells Per Month = 6000 x 30 = 180,000
Summary:
Using these assumptions and calculations, one can estimate that approximately 6,000 potentially cancerous cells may be created in the human body each day. Over a month, this would amount to around 180,000 potentially cancerous cells.
This (conservative) estimate considers the low probability of mutations leading to cancer. The actual numbers can vary based on individual factors, environmental influences, and the efficiency of the immune system.
What about smoking cannabis. Can smoking weed cause cancer?
Great article, Dr. Caplan, I was just reading some of the NIH studies and trying to make my own library link set. I appreciate the length and depth of your articles here. Thank you.
<<CBD induced HUVEC cytostasis without inducing apoptosis, inhibited HUVEC migration, invasion and sprouting in vitro, and angiogenesis in vivo in Matrigel sponges. These effects were associated with the down-modulation of several angiogenesis-related molecules.
CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS
This study reveals that CBD inhibits angiogenesis by multiple mechanisms. Its dual effect on both tumour and endothelial cells supports the hypothesis that CBD has potential as an effective agent in cancer therapy.>>
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3504989/