MGC Pharmaceuticals has received more successful results from its brain cancer pre-clinical program based at the National Institute of Biology and the Neurosurgery Department at the University Medical Centre in Ljubljana, Slovenia.
The Perth-based medical cannabis company said the successful results from an ongoing in-vitro program would enable it to progress to clinical trials looking at the use of cannabidiol (CBD) and cannabigerol (CBG) to treat glioblastoma, one of the most deadly brain cancers.
The results, derived from an additional 18 patient tumour samples taken this year, demonstrated the efficacy of MGC’s proprietary CBD:CBG formulation on glioblastoma cancer by showing the substances can help kill the potentially deadly cancers cells.
The research found CBG both impairs the ‘major hallmarks’ of glioblastoma progression and could destroy therapy-resistant glioblastoma stem cells that are usually extremely resistant to various treatments.
Similarly, the latest round of research on CBD demonstrated the cannabis-derived substance could ‘inhibit’ the viability of glioblastoma tumours.
MGC co-founder and managing director Roby Zomer said: “The results we have seen in our preclinical work on glioblastoma have continued to be very encouraging. We are constantly learning more about the therapeutic benefits of medicinal cannabinoids in the treatment of a number of medical conditions and are pleased to report that the company will now begin preparations for the next stage of clinical trial work on glioblastoma.”
The success in the latest tumour tests means that animal trials in zebrafish and rodents can begin, followed by human clinical trials, with submissions on those scheduled for next year.
