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CBG For Cancer And Pain?
This Cannabinoid Might Just Be The Next Big Thing In Marijuana
Cannabigerol (CBG) might be considered a minor cannabinoid, but itâs certainly garnering much more attention recently and it isnât surprising why!
CBG, also known as the mother of all cannabinoids, is a lesser-known cannabinoid compared to its more famous siblings: CBD and THC. But as it occurs as a precursor to CBD and THC, enzymes convert cannabigerolic acid into these other cannabinoids. As a result, mature cannabis plants only contain trace amounts of CBG in them. However, researchers have found that thereâs a good reason or two to use CBG for health and wellness.
Studies Show Potential Anti-Cancer Mechanisms In CBG
According to a recent article in Marijuana Moment, scientists found that CBG could even have potential benefits for treating cancer, pain, and inflammatory conditions. Through a review of studies, researchers from China and the United States worked together to review the effects of the cannabinoid, as well as its impacts on the body.
âCBG has emerged as a potential therapeutic agent with a diverse range of effects,â reads the study. âAlthough this research on CBG is still in its early stages, its unique molecular mechanism and promising therapeutic profile warrant further exploration,â they said.
âAs research progresses, CBG presents a promising therapeutic agent with a unique molecular profile and a broad spectrum of potential benefits,â said the researchers. âAs we deepen our understanding of CBG, it may lead to breakthroughs in treating complex conditions, ultimately improving patient outcomes and expanding the scope of cannabinoid-based medicine,â it wrote.
Researchers also found that it could be beneficial in reducing pain. They observed that administering CBG was helpful in decreasing pain sensitivity on animal subjects. âThis research unveils a potential mechanism for CBGâs indirect neuroprotective effects. By reducing pain signaling in the nervous system, CBG might offer relief from chronic pain conditions,â said the researchers. âThis finding adds to the growing body of evidence suggesting CBGâs potential role in protecting the nervous system by managing pain.â
In another study also from 2024, scientists acknowledge the anti-cancer properties of cannabinoids including CBD, THC, and even CBG. âCannabinoids, including 9-THC, CBD, and CBG exhibit significant anticancer activities such as apoptosis induction, autophagy stimulation, cell cycle arrest, anti-proliferation, anti-angiogenesis, and metastasis inhibition,â wrote the report.
âClinical trials have demonstrated cannabinoidsâ efficacy in tumor regression and health improvement in palliative care,â they wrote. That said, the researchers acknowledge that more work needs to be done to understand the cannabinoidsâ mechanism of action for these. âDespite the evident anti-cancer properties of cannabinoids from numerous experimental results, the exact mechanisms of action still require extensive research,â they said.
These, and several other studies, note the promising efficacy and safety of CBG for treating cancer especially when used in conjunction with other cannabinoids. Typically, these studies also look at CBD and THC. After all, itâs a well-known fact that the entourage effect is more powerful than isolating cannabinoids alone. It refers to the synergistic interactions between cannabinoids as well as the other compounds found in marijuana.
Simply put, the entourage effect states that the therapeutic benefits of cannabinoids are much more powerful when they all work together instead of just one alone. In these studies, we can see that CBG may be a potent anti-cancer compound particularly when given to patients alongside CBD and THC.
CBG For Colorectal Cancer
Meanwhile, another study from 2014 highlighted CBGâs potential for treating colorectal cancer. The study, which was published in the medical journal, Carcinogenesis, discusses the powerful action observed where CBGÂ promotes programmed cell death (apoptosis). In addition, the scientists observed that CBG was also beneficial in improving oxidative stress response while reducing the cancer cell growth.
CBG with Other Cannabinoids For Breast Cancer
In a 2018 study, researchers analyzed the anti-tumor activity observed in different types of cancer when exposed to various botanical preparations containing cannabinoids such as THC, THCA, and CBG. They found that the preparations containing all these cannabinoids were much more powerful than those containing just THC for breast cancer, of course due to the entourage effect. The researchers concluded that these drug preparations were indeed more powerful than just simply pure cannabinoids.
CBG For Tumors
Glioblastoma is one of the most difficult cancers to treat. Itâs also extremely aggressive, and patients with this form of cancer are given just about a year more to live. Since glioblastoma is so difficult to treat, it usually requires radiation, chemotherapy, as well as surgery.
There have been several studies pointing to the numerous benefits of THC for glioblastoma, but now scientists see the potential of CBG as well. In February 2021, the results of a significant study on CBG and glioblastoma was released. Researchers from the University Medical Centre Ljubljana studied biopsied glioblastoma tumor cells as well as glioblastoma stem cells from patients with this type of cancer. For this study, the researchers analyzed the anti-tumor properties of different cannabinoids and doses, including THC, CBD, and CBG. They also compared the results of cannabinoids with temozolomide.
They found that CBG was effective in making glioblastoma more responsive to chemotherapy, when used alone or together with CBD. As a result, this yielded better rates of apoptosis. Furthermore, they found that combining CBD and THC was effective in reducing the viability of both cell types and promoted a significant degree of apoptosis among glioblastoma cells.
They also found that CBG worked to inhibit as much as 90% of invasive glioblastoma cell tendril development, whereas chemotherapy drugs only worked for 50%. These are extremely important findings since glioblastoma cell tendrils are extremely invasive, a major reason why this cancer is nearly impossible to treat. âTHC has little added value in combined-cannabinoid glioblastoma treatment, suggesting that this psychotropic cannabinoid should be replaced with CBG in future clinical studies of glioblastoma therapy,â they added.
CONCLUSION
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CBG should no longer be viewed as a âminor cannabinoidâ. With all its potential health benefits, especially in the realm of cancer, this life-saving cannabinoid can help improve the prognosis and lifespan for thousands of cancer patients worldwide. We hope to see more studies cementing its therapeutic applications for cancer.