Cannabinoids tested in new drug trial

A new clinical trial has now commenced to test the success of a drug for the treatment of Recurrent Glioblastoma Multiforme (GBM). GW Pharmaceuticals plc has announced the study, which will test one of the drugs developed by its cannabinoid product platform.

GBM is a tumour type that develops due to the abnormal growth of glial tissue in the brain. This form of brain cancer is particularly aggressive and makes up around half of the 22,500 cases of the disease that are diagnosed each year within the US, according to the 'New England Journal of Medicine'. Due to the aggressive nature of the tumour, there are few treatment options available and survival time is usually estimated at just over a year.

The study will follow on from years of research into cannabinoids, which GW has found inhibit the glioma cells in vivo and in vitro via programmed cell death. Cannabinoids have also been found to inhibit the growth rate of some tumours and help to improve the effectiveness of the standard glioma treatment drug, temozolomide. 

Doctor Stephen Wright, director of research and development at GW, said: "We are very excited about moving this compound into further human study and the prospects of cannabinoids as new anti-cancer treatments. This is GW's first clinical study of cannabinoids as a potential treatment to inhibit tumour growth.

"We believe this clinical program demonstrates the flexibility and broad application of GW's cannabinoid platform to treat significant, unmet therapeutic needs." 

Some 20 patients are part of the trial that will take place at several different centres. The trial will be a two-part study that includes an open-label phase. During the study, the safety of the cannabinoids, when used in conjunction with temozolomide, will be tested and the way that they are tolerated by patients. The double-blind, randomised, placebo-controlled will aim for the primary outcome of a six-month period where tumour progression does not occur and the patient survives.