An Israeli biomedical company is working on a colon cancer treatment using cannabinoids and mushroom extracts.
On Tuesday, Herzliya-based Cannabotech revealed that the oncological Integrative-Colon products it is developing killed more than 90 percent of colon cancer cells in tests.
According to Cannabotech, it bases the products on a combination of several cannabinoids and various mushroom extracts.
Cannabotech CEO Elhanan Shaked says the products are a significant milestone in the company’s growth to becoming a leader in integrative oncology medicine.
“The integrative products developed by Cannabotech are intended for use in combination with chemotherapy treatment to reduce its side effects,” says Shaked. “Cannabotech’s solutions will be launched in Israel and the US towards the second half of 2022, while the Company’s goal is to define a new standard for the medical cannabis industry.”
In its research, Cannabotech studied the effects of its Integrative Colon products on molecular changes common in different colon cancer subtypes.
Cannabotech says it compared the products’ composition to each cannabinoid’s activity individually.
According to the company, the results indicated that the cannabinoid combination in the Integrative Colon products was more effective than individual cannabinoids.
Cannabotech reported a strong synergy between the active ingredients and stated that the results reinforce its claim that defined, accurate, and science-based formulas are essential to achieving effective treatment in the oncology field.
According to Cannabotech, such formulas cannot be found in any cannabis strain that exists in nature.
Cannabotech Senior Oncologist Tami Peretz says colon cancer is one of the most common tumor types, with a significant number of patients undergoing treatment with traditional methods combined with medical cannabis.
“Cannabotech’s Integrative products are unique in that they are designed to standards similar to those of the pharmaceutical industry and incorporate many active ingredients,” says Peretz. “The Company’s products have demonstrated impressive and very promising efficacy in colon culture cells tested in the laboratory. Based on these experiments, there is room to perform animal studies and, in the future, to examine the possibility of incorporating these products in colorectal cancer patients.”
Cannabotech says the study demonstrated each cannabinoid’s effect on distinct colon cancer subtypes, highlighting the vital need for medical care personalization to each patient’s individual needs.
According to Cannabotech, the enriched, high concentration of Polysaccharide K (PSK) in its mushroom extracts has anti-cancer properties.
Cannabotech says PSK, which comes from the Trametes versicolor mushroom (Turkey Tail), has gained approval as an oncology treatment in Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan.
Cannabotech Pharmacological Consultant Isaac Angel says the significant synergistic effect that the active ingredients demonstrated eliminated more than 90 percent of all cancer cell types used in company research.
“Furthermore, this was achieved without the presence of THC, which is the cannabinoid substance producing the ‘high’ effect, whereas each of the other cannabinoids tested individually demonstrated different effects on the various cell types,” says Angel. “We are encouraged by these results, which constitute another important milestone in proving the scientific feasibility of the products and highlight the need for medical care customization. We shall continue to work to provide a cure for the patients.”
Cannabotech says it will examine its formula’s effectiveness when combined with standard chemotherapies during the following stages.
According to the company, it will combine the cannabinoid formula with the Cyathus Striatus mushroom as part of a botanical drug development project led by Professor Fuad Fares at the University of Haifa.
