Rare Jamaican Strain May Help Treat Pancreatic Cancer

The American federal government has given the go ahead for various clinical trials that will establish the value of a flavonoid found in a rare Jamaican cannabis strain. This flavonoid is said to play an important role in the fight against pancreatic cancer. The Jamaican cannabis strain in question is known as Black Swan, and is believed to contain the flavonoid cannflavin B. 

Most medical cannabis research is into the efficacy of common cannabinoids such as THC or CBD. However, as we get more adventurous and learn more, research is expanding. In 2019, a study which was published in the journal Frontiers in Oncology reported that cannflavin B, which is a flavonoid (similar to terpenes as they’re partly responsible for how we perceive cannabis through our senses) as opposed to a cannabinoid, may help kill pancreatic cancer cells. Needless to say, these advancements are an exciting prospect – especially so seeing that this cancer is one of the deadliest with just an 8% survival rate. 

Cannflavin B seems to cause cancer cell suicide in a sense, as the study found. It further enhances the efficacy of chemotherapy and radiation therapies – making them more worthwhile. However, the companies involved in research aren’t all that interested in using natural cannabis. Instead, they’ve created a synthetic version of this flavonoid, known as Caflanone, or FBL-03G, which is essentially an anti-cancer drug. 

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in the United States has given permission to continue into the next phases of research on this flavonoid and the synthetic cousin. This will be in order to establish just how well it works and how it would best be utilised. Further research and trials are said to start early 2020, and is hopefully happening as we write this.

Look out for a follow up on this article in the near future.