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Effects of concomitant use of THC and irinotecan on tumour growth and biochemical markers in a syngeneic mouse model of colon cancer

Authors

Suzana Žunec, Irena Brčić Karačonji, Martin Čatalinac, Andreja Jurič, Anja Katić, Goran Kozina, Vedran Micek, Marijana Neuberg, and Ana Lucić Vrdoljak


Published

September 2023

Abstract

Clinical treatment with the antineoplastic drug irinotecan (IRI) is often hindered by side effects that significantly reduce the quality of life of treated patients. Due to the growing public support for products with Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), even though relevant scientific literature does not provide clear evidence of their high antitumour potential, some cancer patients take unregistered preparations containing up to 80 % THC. This study was conducted on a syngeneic colorectal cancer mouse model to test the efficiency and safety of concomitant treatment with IRI and THC. Male BALB/c mice subcutaneously injected with CT26 cells were receiving 60 mg/kg of IRI intraperitoneally on day 1 and 5 of treatment and/or 7 mg/kg of THC by gavage a day for 7 days. Treatment responses were evaluated based on changes in body, brain, and liver weight, tumour growth, blood cholinesterase activity, and oxidative stress parameters. Irinotecan’s systemic toxicity was evidenced by weight loss and high oxidative stress. The important finding of this study is that combining THC with IRI diminishes IRI efficiency in inhibiting tumour growth. However, further studies, focused on more subtle molecular methods in tumour tissue and analytical analysis of IRI and THC distribution in tumour-bearing mice, are needed to prove our observations.

DOI: 10.2478/aiht-2023-74-3765

Citations

Žunec, S., Brčić Karačonji, I., Čatalinac, M., Jurič, A., Katić, A., Kozina, G., … & Lucić Vrdoljak, A. (2023). Effects of concomitant use of THC and irinotecan on tumour growth and biochemical markers in a syngeneic mouse model of colon cancer. Arhiv za higijenu rada i toksikologiju, 74(3), 198-206.