RSO cannabis oil typically contains a high percentage of THC (around 60 to 90 percent) and very little CBD, depending on the strain of cannabis used for the extract. This means that alongside THC and CBD it also contains all of the healthy fatty acids. Terpenes and minor cannabinoids that science is showing work in symbiosis to act as a cure.

Through many detailed experiments, handily summarized in this recent article in the journal Nature Reviews Cancer, scientists have discovered that various cannabinoids (both natural and synthetic) have a wide range of effects in the lab, including:

• Triggering cell death, through a mechanism called apoptosis
• Stopping cells from dividing
• Preventing new blood vessels from growing into tumours
• Reducing the chances of cancer cells spreading through the body.
• Speeding up a process known as autophagy – which can lead to cell death

 

All these effects are caused by cannabinoids locking onto the CB1 and CB2 cannabinoid receptors. It also looks like cannabinoids can exert effects on cancer cells that don’t involve cannabinoid receptors, although it isn’t yet clear exactly how this mechanism works.