NORTH-EAST cancer patients will be among the first in the UK to try an experimental drug which includes chemicals similar to those found in cannabis.

The drug, called dexanabinol, is from a family of chemical compounds called cannabinoids.

While it is chemically related to compounds found in cannabis plants, it is made in a lab and lacks any cannabislike effects.

The trial will be run by researchers at the Cancer Research UK and the National Institute for Health Research Experimental Cancer Medicine Centre in Newcastle.

About 45 patients will be recruited at the Freeman Hospital, in Newcastle, and St James University Hospital, in Leeds.

The trial is funded by UKbased e-Therapeutics, which also manufactures the drug.

It will investigate its potential for treating patients with a variety of solid tumours.

A similar trial is under way in the US in brain cancer and results from both are expected next year.

Professor Ruth Plummer, from Newcastle University, who is leading the trial, said: “The starting point for this trial was to map networks of proteins that appear to have a role in cancer, identify points at which these networks could be disrupted, and then see if there were existing drugs to target these points.

“It was this novel approach – known as network pharmacology – that first highlighted the potential cancer-fighting properties of dexanabinol, which was originally developed to treat patients with severe head injuries.

“While this certainly illustrates that there may be compounds with real therapeutic potential related to those found in cannabis, it also points to the importance of applying rigorous scientific methods when selecting molecules that might have potential as cancer treatments.

“The main aim will be to establish what dose is safe and assess any side effects. But we’ll also be looking out to see what effect, if any, the drug has on the patient’s cancer.”

Patients selected for the trial will have advanced solid tumours that cannot be helped by existing treatments.

Dr Joanna Reynolds, Cancer Research UK’s director of centres, said: “The potential anti-cancer properties of chemicals found in cannabis were first touched on by scientists in the 1970s.

“We’re delighted to be supporting some of the first steps towards hopefully turning this painstaking research into new treatments that could benefit patients.”