The objective of this review was to identify and examine the pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic interactions between cannabidiol (CBD)-only products, such as CBD oil, and anticancer agents. A literature search of PubMed (1980 to September 2018) and the Cochrane Collection (1980 to September 2018) was performed using the following search terms: “cannabidiol,” “cancer,” “cannabis,” “marijuana,” and “interaction,” as well as any combination of these terms. Literature was excluded if it did not appear in the search when limited to the “full text” filter on PubMed, if it was not published in the English language, or if it did not explore potential pharmacodynamic or pharmacokinetic interactions of CBD and anticancer agents. There were 10 studies that met these inclusion criteria. The majority of the facts regarding the interactions with CBD were found using in vitro studies and the true in vivo implications are not well-known. Minimal data were available regarding the interactions between CBD and anticancer agents. However, pharmacists should always consider the possibility of interactions and their consequences whenever they are aware of a patient using CBD products.
We present a case of a patient with cutaneous T-cell lymphoma started on bexarotene 300 mg/m2 due to progressing disease. The patient experienced good clinical response, but unfortunately, she developed rapid and profound hypertriglyceridemia. Although hypertriglyceridemia occurs in high incidence with bexarotene therapy, management recommendations are scarce. Due to the rise in triglycerides, atorvastatin 10 mg daily was initiated in combination with fenofibrate 120 mg daily. Triglycerides continued to increase, so the patient was instructed to take atorvastatin 40 mg, fenofibrate 120 mg, and to hold bexarotene for 2 weeks. After the 2-week break, bexarotene was restarted at 150 mg/m2.
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