The interplay between cancer biology and the endocannabinoid system—significance for cancer risk, prognosis and response to treatment
Simple Summary: This review analyses the complex involvement of the various components of the endocannabinoid system (ECS) in the susceptibility to cancer, prognosis, and response to treatment, focusing on its relationship with cancer biology in selected solid cancers (breast, gastrointestinal, gynaecological, prostate cancer, thoracic, thyroid, central nervous system (CNS) tumours, and melanoma). The same ECS component can exert both protective and pathogenic effects in different tumour subtypes, which are often pathologically driven by different biological factors. Although an attractive target in cancer, the use of components in anti-cancer treatment is still interlinked with many legal and ethical issues that need to be considered. The legislation which outlines the permissive boundaries of their therapeutic use in oncology is still unable to follow the current scientific burden of evidence, but the number of ongoing clinical trials might tip the scale forward in the near future. ; This work was supported by the "Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad" and European Regional Development Funds of the European Union (Grant No. SAF2017-87629-R) and the Ministry of Education,Science and Technological Development of the Republic of Serbia (451-03-68/2020-14/200043).