One World Cannabis, Sheba Academic Medical Center ink collaboration agreement

Mar 11 2015

OWC Pharmaceutical Research Corp.'s (OTCQB: OWCP) wholly owned subsidiary One World Cannabis Ltd. ("the Company"), signed a collaboration agreement with Sheba Academic Medical Center, the largest hospital in Israel and in the Middle East.

Within the framework of a new collaboration agreement, the company will initiate a study to explore the effect of several combinations of cannabidiol (CBD) and tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) on multiple myeloma, starting with a basic science on multiple myeloma cells.

Multiple myeloma, a cancer of plasma cells, accounts for 10% of all hematologic malignancies. It is the second most common hematologic cancer and represents 1% of all cancer diagnoses and 2% of all cancer deaths.

The study will be conducted at the Sheba Academic Medical Center facilities, composed of a highly diverse yet interactive collaborative team of molecular biologists, immunologists, cell biologists and clinicians, located in Ramat Gan (near Tel Aviv), Israel.

Dr. Merav Leiba, Head of Multiple Myeloma outpatient clinic and Multiple Myeloma research lab at Sheba Academic Medical Center's hematology institute, will lead the research. Dr. Leiba, a specialist in Internal Medicine and Hematology, was a postdoctoral fellow at the Jerome Lipper Multiple Myeloma Center at Dana Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, Massachusetts (2006-2008). Dr. Leiba has participated in numerous clinical and investigational studies aimed at developing novel drugs for multiple myeloma.

Dr. Alan Shackelford, the company's Chief Science Officer, will oversee this clinical research. Dr. Shackelford is a Harvard Medical School-trained physician with expertise in internal medicine, nutritional medicine, and behavioral medicine, and was also a Research Fellow at the Harvard Medical School. Dr. Shackelford has more than 30 years of clinical experience and is recognized as one of the leading authorities in the emerging field of cannabinoid medicine.

The company has recently received Sheba Academic Medical Center internal review board (IRB) approval to the study. This Helsinki Committee approval confirms that the medical trial does not contradict the principles of the Helsinki Declaration, the Israeli Public Health Regulations (Medical trials on humans) 5741-1980 and the Israeli Medical Trials on Humans Procedure, 2014.

Commenting on the collaboration, Ziv Turner, the company's Chief Executive Officer, said: "We are very pleased to be working with a highly regarded academic-based medical facility, and in compliance with international regulatory protocols. This collaboration supports the company's goal to be in the forefront of research and development of cannabis-based treatments for diseases and medical conditions."

SOURCE One World Cannabis Ltd. (OWC)