A review on the role of the endocannabinoid system in the gynecological malignancy

Objectives: The endocannabinoid system (ECS) is made up of an array of endogenous bioactive lipids, their receptors and enzymes for their synthesis and degradation. The main endogenous ligands are unsaturated fatty acid derivatives such as anandamide (AEA) and 2-arachidonoylglycerol (2-AG), but many others are still under study. Endocannabinoids are involved in both physiological and pathological conditions and could play an important role in the regulation of processes which lead to cancer. Methods: With focus on gynaecological cancers, main papers and review articles, up to September 2018, on the role of the ECS, were acquired by PubMed searches using the search terms: ‘cannabinoid’, ‘endocannabinoid’, ‘gynaecology’, ‘cancer’, and ‘malignancy’. Results: The present review showed the involvement of the endocannabinoid system in numerous physiological and pathological conditions of the female genital tract up to the development of gynaecological malignancy as cervical, endometrial and ovarian cancer. Conclusion: The endocannabinoid system has an important role in antitumor actions involving different signalling receptor and receptor-independent pathways. It represents an exciting challenge to researchers for its potential use in diagnosis and treatment of all gynaecological malignancies.