Shares in Perth medical cannabis company Zelda Therapeutics have soared this morning after the company revealed its marijuana product is a potential breast cancer treatment.

Zelda, which only listed on the ASX last week, announced the results of the “experimental trial” this morning, with the company claiming its THC-rich medical cannabis formula was as effective in reducing breast cancer tumour growth in mice as chemotherapy drug Lapatanib.

The six-month pre-clinical study has been conducted by Zelda and cannabis anti-cancer researchers in Spain. The results are pre-clinical, however, and require clinical trial validation.

“(But) we are generating some of the first rigorous data in this field, and we are very excited by these results and other new and exciting data that is being generated as we speak through this research collaboration,” Zelda’s Perth-based chairman Harry Karelis said.

In the experiment, Zelda claims its THC-rich oil successfully killed certain types of breast cancer cells without harming the surrounding healthy cells, and was shown to be an effective complementary therapy when used alongside standard chemotherapy.

Mr Karelis said it indicated that a combination of THC-rich cannabis oil and standard chemotherapy “may result in patients requiring lower dosages of the chemo drug while still maintaining the same anti-cancer effects”.

Shares in the company spiked 1¢, or 43.48 per cent, to 3.3¢ at 11am WST this morning.

Originally published as Marijuana looms as breast cancer fighter