cannabisnews.com: Very British Approach To The Business of Cannabis





Very British Approach To The Business of Cannabis
Posted by CN Staff on December 07, 2003 at 19:34:50 PT
By Stephen Foley
Source: Independent UK
Geoffrey Guy has a conviction: possession of cannabis, with intent to supply. Not a criminal conviction, of course, since Dr Guy is an upstanding businessman and pillar of the community in Dorset. Just an evangelical belief that cannabis has an array of medical benefits and that his own painkiller, developed from the plant, will be available on the National Health within months. He is the G in GW Pharmaceuticals, its founder, executive chairman, and cheerleader-in-chief.
He saw that the Home Office was sympathetic to multiple sclerosis sufferers who had long argued cannabis had medical benefits, but that outright legalisation was a non-starter. So he asked for a license to grow the plant and, barely five years later, GW is tantalisingly close to launching its under-the-tongue spray, called Sativex."We represent the manifestation of government policy," he says. "If we disappeared tomorrow the Government would not have a policy. Her Majesty's Government has taken a very clear view, which is that in Britain we will do this in a pragmatic, proper way. If it is a medicine, let's prove it to be a medicine and let that proof be tested by the regulators. And that's where we stand. It's delightful to be British under this circumstance."The regulators in question are what Dr Guy describes as the "12 good scientists and true" of the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA). They will rule on whether GW's dossier of trial results, submitted in March, proves the company can manufacture Sativex consistently, proves the product is safe, and proves that it really does relieve the muscle stiffness of MS patients and the pain caused by nerve damage, as Dr Guy claims. It is a critical test of the quality of GW's science, but Dr Guy sees it as just the next hurdle after a string of hurdles already jumped."The crucial period was five years ago, getting this programme started. That was the most important time for these patients. Somebody was listening to them and finally, at last, the cavalry was on its way. Somebody was taking them seriously, and was prepared to try to make a medicine out of this plant. That is stunning. It's so significant in so many different ways, to actually have a medicine made in response to an unmet need for patients. These other issues, like cannabis being an entirely illegal substance around the world, those were just problems we had to overcome, which we did."Clearly Dr Guy is never one to sell himself or his company's achievements short. A doctor by training, his salesman streak developed at medical school, dealing in cars and his beloved motorbikes. He has a number of companies behind him already, mostly in the medical arena. Wearing sharp pinstripes when The Independent dropped in on GW's modest office in Mayfair, London, he is just at home in a lab coat at the company's Porton Down science park headquarters in Wiltshire, or at its top-secret cannabis greenhouse in the South of England. Invitations to that site are few and far between. The place is "like Fort Knox". Staff are vetted for convictions and routinely dope tested, and all the plants are individually labelled. "We have camera systems that can read a badge from 300 yards, and it's not fuzzy shopping centre stuff."Dr Guy certainly wouldn't be tempted to snip off a little for himself. For the sake of his health, he has cut out almost all the vices: he is a non-smoker, a teetotaller and now coffee is out, too, since cup after cup at business meetings was making him buzz. And, no, he hasn't indulged in cannabis. Not ever."Even up to a few years ago I used to quite naively say there wasn't any cannabis around at medical school. With people happier to talk more freely, I now understand there probably was in the Seventies, but I didn't see it. I don't come to this with a connoisseur's understanding of cannabis."Opinion in the City and in the scientific community is sharply divided over the prospects for GW and its products. The numbers of patients in the clinical studies have been relatively small and some of the trials did not prove what they set out to prove, although they do show statistically significant benefits, and Dr Guy insists the studies are robust.GW did not raise any money from institutional investors for its float in 2001 when its broker Collins Stewart instead tapped wealthy individuals. But the institutions are coming on board now and GW's progress to date has helped Dr Guy overcome some of the "reputational damage" he suffered over his last venture, Ethical Holdings. Another drug company, it failed to raise vital funds through a listing in London in 1996 and had to be bailed out by the Irish drugmaker Elan and broken up.Dr Guy is still sore at the memory, but brushes off people's doubts. "I don't lose sleep over it. I'm not a person who seeks high praise from people I don't know. We had a failed listing in London, which seems to have coloured most things in London, which is very typical of London, which looks not very much further than London. Having founded GW, from day one we have operated entirely to our plan."If there is a serious setback for Sativex at the MHRA, he won't have done himself any favours by selling £5m of shares at the time of GW's £20m fundraising in June this year. Then, the company was still predicting the drug would be available on prescription this month and the shares were 200p compared with 177.5p at the end of last week.None of these niggles will persist if Sativex is okayed, successfully rolled out overseas, as Dr Guy predicts, and if even a fraction of his optimism over the prospects for cannabis-based medicines proves correct."I think we are going to see 20 years of sensational medicines coming out of this area of research, and we are heavily involved at all stages," he says."You and I learnt at school that cannabis kills brain cells. The entire opposite is the case. We are highly involved in research looking at neuro-protection, we're looking at the anti-tumour effects of these materials, the anti-psychotic effects."I still hear people who say GW isn't a serious company. I'd line them up in front of a few of our patients, and see what our patients would say. We are not long for that judgment. Let's see how we get on." Geoffrey Guy: Vice-Free Chairman Position:  Chairman of GW Pharmaceuticals Age:  49 Wealth:  Salary and benefits from GW in the year to September 2002 were £199,000, and Dr Guy cashed in £5m of his shareholding in June 2003. His remaining stake is valued at £41.5m, putting him at number 801 on the Sunday Times Rich List Career:  Trained as a doctor at St Bartholomew's Hospital in London before moving into private sector. Set up Ethical Holdings, making morphine and hormone replacement therapy drugs, in 1985, leaving a year after it failed to list in London in 1996. Set up GW in 1998 and floated it in 2001 Interests: Real tennis, yachts, cars and archery Note: Business Profile: Geoffrey Guy believes his company is close to success in creating a legal drug from an illegal one.Source: Independent (UK)Author:  Stephen FoleyPublished: December 08, 2003Copyright: 2003 Independent Newspapers (UK) Ltd.Contact: letters independent.co.ukWebsite: http://www.independent.co.uk/ Related Articles & Web Site:GW Pharmaceuticalshttp://www.gwpharm.com/Blow for GW Pharma Cannabis Remedyhttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread17874.shtmlCanada: GW and Bayer Announce Agreement http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread17741.shtmlCannabis Spray Painkiller in Use in Monthshttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread17083.shtml
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Comment #15 posted by Rev Jonathan Adler on December 08, 2003 at 14:16:20 PT:
GW is a start, let's finish in Hawaii!
Ethan and FoM and goneposthole and Virgil and ALL the concerned advocates ought to band together to demand research and supply domestically now! We are getting very far behind as it is and MUST go forward with projects such as I suggest for Hawaii. HB 1805 and SB 2502 in our next legislative session will recognize our right to do this job for our community and our world. A service is needed by sick and suffering patients nation wide. We will provide that service legally until, our government catches up with the rest of the world and thanks us for staying the course.
Hopefully we have earned our spot and will do a great job. 
Ethan, Please call me soon. 808-982-7640 *Happy Holidays!
Hawaii Medical Marijuaana Institute
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Comment #14 posted by sukoi on December 08, 2003 at 08:43:21 PT
Cousin of Pot May Protect Brain
http://www.philly.com/mld/philly/business/7439068.htm
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Comment #13 posted by Ethan Russo MD on December 08, 2003 at 07:53:04 PT
Just So That You Know
This piece makes Geoffrey Guy come across as some megalomaniac out only for the buck (or pound, in this case). He certainly is a person of justifiable awareness of his own prowess and knowledge. Few people in his position are successful if they are not, nor can they command the loyalty and enthusiasm of their colleagues. It is easy to mistake that attitude for one of arrogance.Despite the portrayal as someone who does not understand the herb, this is hardly true. There are few people in the world that are cognizant of the intricacies and potential of cannabis as he is. His goal is to see that cannabis returns to its proper place in the pharmacopoeia as a useful and respected therapeutic agent. That this may lead to profit along the way is still not a sin in Western society. Unfortunately, nothing of this scope ever comes to pass without investment and expectation of a return. When he speaks of "20 years of sensational medicines coming out of this area of research," this is no exaggeration whatsoever, in my less than humble opinion. There are investigations afoot that portend to revolutionize current medical therapy. This will all take time, but I am confident that good things are coming, hopefully soon, if the regulatory authorities are kind.
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Comment #12 posted by jose melendez on December 08, 2003 at 07:52:24 PT
narcophobic?
http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v03/n1888/a09.html?397
boycott the drug war industry
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Comment #11 posted by The GCW on December 08, 2003 at 05:40:55 PT
Business of cannabis vs. pharm drugs.
Cannabis is not bad but is projected as such.The drugs that are politically correct, are harmful and being dumped on kids, only to show the inevitable; later showing perminent harms.Attention Deficit Drugs May Have Long-Term Effects
Mon Dec 8,12:28 AM ET http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=578&e=7&u=/nm/20031208/ts_nm/attention_dcWASHINGTON (Reuters) - Drugs given to children to treat attention deficit hyperactivity disorder could have long-term effects on their growing brains, studies on rats suggest.  Several studies published on Monday show that rats given a popular ADHD drug were less likely to want to use cocaine later in life, but also often acted clinically depressed and behaved differently from rats give dummy injections. While rats are different from humans, the studies suggest that doctors should watch children for long-term effects, too. In the United States between 3 percent and 5 percent of children are diagnosed with attention deficit disorder, marked by reduced ability to concentrate, difficulty in organizing and impulsive behavior. Patients are commonly prescribed stimulants but the practice is sometimes controversial. William Carlezon of McLean Hospital and Harvard Medical School (news - web sites) in Boston and colleagues raised two groups of rats. One was given Ritalin (news - web sites), known generically as methylphenidate, during the rat equivalent of pre-adolescence, while the other was given a salt water injection. When they matured, the rats were tested for "learned helplessness" -- how quickly they gave up on behavioral tasks under stress. "Rats exposed to Ritalin as juveniles showed large increases in learned-helplessness behavior during adulthood, suggesting a tendency toward depression," Carlezon said in a statement. But rats, which generally like cocaine, were less likely to eat it if they had been give Ritalin. Carlezon said he did not believe the effects were specific to Ritalin, made by Swiss drug giant Novartis. It could instead be a general effect of stimulant drugs, many of which act by increasing the activity of a key message-carrying chemical called dopamine. Higher dopamine levels could affect the way brain cells cement their connections during development, Carlezon wrote in the Dec. 15 issue of the journal Biological Psychiatry. A team at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas found that adult rats were less responsive to rewarding stimuli and reacted more to stress if they had been given methylphenidate as youngsters. A third study done by a team at Finch University of Health Sciences/The Chicago Medical School found changes in how dopamine neurons responded to methylphenidate. "These three studies remind us how limited our knowledge is of the neurochemical and functional characteristics of the human brain during childhood and adolescence and on the effects of psychotropic drugs on brain development," Dr. Thomas Insel, Director of the National Institute of Mental Health, wrote in a commentary. 420& In case You haven't heard:
 
Kucinich put in writting that as presedent He will: 
"decriminalize marijuana" -"in favor of a drug policy that sets reasonable boundaries for marijuana use by establishing guidelines similar to those already in place for alcohol." 
http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread17917.shtml 
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Comment #10 posted by goneposthole on December 08, 2003 at 05:33:00 PT
I can't believe
Tommy Chong is in prison. It alone demonstrates that all is not well in this world. Tipped over, upside down, hard to understand. Something or someone will right it, but not John Ashcroft.Right now, British rule wouldn't be so bad. An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. Turn back the years.Free Tommy Chong.
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Comment #9 posted by FoM on December 07, 2003 at 20:50:23 PT
Virgil
I don't know how to find the details like you want. I don't think it does it that way. It would take a lot of looking on my part to even find where that articles stats are and that would only be for a month not all together. I'm sorry but it doesn't record it that way. I know message boards do but not CNews.
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Comment #8 posted by Virgil on December 07, 2003 at 20:42:38 PT
One question, part 2
http://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread1000.shtml I opened this old thread three times. The way to find out if it is individual hits is to see if you have 3 or 1 on the counter tomorrow. That part in the article about only 5 years later kind of rubbed me the wrong way. Someone ought to tell the reporter that there is a group of very informed people that think that cannabis should have always remained free and his statement is offensive to that group.
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Comment #7 posted by FoM on December 07, 2003 at 20:34:20 PT
Virgil
It will be the same. It only updates once a day during the night sometime. It doesn't record hits as they are accessed.
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Comment #6 posted by Virgil on December 07, 2003 at 20:26:05 PT
One more question
Here is a chart using Alexa.com data to compare the Kucinich website to traffic of 4 other candidates- http://www.mylinuxisp.com/~cryofan/FoM, I opened that link to the NORML release twice. Can you tell me if the count is now 947 or the same? Thanks.
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Comment #5 posted by FoM on December 07, 2003 at 20:25:43 PT
Virgil
One more thing. That is for one day so that's good. 
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Comment #4 posted by FoM on December 07, 2003 at 20:21:12 PT
Virgil
I'm sorry but I don't know. I think it just counts hits but doesn't separate them. Maybe somewhere in the program it might say but I wouldn't even know how to find that information. 
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Comment #3 posted by Virgil on December 07, 2003 at 20:17:43 PT
Question
Is that 945 hits from unique IP addresses or is it total number of hits? I have always wondered that because I probably opened that thread twenty times.Thanks for the answer, FoM.
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Comment #2 posted by FoM on December 07, 2003 at 20:03:52 PT
Virgil
As of yesterday 945 times!
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Comment #1 posted by Virgil on December 07, 2003 at 19:59:55 PT
I will pass on comment
Request for information- Could you tell us how many people read this thread from NORML concerning Kucinich and his position on cannabis- http://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread17917.shtml I put up this link at DU and I hope others spread this link to all outlets possible. From http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=105&topic_id=506277The Commie Awards on Comedy Central just gave Chong an award for being "The Funniest Person Behind Bars." Award was accepted by Cheech Marin, who said that they needed to appeal to Ah-nold, that if he wants to save the state of CA a bit of money he needs to let Tommy out early. There is a section at DemocraticUnderground on politics and campaigns- http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topics&forum=108You can click the little box at the end of the hyperlink to hide it. There was one very moving comment today in that section about a person that met Kucinich in NY- http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=108&topic_id=97508I think there is another forum this Tuesday. These links are also from today in the politics and campaign section at DU.http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=108&topic_id=96176 - This is on Kucinich being discussed at Buzzflash concerning Dieboldhttp://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=108&topic_id=94332 - This is on World's AIDS dayhttp://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=108&topic_id=95277 - On the Failure of No Chiuld Left Behindhttp://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=108&topic_id=96230&mesg_id=96230 - On steel tariffshttp://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=108&topic_id=97379 - A thread on the Convention in Floridahttp://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=108&topic_id=93818&mesg_id=93818- People need to check this one out as it says Kucinich's website surges while other candidates drop.There are more but you know where to find them. I am just trying to show there is a lot of enthusiasm for DK at DU. I have written several comments because I do not want people to overlook the discussion that needs to happen concerning the WOD.We could hit a home run with Dennis. It is time to get in shape and get in the game.$4.20 for Dennis
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