cannabisnews.com: Britain To Approve Medicine Derived From Marijuana Britain To Approve Medicine Derived From Marijuana Posted by CN Staff on January 26, 2004 at 15:06:37 PT By David Tuller Source: New York Times A marijuana-based medication for people suffering from multiple sclerosis and severe pain is expected to be approved for sale in Britain early this year, British officials say. The drug, Sativex, developed by GW Pharmaceuticals, a British company, is a liquid extract from marijuana grown by the company under license from the government. Developed to be sprayed under the tongue, it would be the first drug in recent decades to include all the components of the cannabis plant, advocates of medical marijuana say. The British agency that regulates pharmaceuticals does not like to discuss potential drugs before they are approved. The country's Home Office, which oversees laws and policies on controlled substances, has indicated that Sativex is likely to receive approval. Alan Macfarlane, a chief inspector at the Home Office, said the results of the clinical trials for Sativex looked promising. "I'm hoping it will be dealt with in the next two to three months, and I will be surprised if it doesn't succeed," he said.Bayer, the German pharmaceutical giant, signed a deal with GW last year to market Sativex in Britain and possibly other countries. "What's likely to happen is that the U.K. authorization will lead quite quickly to European Union authorization," Mr. Macfarlane said. "I think it's going to be a little troubling for the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, given the national climate about marijuana."GW also hopes eventually to obtain regulatory approval from the Food and Drug Administration. But the review process in the United States is expected to take much longer, and the policy against marijuana use, in any form, is much more prohibitive. Further, the Office of National Drug Control Policy says that marijuana abuse is associated with health problems as diverse as respiratory infections, impaired memory and learning, anxiety and panic attacks.Marijuana proponents challenge these claims, saying the plant is far less toxic than many of the medicines it would replace. In any event, they say, approval of medical marijuana in Britain should lead to broader acceptance of the plant's therapeutic uses."If it turns out to be effective," said Dr. Jack Lewin, chief executive of the California Medical Association, "it's going to be a very positive development, akin in terms of medicine to moving from the crudeness of smoking opium to the use of Demerol and morphine." The Food and Drug Administration has allowed people to import personal supplies of pharmaceutical drugs that are not approved in the United States, and medical marijuana advocates are already planning to pressure the authorities to allow patients to obtain Sativex.But Will Glaspy, a spokesman for the Drug Enforcement Administration, said it was unlikely that someone could lawfully import an extract from a drug like marijuana, although he did not know specifically about Sativex. "If it's a controlled substance here, it would be illegal to bring it into the country," Mr. Glaspy said.But some advocates for overhauling marijuana laws say the British approval of Sativex will bolster their case. Dr. Rick Doblin, president of the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies, a research and education organization in Sarasota, Fla., said, "To the extent that GW gets approval, it supports the credibility of what we have been saying about the medical benefits of marijuana, and it causes people to question the credibility of the government." Others are concerned about the government's response.Bruce Mirken, a spokesman for the Marijuana Policy Project, an advocacy group in Washington, said, "The government could use this as an excuse to say, `See, we have this fabulous pharmaceutical substitute; you don't need this nasty weed anymore.' "Drug companies have already developed a handful of drugs derived from isolated elements of the marijuana plant. The most widely known marijuana drug now available is Marinol, which the F.D.A. approved in capsule form in 1985. Marinol is essentially a synthetic version of THC, or tetrahydrocannabinol, the psychoactive component of marijuana, and is used to treat chemotherapy-associated nausea and AIDS-related wasting and appetite loss.But THC is only one of dozens of cannabinoids, the substances that invest the marijuana plant with its properties. And because Marinol must be absorbed through the digestive system, it takes longer to begin working than smoked marijuana. Many patients also say that Marinol is far less effective in easing their symptoms.Sativex has been designed to overcome those shortcomings. Because it is sprayed under the tongue, the drug is absorbed through mucus membranes, a quicker and more reliable route of action than swallowing a pill.Moreover, Sativex includes not only THC but substantial levels of the cannabinoid cannabidiol, which is believed to have anti-anxiety and other therapeutic properties — as well as dozens of other marijuana ingredients that GW researchers believe augment the drug's medicinal benefits. The company also maintains that Sativex, when taken properly, does not cause the kind of intoxication that people routinely experience from smoking marijuana.In clinical trials, Sativex provided some relief from symptoms of multiple sclerosis and from pain caused by nerve damage. The company is also testing Sativex and other marijuana products for treatment of schizophrenia, head injuries, epilepsy, rheumatoid arthritis and other conditions.Dr. Geoffrey Guy, the chairman of GW, said he had founded the company to develop marijuana-based medicines after realizing in the 1990's how many ordinary people with serious illnesses were being charged with marijuana possession. "This was Middle England showing up in court," he said.Dr. Lester Grinspoon, a retired psychiatry professor at Harvard Medical School and a longtime marijuana proponent, said Sativex would be an improvement over Marinol. "But many or quite possibly most people would still find smoking marijuana to be quicker, more effective and cheaper," he said.Dr. Grinspoon worries that what he calls the pharmaceuticalization of marijuana — the advent of Sativex and related drugs — could weaken public support for easing laws on the possession and use of the plant.But the executive director of the Drug Policy Alliance, a New York-based group that seeks to overhaul drug laws, sees any increase in awareness of the benefits of marijuana as likely to advance the debate."What's happening is that people are appreciating the broader value of cannabis in human society," said Dr. Ethan Nadelmann, the alliance's executive director. "It's a remarkable plant with remarkable properties." Complete Title: Britain Poised To Approve Medicine Derived From MarijuanaSource: New York Times (NY)Author: David Tuller Published: January 27, 2004Copyright: 2004 The New York Times Co.Contact: letters nytimes.com Website: http://www.nytimes.com/Related Articles & Web Sites:GW Pharmaceuticalshttp://www.gwpharm.com/MPP: http://www.mpp.org/MAPS: http://www.maps.org/DPA: http://www.drugpolicy.org/RxMarijuana: http://www.rxmarihuana.com/Little Light Confusion Over Cannabis Drug Date http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread18194.shtmlCannabis MS Drug Available Soonhttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread18190.shtmlBritish Approach To The Business of Cannabishttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread17930.shtml Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help Comment #32 posted by yippierevolutionary on January 27, 2004 at 09:11:01 PT Afterburner my guess is Cannabis treats schizophrenia which is why schizophrenics use cannabis which is why that prohibitionist thinks cannabis causes schizophrenia [ Post Comment ] Comment #31 posted by afterburner on January 27, 2004 at 07:48:28 PT: Is It Reefer Madness or Reefer against Madness? The company [GW] is also testing Sativex and other marijuana products for treatment of schizophrenia...and yet at the same time Professor John Henry, also of the UK, claims that cannabis "causes" schizophrenia.Who do you believe?Medical Freedom Amendment for 2004: do you want freedom of medical choice? [ Post Comment ] Comment #30 posted by gloovins on January 27, 2004 at 04:01:19 PT ahh this came out nov 14 2002 on the web, at least. Is the NYT really on it? naa i don't think so... NYT journalists= New Young Thoughtless [ Post Comment ] Comment #29 posted by The GCW on January 26, 2004 at 20:49:40 PT It makes Me wonder if the way to catch their attention is to pin that schedule 1 lie to the flag and promise to burn the lie with the flag or get rid of the filthy lie. [ Post Comment ] Comment #28 posted by The GCW on January 26, 2004 at 20:42:49 PT Put that schedule 1 lie on the flag and BURN IT!Or get rid of the lie.The schedule 1 lie is going down with or with out the flag. I hope government subsidized cannabis prohibitionists don't take the flag down with them, but I'm not going to support a lie for the sake of a bloody flag.Cannabis prohibition is for the uncivilized. [ Post Comment ] Comment #27 posted by FoM on January 26, 2004 at 20:39:15 PT Correction I don't think what I took was called a tincture but an extract. I'm not sure what the difference is but I think a tincture is more concentrated. Maybe it isn't important but I don't want to say something that is wrong when it comes to medicine. There I feel better. [ Post Comment ] Comment #26 posted by Virgil on January 26, 2004 at 20:16:53 PT Crap from Virgil I do not pretend to be a pundit, but I want to say one thing about what is a long race to the Democratic convention. It would probably be best if no candidate won outright in the delegates and had to deal with winning delegates. It could be that Kerry would actually come out and change his policy on MMJ or decriminalization or the reScheduling that has to come for cannabinoids in order to win.When states are decided by 1 or 2% and there is a group of informed voters over the injustice and malice of the Schedule 1 classification it heats everything up. The Schedule 1 classification of cannabis is an outright fraud and I am surprised that there are not lawsuits against the USG for that fraud for wrongful death. But this article is gently breaking the news that the world has legal, researched, non-smoking, safe, effective, product with plenty of experienced users that shout MIRACLE!Now how can any of the candidates claim leadership while they are denying what will be very tested Miracle Plant extracts come July 26th through the 29th when the Democratic convention is held in Boston. Remember Kerry is a MA senator. What happens in a crowded field if DK meets with NORML and cites the introduction of these extracts as proof that Schedule 1 is all a lie? Somebody sometime is going to have to break from the party line, which is a murderous lie. Do you think Bayer knows how to make commercials? Do you think that there will be new MS users with all kinds of testimonials from the UK that also say the government dragged their feet in bringing this Miracle to them and that is the most safe and most amazing thing for MS? There is going to be a fire burning the Schedule 1 classification and we can all fuel it. The one winning the convention may see it is in his interest to light the match.It can also come into play if the elected delegates and super delegates do not elect a nominee on the first ballot and have to fight for delegates with positions in order to win. It would be better for Dean to win NH and other states too and if DK did well, Kerry might have to come clean and actually introduce legislation calling for Schedule 2 in order to win. We have 6 months of talking and making our commitments known. If Kerry saw his chances killed because of the SOL he has nourished, he might see he cannot defend the Lie in the face of world wide use of cannabis extracts. Just like alcohol carries the cannabinoids in Sativex, this New York Times article can carry your message to messageboards across the country. I put this up at DU that now has 38,500 registered users and was rated at 3932 by Alexa.. We have 6 months to work it and inform the public of the need to kill the SOL. Here is what I wrote in the thread I started at http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=117&topic_id=2128 Heading- Cannabis extract medicine article in the NYTGW Pharmaceuticals has been working about 5 years to bring cannabis extracts to market. They grow cannabis for consistency of cannabinoids like THC and CBD and extract them with grain alcohol. The first use to be approved will be for MS using a 50/50 ratio of the cannabinoids THC and CBD. There is a good summary of different mixtures and the GW products and outlook at http://www.parklandtrading.com/users/thc4ms/gwupdate.phpIt is a big deal that the NYT acknowledges that natural cannabinoids will be making legal entry into medicine. Of course the Dutch have legal cannabis as medicine that can be paid for by the government using a system of independent growers. There were many states that adopted MMJ laws in the 1970's and 1980's as a result of research taken after Nixon created the DEA. Most of this research ended up destroyed or hidden under Reagan and it is one of the worst injustices that government has inflicted on the citizens of the US. The National Institute of Health was corrupted to find any thing harmful about cannabis while defunding anything that was positive. There will be a wide range of cannabis related products over the next 20 years as the world catches up on what should have already been done. The pill you take for a headache in 10 years is most likely to be a cannabinoid. If you read the above article at thc4MS.org you can see that cannabis will define 1 in the scale of safety in a scale of 1 to anything.We have been lied to about cannabis in the last 30 years with a huge disinformation campaign that is still carried on by the Drug Czar Walters, whose favorite line is "Marijuana is a dangerous and addicitive drug." Second in DEA pronouncements is "Marijuana has no medicial value"I am not going to copy the NYT article as it just says that GW Pharmaceuticals will be introducing Sativex in a few months for MS sufferers- http://www.nytimes.com/2004/01/27/health/policy/27MARI.htmlIt can be seen without registering at http://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread18224.shtml [ Post Comment ] Comment #25 posted by Virgil on January 26, 2004 at 18:57:55 PT SGD- comment#17 http://www.parklandtrading.com/users/thc4ms/gwupdate.php This is the interview with Dr. Guy linked at thc4MS.org It will tell you about the different names of the products GW is developing.Sativex is equal parts THC and CBD in an alcohol solution or tincture as EJ pointed out. They have done the research that makes them believe this is the best cannabinoid product for MS they can start with. Use will bring more adaptations and it could be that someone could have two or three different ratios in the future so that if they need more THC there ya go. Need more CBD, here it is. [ Post Comment ] Comment #24 posted by FoM on January 26, 2004 at 18:43:00 PT Tinctures When I first starting using SJW I used an alcohol based tincture. After a while I was able to just take capsules. The alcohol tincture delivered the SJW faster. SJW is water soluble not like Cannabis. [ Post Comment ] Comment #23 posted by E_Johnson on January 26, 2004 at 18:36:50 PT It's a tincture People are so modernized these days nobody has heard of the word tincture outside of Harry Potter. [ Post Comment ] Comment #22 posted by Virgil on January 26, 2004 at 18:36:33 PT Loose ends I was interested in the future of wood sugar since it can be made from hemp. It is one type of alcohol sugar in the alcohol sugar family. Hershey's announced that they would have sugar-free chocolate which is meant to address the country's turn away from high carbohydrate foods. It is also for diabetics because it has a low insulin response.Hershey's chocolate uses lactitol instead of Xylitol, which is wood sugar. So that is kind of a dead lead in following the possibilities of hempfood in the diet.The low carbohydrate diets are effecting the bread market. What was 7 grain bread a few weeks ago is now 9 grain bread by Pepper Ridge Farms. Then I read about 11 grain bread and got a few results at Google with a search but no listing of grains. If there is going to be a grains race in the bread wars, they have to run out of seeds sometime and to go higher they will have to include hempseeds. I was suprised to see soy milk for $2.38 at Wal-Mart as that is cheaper chocolate milk than regular milk. I cannot see how hempmilk could compete with that. [ Post Comment ] Comment #21 posted by FoM on January 26, 2004 at 18:17:57 PT Virgil I would vote for a dead tree stump in the corner of a field if it ran against Bush. Now that's bad but it's how I feel. LOL! [ Post Comment ] Comment #20 posted by Sam Adams on January 26, 2004 at 18:16:03 PT DEA guy It's so funny - he "didn't know" about Sativex. What a joke! We're only paying the DEA like $20 billion a year! That's the part of the WOD that bothers me the most - as society's acceptance of MJ has changed, the drug war has not changed. Instead, society has changed - to embrace lying and hypocrisy.And in this case, (feigned) incompetence. Incompetence is now the weapon of oppression. Kids: Do as our leaders do! Be stupid! You'll get promoted right to the top! Is this the message we want to send? [ Post Comment ] Comment #19 posted by FoM on January 26, 2004 at 18:15:15 PT SystemGoneDown I thought of one more thing. Marinol is synthetic and Sativex is from a cannabis plant. I'm fairly sure about that but I could be wrong. [ Post Comment ] Comment #18 posted by FoM on January 26, 2004 at 18:10:57 PT SystemGoneDown It has all the goodies. That we were told. Does that help? [ Post Comment ] Comment #17 posted by SystemGoneDown on January 26, 2004 at 18:06:48 PT Sativex What makes this any different than Marinol? Does Sativex get you high? [ Post Comment ] Comment #16 posted by Virgil on January 26, 2004 at 18:01:28 PT Kay report and protest in London The Kay report came out in the UK saying there never were any weapons programs after the first Gulf War and there were no WMD when the Iraq War was launched.On Wednesdays Blair takes the hotseat in Parliament and this Wednesday on C-Span people can see the future of Blair on trial. What makes this interesting is that there should be some demonstration for cannabis legalization. It could all help the Social Democrats that are for legalization. People will be riled up and may join the protest that might otherwise stay at home.Right now, I would say the weather forecast for London Wednesday night is a worthy thing for someone following the cannabis news.FoM, I am definitely ABB. As one person said, I would vote for a rock before I voted for Bush. At least the rock would not talk. Bu$h's popularity sank after the SOTU where a prez usually gets a bump. [ Post Comment ] Comment #15 posted by FoM on January 26, 2004 at 17:29:10 PT Virgil That's way to deep for me. I'm not going to even think about how to fix the drug war but in time it will get fixed but how I have no idea. I'll be thinking about issues like safe water and disease prevention and issues like that. That's where my heart is. [ Post Comment ] Comment #14 posted by FoM on January 26, 2004 at 17:21:00 PT cloud7 I understand what you mean. Kucinich has great ideas but I fear Bush more then anything. I'm not going to be jumping up and down for Kerry but he is the best hope for Cannabis law reform. I don't want to live the rest of my life trying to make a difference with cannabis laws. I would love to be able to think of other important issues in time. I'm not young and I am losing my patience with how long this is taking. I won't ever be a political person because it's political and I don't like politics if that makes sense.PS: Plus the way we pick on a politician seems wrong to me. Who here on CNews has a perfect history and wouldn't mind all the details exposed on CNews? No one I'm sure. [ Post Comment ] Comment #13 posted by Virgil on January 26, 2004 at 17:01:01 PT FoM The whole thing is about it being an election year. It is a time when people are willing to discuss the problems at hand. The thing about Kucinich is that he is a messenger. Instead of saying listen to me, I can say listen to Kucinich. What he says makes sense. Why does your candidate not see it the same way.Maybe some people have conversation pieces in their house. DK is a conversation piece. "If you can say Constitution, then you can say Kucinich" is a way of raising the issue of our rights. The president takes an oath to defend the Constitution and many of us believe like Judge Gray that the 9th and 10th amendments went out with the drug wars.The 9th amendment has to do with the inalienable rights that was in the Declaration of Independence. It is the drug wars that ignores those rights. It is the media that does not raise the issue. It is the candidates that are silent. I want to introduce this because it relates to that issue and it has not been discussed here. From http://www.hempcity.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=23 The Constitutional Court of Justice On April 28.th 1994 the German Constitutional Court of Justice issued a decision with the implication that in Germany the use, possession, sale, growing and production of smaller amounts of cannabis for personal use were decriminalized. At the same time it opened up for import of small amounts of cannabis, and allowed transit of the drug (still only for personal use). The decision is based on the statement that there is no evidence that cannabis is harmful. The different states in Germany now have to decide how much an "amount for personal use" is. Most probably there will be different answers to that. Which I do not want to go there now. I say that besides Kucinich none of the others make much difference. They are all locked into the drug war. But the reason that article was worth reading in relation to cannabis is this. If you follow a line of reasoning that says the drug wars are to further US global domination, you need to see who is gaining what. That article spoke to spraying peasants and taking their land and ignoring their claims. They make $4000 a year and that coca will bring $800.000 by the fat cats that the drug warriors ignore. It showed they wanted the peasants land that has oil and hydro power when the thing that they could crack down on was the man-made chemicals needed to make cocaine. They do not do that. But I did not discuss it like I did here because it is a WOD elaboration. I did think someone might want to try to fit into the puzzle they are working on in relation to why the WOD is so well supported by both parties.Big people profit by the WOD. Everyone else pays. I have never discussed cocaine. The votes Kucinich gets will show the Democratic Party something. It will also show them something when people vote for the Democratic candidate for president and 3rd party for everything else.The GW Extracts should be legal in the next presidents' term in this country. It will just be impossible to stop. They cannot claim the smoking crap or the no-research crap.I hate to go on as I am even boring myself. I put up the posters of Kucinich mostly so people might have a conversation piece in their house. It is also somewhat historical and in times to come people could look back and say that was the man that first talked sense on cannabis policy. [ Post Comment ] Comment #12 posted by cloud7 on January 26, 2004 at 16:58:19 PT FoM About Dennis...I think it good to voice support for his policies on cannabis during the primaries to let the Democratic party know this is an issue that needs to be taken seriously, but he honestly is not going to be the presidential nominee. I also dont see the possibility of reform with any of the other front runners besides Kerry. If Kerry wins the nomination, I will likely vote for him, otherwise it will be the usual libertarian vote. I want Bush out of office and I want the possibility of drug policy reform. Usually, I feel like it would be a win /lose vote if I voted demublican, but I think this election represents a crucial turning point and I will likely vote out of fear of one side rather than ideology. [ Post Comment ] Comment #11 posted by FoM on January 26, 2004 at 16:24:42 PT It's Nice I know that some people will get upset and others will be happy. That sentence impressed me too. "It's a remarkable plant with remarkable properties." [ Post Comment ] Comment #10 posted by E_Johnson on January 26, 2004 at 16:14:06 PT It's a remarkable story FoM Gosh golly, the NYT ending a story on pot with "It's a remarkable plant with remarkable properties."I'm still in the "pinch me" zone over this one. [ Post Comment ] Comment #9 posted by FoM on January 26, 2004 at 16:11:31 PT Anandamide Addict With bad knees! [ Post Comment ] Comment #8 posted by E_Johnson on January 26, 2004 at 16:09:17 PT We simply MUST get rid of the high God forbid any sick people should feel as good as someone who just ran five miles in the country.For example like President George "Anandamide Addict" Bush. [ Post Comment ] Comment #7 posted by FoM on January 26, 2004 at 16:02:52 PT EJ I Think That's True It is happening isn't it? Sometimes I have to shake myself and then I go wow. These are very exciting and also very tense times. [ Post Comment ] Comment #6 posted by E_Johnson on January 26, 2004 at 15:59:29 PT We're on the brink of a new era The historic struggle over cannabis is really about over.An understanding of cannabinoid biology will bring us to a new understanding of ourselves and of human history and society and psychology and religion and work and entertainment and evolution. [ Post Comment ] Comment #5 posted by FoM on January 26, 2004 at 15:52:10 PT Virgil I want to ask a favor. I've been respectful of everyone's belief in Dennis. I hope that we can stand with someone who might help us reform marijuana laws and besides Kerry who is there? Dean won't so I will be happy if Kerry gets the nomination and will reluctantly vote for Dean if he gets the nomination. Cocaine and Cannabis are different issues I believe. One is a man made drug and the other is a natural plant that has medicinal values. [ Post Comment ] Comment #4 posted by FoM on January 26, 2004 at 15:39:40 PT Virgil I've read about what is in the article and it doesn't surprise me. Maybe Cannabis laws will be changed under Kerry if he gets elected. That's my hope. [ Post Comment ] Comment #3 posted by Virgil on January 26, 2004 at 15:34:07 PT NYT had to acknowledge it sometime I really challenge the position that GW extracts can be barred in the US if a person has a prescription in the UK. and they bring them here.The question I wonder about is why GW would not be allowed to exract pure THC in natural form and put some sesame oil with it in a capsule, and ask how in the world can you possibly have one pill Schedule 3 and the exact same thing from a natural source a Schedule 1.There is a good article up on a Kerry's campaign staff member that could be Secretary of State or national security advisor. It is talks of the insanity of Colombia and the linking of terrorism to the drug trade. It is called "The Toxic Career of Rand Beers- Kerry's Drug War Zealot"- http://www.counterpunch.org/donahue01262004.html [ Post Comment ] Comment #2 posted by FoM on January 26, 2004 at 15:16:27 PT Questions If Sativex is allowed in the states in the future what will happen with drug testing? Could make it interesting. Plus how will they be able to keep Cannabis as a Schedule I drug if it has medicinal value? Questions, questions, questions! [ Post Comment ] Comment #1 posted by FoM on January 26, 2004 at 15:10:03 PT Great News! And in the New York Times! [ Post Comment ] Post Comment