cannabisnews.com: Funds Awarded to Research Marijuana Patch 





Funds Awarded to Research Marijuana Patch 
Posted by FoM on February 23, 2000 at 08:37:23 PT
By May-Ling Castillo, Independ. Florida Alligator
Source: U-WIRE
The American Cancer Society awarded $361,000 in January to research a marijuana patch designed to relieve the side effects of chemotherapy, and some local experts are supporting its use. If approved by government officials, the "pot patch" could substitute smoking marijuana for medical purposes. 
The marijuana patch works the same way a tobacco patch does. It administers controllable doses of a chemical in marijuana called synthetic cannabinoids, which has been proven to ease the suffering of chemotherapy, AIDS, glaucoma and multiple sclerosis patients. Jonathan Bledsoe, executive director of the Gainesville-area American Cancer Society, said the society's goal is to find all possible ways to relieve bad side effects of chemotherapy. "We are not moving for the legalization of marijuana," Bledsoe said. "We are here to relieve the pain and suffering that you can't even describe or explain, unless you've gone through it. Smoking the marijuana cigarette for medical use is not an ideal method of drug administration." By administering these controllable doses, chemotherapy patients no longer are nauseous and stop vomiting. The doses also allow multiple sclerosis patients to control muscle spasms and increase the appetites of AIDS patients. Bledsoe said their goal is to make life more comfortable for cancer patients. "We are trying to explore all avenues to make an improvement in the quality of life of a cancer patient," Bledsoe said. Dr. Ray Moseley, director of medical ethics, law and the humanities at UF, said the main argument is whether this patch promotes or condemns the use of drugs. "I think people have gotten so worked up over the drug issue that it's going to take a long time for people to be reasonable about it," Moseley said. "As far as I know, there isn't any real good evidence that marijuana is addictive." Moseley said sending a message that marijuana is bad is a mistake. He said the reason why marijuana and cocaine are illegal - and not tobacco - reflects political realities. "If you make tobacco or alcohol illegal, we would have a widespread panic among politicians, because those are the individuals that vote, not 18-year-olds that smoke marijuana," Moseley said. "That's why no politicians are clamoring for making tobacco and alcohol illegal." The Florida Cannabis Action Network, which was established in 1990, is a nonprofit organization dedicated to the repeal of all laws against marijuana. Network president Kevin Aplin said the problem with the approval of marijuana for medical purposes stems from the government. The network is circulating a petition to legalize medical marijuana. The petition needs 400,000 signatures to be placed on the Florida ballot in November. "The obstacle to reform is at the federal level, not with the American public. Between 70 and 90 percent of the American public are for the legalization of it," Aplin said. With events such as the hemp rally and medical awareness week, this organization attempts to educate the medical community and the public through speeches and informational materials on the benefits of marijuana for medical usage. (U-WIRE) Gainesville, Fla. Published: February 22, 2000(C) 2000 Independent Florida Alligator via U-WIRE  Copyright © 1995-2000 Excite Inc. Related Articles & Web Sites:Cannabis Action Networkhttp://www.jug-or-not.com/can/index.htmlThe IOM Reporthttp://books.nap.edu/html/marimed/American Cancer Societyhttp://www.cancer.org/Research Begins on Marijuana Patch http://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread4468.shtmlMarijuana Patch Research For Cancer Patients - 1/19/2000http://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread4385.shtml Researchers Test Marijuana Patch - 1/20/2000http://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread4395.shtml CannabisNews Articles From U-WIRE:http://www.alltheweb.com/cgi-bin/asearch?type=all&query=cannabisnews+U-WIRE
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