cannabisnews.com: Marijuana Has Value as Medicine, Report Shows! Marijuana Has Value as Medicine, Report Shows! Posted by FoM on March 17, 1999 at 16:17:41 PT Pot for Patients? When he first took office as the country’s drug czar in 1996, Barry McCaffrey insisted there was “not a shred of scientific evidence” that smoking marijuana was useful or necessary. But in light of growing public interest in marijuana as medicine, McCaffrey commissioned a report to evaluate the scientific validity of pot for patients. With the release of that report today by the National Academy of Sciences’ Institute of Medicine, McCaffrey has not just a shred, but page after page of evidence showing the drug’s benefits. States that have legalized the medical use of marijuana. (ABCNEWS.com) “We’re coming down on the side that this is a powerful agent,” says Dr. John Benson, one of the principal investigators on the report and a professor emeritus at the Oregon Health Sciences University School of Medicine. “There’s just too much promise there to ignore it.” The Puff Is the Problem That’s not to say, however, that the report is a glowing endorsement of medical marijuana. Benson and other researchers have grave concerns about the harmful effects of smoking the stuff, which can increase a person’s risk for cancer, lung damage and emphysema. After 18 months of reviewing all available scientific evidence on medical marijuana and hearing testimony from doctors and patients, the report’s authors found that the active components in marijuana appear to be helpful in treating pain, nausea, AIDS-related weight loss or “wasting,” muscle spasms in multiple sclerosis and other problems. Advocates of medical marijuana argue that the drug is also useful for glaucoma, Parkinson’s disease, Huntington’s disease, migraines, epilepsy and Alzheimer’s, but the Institute of Medicine report doesn’t support those claims. For example, it says, the benefits for glaucoma patients are short term and don’t outweigh the hazards of using the drug for a long time. The report calls for expanded clinical trials of marijuana, along with research into safe, fast-acting and reliable ways to administer the drug without smoking it. Classification Change? In 1986, the Food and Drug Administration approved Marinol, a synthetic version of marijuana’s main active ingredient, THC. Marijuana advocates say it doesn’t work as well as smoking the drug, which allows faster relief. Until a better smokeless method comes along, the report says, clinical trials of smoked marijuana should be more widely available but should last no longer than six months, be restricted to patients for whom all other drugs have failed and take place under careful medical supervision. The White House Office of National Drug Control Policy said it would carefully study the recommendations. “We note in the report’s conclusion that the future of cannabinoid drugs lies not in smoked marijuana, but in chemically defined drugs” delivered by other means, the office headed by McCaffrey said in a statement. Currently, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration classifies marijuana as a Schedule 1 drug, a highly controlled substance with no medicinal qualities. Some prominent doctors — including New England Journal of Medicine editor Jerome Kassirer — have argued that marijuana should be classified as Schedule 2, potentially addictive but with some acceptable medical use. Toning Down Anti-Drug Hype Advocates of medical marijuana see the report as good news, even though they doubt it will convince the federal government to alter its policy on medical marijuana. “This report really throws a damper on a lot of the exaggerations and claims that have been made by the federal government,” says Ethan Nadelmann, director of the Lindesmith Center, a New York-based think tank. “It shows that it’s not a gateway drug that leads to other drugs, that medical use won’t increase illegal use and that the risks of marijuana are well within the bounds of tolerable risks.” Benson emphasizes that marijuana appears to treat only symptoms. “There is no evidence that it’s useful to treat or cure a disease of any kind,” he says. But symptom relief is no small thing for patients like Irvin Rosenfeld, a stockbroker in Florida who receives medical marijuana legally under the federal government’s “compassionate use” program. Patient’s Perspective Rosenfeld has a rare condition that causes tumors on the ends of long bones. He has smoked 10 to 12 marijuana cigarettes a day for 27 years. Because the drug relieves pain and tension in his muscles, he’s able to have a successful career without being bedridden at home. He hopes the new report will help ease public fears about marijuana. He looks at it as being like any other drug — it’s effective, but has some side effects. “Marijuana has to stand above everything because it’s marijuana,” he says. “But when you’ve got a devastating disease, hang the stigma, all you want is relief.” Though Rosenfeld is one of only eight patients who have received the federal government’s blessing to toke, experts estimate that tens of thousands of people in the United States are using marijuana as medicine, many illegally. By Claudine ChamberlainABCNEWS.comhttp://abcnews.go.com/sections/living/DailyNews/medmj990317.html Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help Comment #6 posted by observer on April 04, 2001 at 22:27:52 PT Cannabis used in treating Parkinson's POT-LIKE SUBSTANCE MAY OFFER TIC,SHAKING RELIEF (3/1999)http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v99/n348/a05.htmlCannabis used in treating Parkinson'shttp://pub3.ezboard.com/fendingcannabisprohibitionwhyitstimetolegalize.showMessage?topicID=220.topicmorehttp://www.cannabisnews.com/thcgi/search.pl?K=marijuana+parkinson%27s&H=40&T=Bhttp://www.mapinc.org/find?K=cannabis+parkinson%27s&Y=Allhttp://www.mapinc.org/find?K=marijuana+parkinson%27s&Y=All [ Post Comment ] Comment #5 posted by Andres on April 04, 2001 at 22:10:37 PT: Parkinson Hello, I´m new to the list, and I would be interested to knowif anyone of you know about the effect of marijuanain Parkinson's disease. Is it helpful? are there any studiesabout it? [ Post Comment ] Comment #4 posted by dddd on December 12, 2000 at 04:44:54 PT depression >"is pot good 4 depresion?" I think pot is outstanding as an anti-depressant.Of course everyone is different,and I wont try and say that it would work this way for anyone....A good thing about pot,is that it's very safe,and basicly harmless.The worst thing that could happen to you from smoking pot,would be if some power-crazed cop busted you with it.If that was the case,then I would consider pot to be somewhat dangerous.That would be the only way pot could harm you.I you get busted,it could ruin your life.Then you'd be really depressed.....dddd [ Post Comment ] Comment #3 posted by Nate on December 11, 2000 at 19:54:48 PT: pot as medicine is pot good 4 depresion? [ Post Comment ] Comment #2 posted by Donald Lamont on May 04, 2000 at 10:48:45 PT: keep spreading the word it's good to see some one trying to do some thing about the injustices of the war against marijuana. [ Post Comment ] Comment #1 posted by Slim_Tracy on March 09, 2000 at 11:27:42 PT: marijane please send me info on benifits of smoking mary jane for glaucoma and some cool pictures [ Post Comment ] Post Comment Name: Optional Password: E-Mail: Subject: Comment: [Please refrain from using profanity in your message] Link URL: Link Title: