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Study: Non-Psychoactive Plant Cannabinoids Possess Synergistic Anti-Cancer Activity In Leukemia Cell Lines |
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London,
United Kingdom: The concomitant administration of various
non-psychoactive plant cannabinoids demonstrates synergistic anti-cancer
activity in human leukemia cells, according to preclinical trial data
published online this week in the journal Anticancer Research. Investigators from Saint George's, University of
London assessed the anti-cancer potential of three non-psychoactive
cannabinoids (cannabidiol,
cannabigerol, and cannabigevarin) and their respective
acids on two types of leukaemia cell lines. Authors reported that the
administration of cannabinoids in concert with one another resulted in
"in additive/mildly synergistic interaction." Authors concluded: "Our findings indicate that
cannabinoids act with each other in a way such that doses for therapy could
be reduced without a significant loss of activity. ... [T]his study adds <continued
on page 3 > |
Medical Cannabis may prove
Effective in Treating Autism – by Claire
Townsend A recent study by
Stanford University suggests that medical Cannabis may be able to help children with
autism. This is because ingredients present in the drug are thought to be
able to break through the brain signals of autism sufferers that become
blocked, affecting memory and learning. <continued
on page 4 > ___________________________________________ Cannabis and the Brain: A User's
Guide – by Paul
Armentano Preclinical data recently published in the Journal of
Clinical Investigation demonstrating that cannabinoids may spur brain cell
growth has reignited the international debate regarding the impact of
marijuana on the brain. However, unlike previous pseudo-scientific campaigns
that attempted to link pot smoking with a litany of cognitive <continued
on page 5 > |
FDA Approves Investigational Trials
Assessing Cannabidiol For Pediatric Epilepsy
Washington, DC: The US Food and Drug Administration has approved two clinical trials to assess the efficacy of cannabidiol
(CBD), a nonpsychoactive plant cannabinoid, in the treatment of intractable
pediatric epilepsy. <continued
on page 7 > _______________________________ Pharmacy Group Announces Formation Of
Medical Marijuana Task Force
Alexandria, VA: The National Association of Specialty Pharmacy
(NASP) has announced its intent to establish a task force to better
educate pharmacists to the management of cannabis therapy. <continued
on page 7 > |
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* The MERCY News * |
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_____________________ The MERCY News Report is an
all-volunteer, not-for-profit project to record and broadcast news,
announcements and information about medical cannabis in Oregon, across
America and around the World. For more information about the MERCY News, contact us. Via
Snail Mail: The MERCY
News 1745 Capital
St. NE, Salem, Ore., 97301 503.363-4588 E-mail: Mercy_Salem@hotmail.com Or
our WWW page: www.MercyCenters.org Check it
out! ___________________________ MERCY On The Tube! in Salem,
Oregon area thru Capital Community Television, Channel 23.
Call In – 503.588-6444 - on Friday at 7pm, or See us on Wednesdays
at 06:30pm, Thursdays at 07:00pm, Fridays at 10:30pm and Saturdays at
06:00pm. Visit – http://mercycenters.org/tv/ |
About
MERCY – The Medical Cannabis Resource Center MERCY is a non-profit, grass roots organization
founded by patients, their friends and family and other compassionate and
concerned citizens in the area and is dedicated to helping and advocating for
those involved with the Oregon Medical Marijuana Program (OMMP). MERCY is based in the
Salem, Oregon area and staffed on a volunteer basis. The
purpose is to get medicine to patients in the short-term while working with
them to establish their own independent sources. To
this end we provide, among other things, ongoing education to people and
groups organizing clinics and other Patient Resources, individual physicians
and other healthcare providers about the OMMP, cannabis as medicine and
doctor rights in general. The mission of the organization
is to help people and change the laws. We advocate reasonable, fair and effective
marijuana laws and policies, and strive to educate, register and empower
voters to implement such policies. Our philosophy is one of teaching
people to fish, rather than being dependent upon others. Want to get your Card? Need Medicine Now? Welcome to The Club! MERCY – the Medical Cannabis Resource Center
hosts Mercy Club Meetings every Wednesday at - 1745 Capital
Street NE, Salem, 97301 – from 7pm to 9pm to help folks get
their card, network patients to medicine, assist in finding a grower or
getting to grow themselves, or ways and means to medicate along other info
and resources depending on the issue.
visit – www.MercyCenters.org
- or Call 503.363-4588 for more. The Doctor is In ... Salem! * MERCY is Educating Doctors on signing for their
Patients; Referring people to Medical Cannabis Consultations when their
regular care physician won't sign for them; and listing all Clinics around
the state in order to help folks Qualify for the OMMP and otherwise Get their
Cards. For our Referral Doc in Salem,
get your records to – 1745 Capital Street NE,
Salem, 97301, NOTE: There is a $25 non-refundable deposit
required. Transportation and Delivery
Services available for those in need.
For our Physician Packet to educate your Doctor, or a List of Clinics
around the state, visit – www.MercyCenters.org
- or Call 503.363-4588 for more. Other Medical Cannabis Resource NetWork
Opportunities for Patients as well as CardHolders-to-be. * whether Social meeting, Open to public
–or- Cardholders Only * visit: http://mercycenters.org/events/Meets.html ! Also Forums - a means to
communicate and network on medical cannabis in Portland across Oregon and
around the world. A list of
Forums, Chat Rooms, Bulletin Boards and other Online Resources for the
Medical Cannabis Patient, CareGiver, Family Member, Patient-to-Be and Other
Interested Parties. * Resources > Patients (plus) > Online
> Forums * Know any? Let everybody else know!
Visit: http://mercycenters.org/orgs/Forums.html and Post It! |
2 mercycenter@hotmail.com * |
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October * 2013 |
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<continued from STUDY: NON-PSYCHOACTIVE PLANT CANNABINOIDS POSSESS
SYNERGISTIC ANTI-CANCER ACTIVITY IN LEUKEMIA CELL LINES, page 1
> further support to the
idea that cannabinoids can have a role in the cancer setting, not only as
single agents, but also in combination with each other." Commenting on the study in a press release, lead author Wai Lui said: "These
agents are able to interfere with the development of cancerous cells,
stopping them in their tracks and preventing them from growing. In some
cases, by using specific dosage patterns, they can destroy cancer cells on
their own. Used in combination with existing treatment, we could discover
some highly effective strategies for tackling cancer. Significantly, these
compounds are inexpensive to produce and making better use of their unique properties
could result in much more cost effective anti-cancer drugs in future." Plant
cannabinoids as well as endogenous cannabinoids have been consistently shown
to be potent
anti-cancer inhibitors in preclinical models, halting the proliferation
of glioma
cancer cells, prostate
cancer cells, breast carcinoma, lung carcinoma, and lymphoma, among other cancer cell lines. Marijuana Compounds Can Kill Some Cancer Cells: Study
More on
this scientist in the United Kingdom that has found that compounds derived
from marijuana can kill cancerous cells found in people with leukemia, a form
of cancer that is expected to cause
an estimated 24,000 deaths in the United States this year. "Cannabinoids
have a complex action; it hits a number of important processes that cancers
need to survive," study author Dr. Wai Liu, an oncologist at St.
George's University of London, told The Huffington Post. "For that
reason, it has really good potential over other drugs that only have one
function. I am impressed by its activity profile, and feel it has a great
future, especially if used with standard chemotherapies." Liu's study was recently published in the journal Anticancer
Research. It was supported by funding from GW Pharmaceuticals, which already makes a cannabis-derived drug used to treat spasticity
caused by multiple sclerosis. |
The study
looked at the effects of six different non-psychoactive cannabinoids --
compounds derived from marijuana that do not cause the "high"
associated with its THC ingredient -- when applied alone, and in combination,
to leukemia cells. Cannabinoids displayed a "diverse range of
therapeutic qualities" that "target and switch off" pathways
that allow cancers to grow, Liu told U.S. News & World Report. Liu
stressed to HuffPost that his research was built around the testing of the
six purified cannabinoid forms -- not traditional cannabis oil, which Liu
described as "crude" in comparison and generally containing 80-100
different cannabinoids. "We do not really know which are the ones that
will be anticancer and those that may be harmful," Liu said. During the
study, Liu and his team grew leukemia cells in a lab and cultured them with
increasing doses of the six pure cannabinoids, both individually and in
combination with each other. His study says the six cannabinoids were CBD (Cannabidiol),
CBDA (Cannabidiolic acid), CBG (Cannbigerol), CBGA (Cannabigerolic acid),
CBGV (Cannabigevarin) and CBGVA (Cannabigevaric acid). Liu and his team then
assessed the viability of the leukemia cells and determined whether or not
the cannabinoids destroyed the cells or stopped them from growing. Although
promising, Liu also said that it remains unclear if the cannabinoid treatment
would work on the 200-plus existing types of cancer. "Cancer
is an umbrella term for a range of diseases that fundamentally differ in
their cellular makeup, [and] which occur as a result of disturbances to
growth controls," Liu said. "Chemotherapy works by disrupting these
dysfunctional growth signals. Therefore, any cancers that have these profiles
should respond to the chemotherapy. It just so happens that a number of
cannabinoids can target these very same mechanisms that make cancer what it
is, and so any cancer that exhibits these faults should respond well to
cannabinoids. The flip side is, of course, that other cancers may not have
these same genetic faults and so cannabinoids may not work as well." According
to the Centers for Disease Control, 7.6 million people die from various forms of cancer each
year worldwide. When asked
if smoking marijuana has the same or similar effects as ingesting the pure
cannabinoid compounds he studied, Liu said he thinks it's unlikely. <continued on next page> |
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"Smoking cannabis
introduces a number of potential problems," Liu said. "First, the
complex makeup of cannabis that contains about 80 bioactive substances means
that the desired anticancer effect may be lost because these compounds may
interfere with each other. Second, we see that delivering the drug either by
injection or by a tablet would ensure the most effective doses are given.
Smoking would be variable, and indeed the heat of the burning may actually
destroy the useful nature of the compounds." In 2012,
researchers at the California Pacific Medical Center in San Francisco found
that CBD (cannbidiol), a non-toxic, non-psychoactive chemical compound found
in the cannabis plant, could stop metastasis in many kinds of aggressive cancer. The
National Cancer Institute has also funded some research into cannabis and cancer, including a 2012 study that looked
at the effects cannabis compounds have on slowing the progression of breast
cancer, spokesman Michael Miller told U.S. News and World Report. However
NCI has not funded research on the effects of cannabinoids on leukemia. Liu
stressed that much work is still needed, and said that finding support for
marijuana-derived medicines can be polarizing. "Although
there is much promise, I struggle to find enough support to drive this work
on," Liu said. "The mention of cannabinoids can polarize the
public, who understandably link cannabis smoking with cannabis-derived
drugs." Liu told
the Seattle PI's Pot Blog that he hopes to start clinical trials involving humans in 12 to 18
months. For more information,
please contact Paul Armentano, NORML Deputy Director, at: paul@norml.org. Full text of the study,
"Enhancing the activity of cannabidiol and other cannabinoids in vitro
through modifications to drug combinations and treatment schedules,"
appears online in Anticancer Research. SOURCE = http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/10/25/marijuana-cancer_n_4158865.html?utm_hp_ref=medical-marijuana _____________________________________________________________ <continued from MEDICAL
CANNABIS MAY PROVE EFFECTIVE IN TREATING AUTISM,
page 1 > With the debate over
cannabis in the U.S continuing to make headlines, these latest findings are
adding fuel to the fire of pro medical Cannabis. |
A Positive Link The paper linking cannabis with the managing of autism was published inNeuron and suggests that the
signalling within tonic endocannabinoids could be effective in treating the
symptoms of the disease such as learning, memory and pain. Mice were used in the study to see what
physiological effects of two mutations might have in common. One was the
deletion of a gene, whilst the other contained a single amino acid substitute. The mutations are
considered to be associated with human autism. Electrophysiological recordings were made of the cells in
the brains of mice and these were compared with normal brain activity. Researchers were cautious about the findings,
but said they seemed to suggest that endocannabinoid signalling could be
connected to autism and therefore medical Cannabis may be an effective
treatment. Families Opt for Medical Marijuana Families across the U.S are beginning to try
medical Marijuana to treat symptoms of autism in their children. Because these
symptoms can vary considerably, it is difficult to obtain the right medicine
for a particular child and parents are now turning towards alternative
medicine. Whilst the American Medical Association remains sceptical about its uses, parents are finding
that giving a careful dose of Cannabis to their child is making a difference
to their quality of life. Some families are reporting that their autistic
child becomes more attentive, calmer and is able to absorb more information and
therefore learn in a much more effective way than before. When the child concerned suffers from dangerous
self-injury due to destructive behavior, parents have found that medical Cannabis has a stabilizing effectand
the child is able to live a more normal, less stressful life. For these
parents, the benefits of this drug outweigh the risks and they are not
deterred by the cautionary advice of medical associations. Families who need
extra guidance about the treatment of behavioural conditions are able to accessguides that give useful advice and peace of mind about the
medication and treatments available today. Effective Treatment without Side Effects Medical Cannabis is considered less risky than
many pharmaceuticals in the treatment of autism because it is not seen to
have side effects. Moods can be <continued on next page> |
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<continued from previous
page> controlled
with an oral dose that can be adjusted according to needs. Parents have stressed that too little is not
effective, whilst too much makes a childsleepy and so giving the right dosage is
important, although research shows that there is no lethal dose for Cannabis,
making it safer to use in self-medication than other drugs and easing anxiety
for parents and carers. At the University of California, it was
discovered that Cannabis reacts in a certain way with the human brain and
this could lead to treatment for a number of conditions such as schizophrenia
and Parkinson’s Disease, as well as autism. The cannabinoids within the drug work with the body’s
own innercannabinoid system and can prevent brain cells
from degrading, as well as regulating emotion. The latest study is significant because it
shows that medical Cannabis affects the bodily processes that are blocked by autism, such as
hunger signals or pain. This type of autism is known as Fragile X-induced
autism and is thought to be the most common genetic cause of the disease. The
synaptic failure in the brain can affect childrens’ motor skills, which
teaches them how to behave in situations and also basic walking and talking
skills. Cannabinoids are thought to block the enzymes that affect the poor
signals that take place in autism sufferers. By giving the body the essential
cannabinoids it needs, marijuana helps to restore the brain and communication
functions. Researchers believe that these cannabinoids can
relieve the symptoms of autism and of other diseases, while not being able to
cure them outright. The use of
medical Cannabis remains a controversial issue in the U.S, but with new
research, the health implications are reaching a wide audience and promoting
the benefits of this drug throughout society. SOURCE = American Alliance for Medical Cannabis (AAMC). OCTOBER 2013 Newsletter * Contact them at 44500 Tide Ave · Arch
Cape, OR 97102 or by visiting - http://www.letfreedomgrow.com _____________________________________________________________ <continued from CANNABIS AND THE BRAIN: A USER'S GUIDE, page 1 > abnormalities, modern research suggests what many cannabis enthusiasts have speculated all along: ganja is good for you.
"Study turns pot wisdom on
its head," pronounced the Globe and Mail in October. News wires
throughout North America and the world touted similar headlines -- all of
which were met with a monumental silence from federal officials and law |
enforcement. Why all the fuss?
Researchers at the University of Saskatchewan in Saskatoon found that the
administration of synthetic cannabinoids in rats stimulated the proliferation
of newborn neurons (nerve cells) in the hippocampus region of the brain and
significantly reduced measures of anxiety and depression-like behavior. The results shocked researchers
-- who noted that almost all other so-called "drugs of abuse,"
including alcohol and tobacco, decrease neurogenesis in adults -- and left
the "pot kills brain cells" crowd with a platter of long-overdue
egg on their faces. While it would be premature to
extrapolate the study's findings to humans, at a minimum, the data reinforce
the notion that cannabinoids are unusually non-toxic to the brain and that
even long-term use of marijuana likely represents little risk to brain
function. The findings also offer further evidence that cannabinoids can play
a role in the alleviation of depression and anxiety, and that cannabis-based
medicines may one day offer a safer alternative to conventional
anti-depressant pharmaceuticals such as Paxil and Prozac.
Not only has modern science
refuted the notion that marijuana is neurotoxic, recent scientific
discoveries have indicated that cannabinoids are, in fact, neuroprotective,
particularly against alcohol-induced brain damage. In a recent preclinical
study -- the irony of which is obvious to anyone who reads it -- researchers
at the US National Institutes of Mental Health (NIMH) reported that the
administration of the non-psychoactive cannabinoid cannabidiol (CBD) reduced
ethanol-induced cell death in the brain by up to 60 percent. "This study provides the
first demonstration of CBD as an in vivo neuroprotectant ... in preventing
binge ethanol-induced brain injury," the study's authors wrote in the
May 2005 issue of the Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics.
Alcohol poisoning is linked to hundreds of preventable deaths each year in
the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control, while
cannabis cannot cause death by overdose. Of course, many US neurologists have
known about cannabis' neuroprotective prowess for years. NIMH scientists in
1998 first touted the ability of natural cannabinoids to stave off the
brain-damaging effects of stroke and acute head trauma. Similar findings were
then replicated by investigators in the Netherlands and Italy and, most
recently, by a <continued on next page> |
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<continued
from previous page> Japanese
research in 2005. However, attempts to measure the potential neuroprotective
effects of synthetic cannabinoid-derived medications in humans have so far
been inconclusive. Cannabinoids & Glioma Of all cancers, few are as
aggressive and deadly as glioma. Glioma tumors quickly invade healthy brain tissue
and are typically unresponsive to surgery and standard medical treatments.
One agent they do respond to is cannabis. Writing in the August 2005 issue
of the Journal of Neurooncology, investigators at the California Pacific
Medical Center Research Institute reported that the administration of THC on
human glioblastoma multiforme cell lines decreased the proliferation of
malignant cells and induced apoptosis (programmed cell death) more rapidly
than did the administration of the synthetic cannabis receptor agonist,
WIN-55,212-2. Researchers also noted that THC selectively targeted malignant
cells while ignoring healthy ones in a more profound manner than the
synthetic alternative. Patients diagnosed with glioblastoma multiforme
typically die within three months without therapy. Previous research conducted in
Italy has also demonstrated the capacity of CBD to inhibit the growth of
glioma cells both in vitro (e.g., a petri dish) and in animals in a dose
dependent manner. As a result, a Spanish research team is currently
investigating whether the intracranial administration of cannabinoids can
prolong the lives of patients diagnosed with inoperable brain cancer. Most recently, a scientific
analysis in the October issue of the journal Mini-Reviews in Medicinal
Chemistry noted that, in addition to THC and CBD's brain cancer-fighting
ability, studies have also shown cannabinoids to halt the progression of lung
carcinoma, leukemia, skin carcinoma, colectoral cancer, prostate cancer and
breast cancer. Cannabinoids &
Neurodegeneration Emerging evidence also indicates that
cannabinoids may play a role in slowing the progression of certain
neurodegenerative diseases, such as Multiple Sclerosis, Parkinson's disease,
Alzheimer's, and Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (a.k.a. Lou Gehrig's Disease).
Recent animal studies have shown cannabinoids to delay disease progression
and inhibit neurodegeneration in mouse models of ALS, Parkinson's, and MS. As
a result, the Journal of Neurological Sciences recently pronounced,
"There is accumulating evidence ... to support the hypothesis that the cannabinoid
system can limit the |
neurodegenerative processes that drive progressive disease," and patient
trials investigating whether the use of oral THC and cannabis extracts may
slow the progression of MS are now underway in the United Kingdom. Cannabis & Cognition But what about claims of
cannabis' damaging effect of cognition? A review of the scientific literature
indicates that rumors regarding the "stoner stupid" stereotype are
unfounded. According to clinical trial data published this past spring in the
American Journal of Addictions, cannabis use -- including heavy, long-term
use of the drug -- has, at most, only a negligible impact on cognition and
memory. Researchers at Harvard Medical School performed magnetic resonance
imaging on the brains of 22 long-term cannabis users (reporting a mean of
20,100 lifetime episodes of smoking) and 26 controls (subjects with no
history of cannabis use). Imaging displayed "no significant
differences" between heavy cannabis smokers compared to controls, the
study found. Previous trials tell a similar tale. An October 2004 study
published in the journal Psychological Medicine examining the potential
long-term residual effects of cannabis on cognition in monozygotic male twins
reported "an absence of marked long-term residual effects of marijuana
use on cognitive abilities." A 2003 meta-analysis published in the
Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society also "failed to
reveal a substantial, systematic effect of long-term, regular cannabis
consumption on the neurocognitive functioning of users who were not acutely
intoxicated," and a 2002 clinical trial published in the Canadian
Medical Association Journal determined, "Marijuana does not have a
long-term negative impact on global intelligence." Finally, a
2001 study published in the journal Archives of General Psychiatry found that
long-term cannabis smokers who abstained from the drug for one week
"showed virtually no significant differences from control subjects
(those who had smoked marijuana less than 50 times in their lives) on a
battery of 10 neuropsychological tests." Investigators further added,
"Former heavy users, who had consumed little or no cannabis in the three
months before testing, [also] showed no significant differences from control
subjects on any of these tests on any of the testing days." Original Article: NORML | NORML Foundation - Main » Library » Health Reports » Cannabis and the Brain: A User's Guide - by Paul Armentano, Senior Policy Analyst, NORML | NORML Foundation > http://norml.org/library/cannabis-and-the-brain-a-user-s-guide * SOURCE = American Alliance for Medical Cannabis (AAMC). OCTOBER 2013 Newsletter * Contact them at 44500 Tide Ave · Arch Cape, OR 97102 or by visiting - http://www.letfreedomgrow.com |
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<continued from FDA APPROVES INVESTIGATIONAL TRIALS ASSESSING CANNABIDIOL FOR PEDIATRIC EPILEPSY, page 1 > The two approved trials will take place at New York Medical School and at the University of California at San Francisco, according to an online report in the journal O'Shaughnessy's. The cannabidiol formulations in the trials will be provided by British biotechnology firm GW Pharmaceuticals, which produces organic cannabinoid extract medicines, including Sativex. Cannabidiol
has been documented to possess a variety of therapeutic properties in preclinical models,
including anti-epileptic activity. Clinical trials have shown the
oral administration of CBD to be "safe
and well tolerated" in healthy subjects. In
recent months, several national broadcasts have highlighted the use of CBD-rich oils to treat seizures
associated with a pediatric form of intractable epilepsy known as Dravet
Syndrome. For more information, please visit O'Shaughnessy's online here: http://www.beyondthc.com/comes-now-epidiolex-fda-approves-ind-studies-of-cbd/. _____________________________________________________________ <continued
from PHARMACY GROUP ANNOUNCES
FORMATION OF MEDICAL MARIJUANA TASK FORCE, page 1 > "Medical marijuana has come to the forefront of
patient care in many of the diseases that Specialty Pharmacists treat
including Multiple Sclerosis, Cancer, HIV and others," the association
stated in a press release. "More education for physicians, pharmacists and
patients is needed to ensure individuals receive the correct product with the
correct efficacy and drug delivery system to fit their disease. As an
organization, NASP believes that it has the responsibility, intellectual
advisors and obligation to take the lead on this emerging area of medical
care." According to the NASP website, the association -
founded in 2012 - "represents specialty pharmacy professionals in all
practice settings and highlights the unique value its members bring to
patients and the healthcare system by focusing on building collaboration
among all industry associations to improve patient outcomes." For
more information, please visit: http://www.nasprx.org/. |
Supreme Court Refuses To Review DEA's Denial
Of Petition That Sought To Reclassify Cannabis
Washington, DC: The United States Supreme Court has declined to review a lower court ruling which upheld the
federal government's classification of cannabis as a Schedule I prohibited
substance that lacks medical utility or adequate safety.
This past January, the US Court
of Appeals for the District of Columbia ruled
that the US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) had acted properly when it rejected
an administrative
petition calling for a scientific review of marijuana's safety and
therapeutic efficacy. Petitioners
had requested a hearing to determine whether existing science contradicts the
federal categorization of cannabis as a Schedule I controlled substance that possesses "a
high potential for abuse;" "no currently accepted medical use in
treatment;" and "a lack of accepted safety for the use of the drug
... under medical supervision." The DC Court of Appeals affirmed the
DEA's position that insufficient clinical studies exist to warrant a judicial
review of cannabis' federally prohibited status. On Monday, the US Supreme
Court denied an appeal to review that decision, rejecting petitioners'
argument that adequate peer-reviewed studies already exist to sufficiently
contradict the plant's placement in Schedule I – the same classification as
heroin and PCP. Several
recently published studies and papers directly challenge the DEA's position.
For example, a 2012 review of FDA-approved clinical trials assessing the
safety and therapeutic efficacy of cannabis, published in The Open
Neurology Journal, concluded:
"Based on evidence currently available the Schedule I classification [of
marijuana] is not tenable; it is not accurate that cannabis has no medical
value, or that information on safety is lacking." For more information, please contact Allen St. Pierre, NORML Executive
Director, at (202) 483-5500 or Paul Armentano, NORML Deputy Director, at: paul@norml.org.
The case is Americans for Safe Access et al. v. Drug Enforcement
Administration, case number 13-84, in the United State's Supreme Court. |
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Veterans Day: PTSD and Marijuana’s Cannabinoids
– Show You Care … Smoke Out A Vet Today America is becoming a country of dumbed down specialists. Specializing in the art of
learning more and more nuanced crap, while knowing less and less about the natural world around us.
Example: in this great country, the ass backwards relationship between our
doctors and the industrialized pharmaceutical world is littered with the
corpses of mind-numbing contradictions…and those who suffer for them.
Highlighting this contradiction of the new dumb, are America’s
returning vets who fought valiantly for this country, and now suffer
from post-traumatic stress disorder for their heroism. PTSD currently affects over
300,000 veterans on a daily basis. Represented by extreme mental
anxiety or emotional fatigue, more often than not the result of psychological
or physical trauma. When humans are confronted with life-threatening
situations, the natural response for most sane people is to feel fearful,
anxiety – the need for fight-or-flight. A genetically predisposed condition.
When the human response to these life-threatening situations has been
altered/damaged – the PTSD sufferer feels frightened and or stressed even
when there is no danger to be found. PTSD disproportionately ruins the lives
of America’s soldiers forced to witness the ruthless bloodshed of the
innocent on a daily basis. More often than not, sending home emotionally
crippled and shell shocked veterans – searching for peace, and sanity in a
bloodlust world. As America honors its war heroes on
Veterans Day 2013 – Dr. Raphael Mechoulam, a
respected Israeli neuroscientist believes that cannabinoids,
not Risperdal (the most commonly prescribed antipsychotic
medicine for vets) are more effective in the treatment of PTSD. The Israeli
neuroscientist has made a career of studying medicinal cannabis and the role
it plays in “memory extinction.” One of the primary components of
post-traumatic stress disorder. Memory extinction is a human condition which |
occurs slowly, affecting all, and could hold the key to helping
those who sufferers with PTSD – according to the good doctor. On this Veterans day, 2013, MERCY
– the Medical Cannabis Resource Center - would like to thank all of the
veterans who severed their country with honor. SOURCE = http://www.marijuana.com/news/2013/11/veterans-day-ptsd-and-marijuanas-cannabinoids-show-you-care-smoke-out-a-vet-today/ _____________________________________________________________ Medical Cannabis Legislative Updates
As Florida remains a “pill popper’s paradise,” the states would-be Democratic
nominee for Governor, Nan Rich,proclaimed
loud and clear on Friday that she fully stands behind the idea of medicinal cannabis
and intends on supporting Florida’s proposed pro medical marijuana
ballot initiative, which would legalize the use of the
beneficial herb in ‘The Sunshine State.’ She then fired up the pro
medical marijuana troops, in the pill-centric retirement capital of the US,
stating that Florida should hop on the
medical marijuana bandwagon and join the 20
states -plus the District of Columbia – and cultivate their own
medical marijuana laws. Four Oregon cities hoping to ban
medical marijuana collectives, concerned over the idea of damaging their reputation with the
55 and over set, or scaring off the states limited tourist’s revenue, have
just been issued a heated notice from the state’s office of Legislative
Council – telling them to stand down. After passing HB 3460
the state legislature has provided political cover for medical marijuana
dispensaries – according to Charles D Taylor, the senior deputy legislative
Council, the new legislation “preempts most municipal laws specifically
targeting medical marijuana facilities.” Sparked by Medford Oregon’s fearful
and ignorant city leaders who voted successfully to ban medical marijuana dispensaries in their fair
city. Shortly thereafter – Grant Pass, Madras, and Metolius all
followed the path of willful ignorance. SOURCE = http://www.marijuana.com/news/2013/11/marijuana-legalization-a-week-in-review/ |
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