Category Archives: News Stories

Marijuana may relieve nerve pain when other drugs don’t – USAToday

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“Smoking cannabis, also known as marijuana, reduced pain in patients with nerve pain stemming from injuries or surgical complications, new research shows.

Twenty-one adults with chronic nerve pain were taught to take a single inhalation of 25 milligrams of cannabis through a pipe, three times a day, for five days. The cannabis contained one of three levels of potency of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the active ingredient in marijuana, as well as a placebo dosage containing no THC.

All of the patients rotated through each of the four dosages, with nine days of no smoking in between.

Patients smoking the highest potency marijuana (9.4%) reported less pain than those smoking samples containing no THC. Patients also reported better sleep and less anxiety, according to the Canadian study. 

On an 11-point scale, the average daily pain intensity was 6.1 for those smoking 9.4% THC concentration, compared to 5.4 for those smoking cannabis containing no THC.

“Patients have repeatedly made claims that smoked cannabis helps to treat pain, but the issue for me had always been the lack of clinical research to support that claim,” said Dr. Mark Ware, director of clinical research at the Alan Edwards Pain Management Unit of the McGill University Health Centre in Montreal. In this small but randomized, controlled trial, “the pain reductions were modest, but significant,” he said. “And it was in people for whom nothing else worked.”

Read more: http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/yourlife/health/medical/2010-09-05-marijuana-pain_N.htm

Medicinal Marijuana Eases Neuropathic Pain in HIV – ABC News

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“(HealthDay News) — Medicinal marijuana helps relieve neuropathic pain in people with HIV, says a University of California, San Diego, School of Medicine study.

It included 28 HIV patients with neuropathic pain that wasn’t adequately controlled by opiates or other pain relievers. The researchers found that 46 percent of patients who smoked medicinal marijuana reported clinically meaningful pain relief, compared with 18 percent of those who smoked a placebo.

The study, published online Aug. 6 in Neuropsychopharmacology, was sponsored by the University of California Center for Medical Cannabis Research (CMCR).

“Neuropathy is a chronic and significant problem in HIV patients as there are few existing treatments that offer adequate pain management to sufferers,” study leader Dr. Ronald J. Ellis, an associate professor of neurosciences, said in an UCSD news release. “We found that smoked cannabis was generally well-tolerated and effective when added to the patient’s existing pain medication, resulting in increased pain relief.”

The findings are consistent with and extend other recent CMCR-sponsored research supporting the short-term effectiveness of medicinal marijuana in treating neuropathic pain.

“This study adds to a growing body of evidence that indicates that cannabis is effective, in the short-term at least, in the management of neuropathic pain,” Dr. Igor Grant, a professor of psychiatry and director of the CMCR, said in the UCSD news release.”

http://abcnews.go.com/Health/Healthday/story?id=5528635&page=1

Cannabis eases multiple sclerosis (MS) stiffness: study

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“Use of cannabis extract helps ease painful muscle stiffness among patients with multiple sclerosis (MS), according to a large trial published on Tuesday in the Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery and Psychiatry.

The “Phase III” test — the final stage in a process to vet a new drug or medical process — took place among 22 centres in Britain.

Over 12 weeks, 144 patients were given daily tablets of tetrahydrocannabinol, which is the active ingredient in cannabis, and 135 were given a dummy pill, also called a placebo…

…They also reported improvement in sleep quality. Side effects were nervous system disorders and gut problems, but none was severe…

The trial, led by John Peter Zajicek of Britain’s Clinical Neurology Research Group, says standardized doses of cannabis extract can be useful in easing pain and spasms in this disease.

Previous Phase III trials on cannabis and MS have thrown up conflicting results, partly because of the scale by which users report any change in their symptoms, the MUSEC researchers said.”

http://articles.nydailynews.com/2012-10-10/news/34367509_1_multiple-sclerosis-cannabis-nerve-cells

Smoking Cannabis May Reduce Symptoms in Multiple Sclerosis Patients – ABC News

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“Smoking marijuana may reduce certain symptoms in patients with multiple sclerosis, according to a new small study published Monday in the Canadian Medical Association Journal.

Researchers from the University of California at San Diego School of Medicine conducted a double blind, controlled clinical trial that included 30 participants who had multiple sclerosis. The scientists hoped to understand whether smoked cannabis reduces symptoms of spasticity, a common symptom of the disease that refers to stiffness and involuntary muscle spasms.

While most past trials have focused on the effects of a pill-form of cannabis, researchers wanted to see specifically whether a smoked form of the drug has a beneficial effect.

“Smoking cannabis was indeed superior to the placebo in reducing spasticity and pain…”

Read More: http://abcnews.go.com/Health/marijuana-reduce-symptoms-multiple-sclerosis-patients/story?id=16328805

Cannabis linked to ‘prostate cancer cure’

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“Cannabis helps combat prostate cancer, scientists revealed yesterday.

But patients were warned not to use the drug even though active chemicals halted the spread of the disease.

Cannabis also helped reduce the size of tumours when tested on mice, according to researchers at Spain’s University of Alcala.

But Cancer Research UK’s Dr Lesley Walker said: “This opens a new avenue to explore potential drug targets but it is at a very early stage – it absolutely isn’t the case that men might be able to fight prostate cancer by smoking cannabis.

“Research suggests that prostate cancer cells might stop growing if they are treated with chemicals found in cannabis but more work needs to be done to explore the potential of these cannabinoids in treatment.”

Prostate cancer affects more than 35,000 UK men each year and kills around 10,000.”

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/cannabis-linked-to-prostate-cancer-cure-413459

Cannabis blunts prostate cancer threat: study – ABC News

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“Chemicals in cannabis have been found to stop prostate cancer cells from growing in the laboratory, suggesting marijuana-based medicines could one day help fight the disease, scientists said.

After working initially with human cancer cell lines, Ines Diaz-Laviada and colleagues from the University of Alcala in Madrid also tested one compound on mice and discovered it produced a significant reduction in tumour growth.

Their research, published in the British Journal of Cancer, underlines the growing interest in the medical use of active chemicals called cannabinoids, which are found in marijuana.”

Read more: http://www.abc.net.au/news/2009-08-19/cannabis-blunts-prostate-cancer-threat-study/1396346

Cannabis Chemicals Stop Prostate Cancer Growth

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“ACTIVE chemicals in cannabis have been shown to halt prostate cancer cell growth according to research published in the British Journal of Cancer.

Researchers from the University of Alcala, in Madrid tested the effects of the active chemicals in cannabis called cannabinoids on three human prostate cancer cell lines – called PC-3, DU-a45 and LNCaP.

The prostate cancer cells carry molecular ‘garages’- called receptors- in which cannabinoids can ‘park’.

The scientists showed for the first time that if cannabinoids ‘park’ on a receptor called CB2, the cancer cells stop multipyling.

Dr Walker added: “This research suggest that prostate cancer cells might stop growing if they are treated with chemicals found in cannabis but more work needs to be done to explore the potential of the cannabinoids in treatment.”

To confirm the findings the scientists switched off the CB2 receptors – or ‘closed the garage doors’- on the prostate cells. When cannabinoids were then added to cells without the CB2 receptor, the prostate cancer cells carried on dividing and growing. This suggests that cannabinoids connect with the CB2 receptors on prostate cancer cells to stop cell division and spread.

Professor Ines Diaz-Laviada, study author at the University of Alcala said: “Our research shows that there are areas on prostate cancer cells which can recognise and talk to chemicals found in cannabis called cannabinoids. These chemicals can stop the division and growth of prostate cancer cells and could become a target for new research into potential drugs to treat prostate cancer.”

Read more: http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/releases/161628.php

Baby Recovered From Brain Tumor With Daily Dose of Marijuana

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“Anyone who has ever known and loved someone using chemotherapy knows just what a toxic cocktail those drugs truly are. So when faced with the idea that an 8-month-old baby could go through those horrific  side effects or try something else, namely marijuana, to treat a brain tumor, my money is on the “something else” every time.”

“This is exactly the question parents of an 8-month-old baby were faced with recently when they opted to treat their baby with cannabinoid oil (a form of marijuana) on the baby’s pacifier twice a day. Within two months the tumor had shrunk so dramatically that the baby’s doctor’s did not have to use chemo. Amazing, no?”

“The long term effects of marijuana on a baby are probably unknown, but the long term effects of chemotherapy may be just as harmful, if not even worse. At least cannabis can be grown safely and organically and given in as natural a state as possible.”

“Ordinarily I would frown on parents giving any kind of substance to a baby, but a baby with a brain tumor is another kind of story. In this case, the cannabis helped. Maybe this is the beginning of less invasive treatment methods with fewer side effects. Wouldn’t that be a miracle for ALL children?”

“Would you give your baby cannabinoid oil?”

Read more: http://thestir.cafemom.com/baby/147477/baby_recovered_from_brain_tumor?fb_action_ids=471912052845441&fb_action_types=og.recommends&fb_ref=post_top&fb_source=aggregation&fb_aggregation_id=288381481237582

Cannabinoids Curb Brain Tumor Growth, First-Ever Patient Trial Shows

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“Madrid, Spain: THC administration decreases recurrent glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) tumor growth in humans, according to the findings of the first-ever clinical trial assessing cannabinoids’ anti-tumor action.

Investigators at Complutense University in Spain administered THC intratumorally in nine patients diagnosed with recurrent GBM, an extremely rapid and lethal form of brain tumor. Patients in the study had previously failed standard therapy (surgery and radiotherapy) and had clear evidence of tumor progression. THC treatment was associated with reduced tumor cell proliferation in two subjects, authors reported.

Investigators did not determine whether THC positively impacted patients’ survival, though they did conclude that cannabinoid therapy does not facilitate cancer growth or decrease patients’ life expectancy. Median survival of the cohort from the beginning of cannabinoid administration was 24 weeks, and two patients survived for approximately one year. Survival for GBM patients following diagnosis is typically six to twelve months.

Researchers speculated that newly diagnosed glioma patients may respond more favorably to cannabinoid-based therapies.

Investigators also reported that THC demonstrated significant anti-proliferative activity on human GBM cells in culture.

“The fair safety profile of THC, together with its possible anti-proliferative action on tumor cells reported here and in other studies, may set the basis for future trials aimed at evaluating the potential antitumoral activity of cannabinoids,” investigators concluded.

In 2005, investigators at the California Pacific Medical Center Research Institute in San Francisco reported that THC selectively decreases the proliferation of malignant cells and induces cell death in human GBM cell lines. Healthy cells in the study were unaffected by THC administration.

Separate preclinical studies indicate that cannabinoids and endocannabinoids can stave off tumor progression and trigger cell death in other cancer cell lines, including breast carcinoma, prostate carcinoma, colectoral carcinoma, skin carcinoma, and pancreatic adenocarcinoma.”

http://norml.org/news/2006/07/13/cannabinoids-curb-brain-tumor-growth-first-ever-patient-trial-shows