News

U.S. Senate committee slams marijuana's federal classification, saying Schedule I blocks research: Forbes

Forbes reporter, Tom Angell reports: "A key U.S. Senate committee says that marijuana's current federal classification blocks scientific research on its effects -- something that legalization advocates have long argued." 

Canadians, and indeed patients from around the world, cannot underestimate the impact that the U.S. classification of marijuana has on the pace of advancement within the field of cannabinoid medicine. 

Angell explains: "Schedule I is the most restrictive category under federal law, and is supposed to be reserved for drugs with a high potential for abuse and no medical value. Researchers wishing to study substances classified there must overcome procedural hurdles that don't exist for other drugs."

"The committee's criticism of Schedule 1 roadblocks to marijuana research provides more momentum to the effort to reclassify cannabis under federal law." 

Read full article here.

FDA approves first ever drug comprised of an active ingredient derived from marijuana

On June 25, 2018, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) made history by granting approval for the first drug comprised of an active ingredient derived from marijuana, to treat rare, severe forms of epilepsy.

This impact of this decision on the advancement of cannabinoid medicine cannot be understated. Currently, marijuana is listed as a Schedule 1 drug in the U.S., which is defined as drugs with no currently accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse. Schedule 1 drugs currently include Heroine, LSD, Ecstasy and Marijuana, among others. The scheduling of marijuana in the U.S. has undoubtedly hindered research and development into cannabis as medicine and so the FDA's approval of Epidiolex - an oral solution made from cannabidiol (CBD) - could have a profound impact on the advancement and acceptance of cannabinoid medicine.

Read the FDA's full statement here.

 

 

Trust medical marijuana, N.J.'s top health official asks doctors and medical students: NJ.com

NJ.com reports: New Jersey's top doctor Tuesday encouraged physicians and medical students to embrace cannabis as another tool to help their patients, despite acknowledging that rigorous scientific research is lacking.

Here are a few highlights of his message but be sure to click on the full story to read the full article and watch a video from the day's event:

  • "At the end of the day, this is about patients. The Department of Health is pushing this because...many times it is the best therapy you can give them."
  • "I want this to be in physicians' and other providers' heads as a therapeutic option -- not something separate, not sort of in a different category like alternative medicine. This really is reaching a level of relevance and importance to patients,"
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Cannabis versus Cancer: Scientific American

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Scientific American reports: "Countless scientific studies have shown that medical cannabis offers palliative care benefits, including appetite stimulation, pain relief and more. But early research indicates that cannabinoids can do so much more. Data is showing that medical marijuana has antitumor effects and may one day be used as a cancer treatment, not just as a drug to ease symptoms of the disease." Full article. 

New Jersey Governor, Phil Murphy expands medical marijuana program: NBC

A renaissance is coming to New Jersey’s long embattled medical marijuana program. 

Democratic Gov. Phil Murphy announced a long list of reforms this morning, including lowering fees for patients and caregivers, adding five approved medical conditions and proposing legislation to increase monthly product limit for patients.

Patients receiving hospice care would be eligible for an unlimited supply of cannabis. Effective immediately, patients suffering from anxiety, migraines, Tourette’s syndrome, chronic pain related to musculoskeletal disorders, and chronic visceral pain will be eligible for the medical cannabis program.

Murphy added that he would like to eventually see opioid addiction added to the growing list of approved conditions. He called cannabis “an offensive weapon” to the growing crisis.

Full article 

Montel Williams: Cannabis 'changed my life': Yahoo News

After being diagnosed with multiple sclerosis around 1999 and struggling with opioid addiction to manage the pain, Montel Williams says that finding cannabis was a game-changer.

Williams shares with Yahoo Lifestyle that he “took a journey down opioid lane for a year and a half, just trying to shut the pain down to the point that I was walking around in a pseudo-suicidal state.”

He said shifting from opioids to cannabis was what that turned his life around. “The journey that I took with cannabis — it changed my life,” he says.  Full article here.