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THE EMERGING EVIDENCE
Last year, five scientific journals published prominent articles trumpeting cannabinoids (compounds in marijuana) as potential anti-cancer agents.
These include:
Last year, five scientific journals published prominent articles trumpeting cannabinoids (compounds in marijuana) as potential anti-cancer agents.
These include:
- Clinical trial data published in January 2003 issue of the Journal of the American Society of Clinical Investigation that found cannabinoids significantly inhibit skin tumor growth in mice. Investigators of the study concluded, “The present data indicate that local cannabinoids administration may constitute an alternative therapeutic approach for the treatment of non-melanoma skin cancer.”
- Clinical trial data published in the March 2003 issue of The FASEB Journal that found that the “local administration of a non-psychoactive cannabinoid inhibits angiogenesis (tissue growth) of malignant gliomas (brain tumors).”
- A clinical review in the October 2003 issue of the prestigious journal Nature Reviews Cancer that concluded that cannabinoids’ “favorable drug safety profile” and proven ability to inhibit tumor growth make them desirable agents in the treatment of cancer. According to the review’s author, tumors inhibited by cannabinoids include: lung carcinoma, glioma, thyroid epithelioma, lymphoma/leukemia, skin carcinoma, uterus carcinoma, breast carcinoma, prostate carcinoma, and neuroblastoma (a malignant tumor originating in the autonomic nervous system or the adrenal medulla and occurring chiefly in infants and young children).
- Clinical trial data published in the November 2003 issue of the Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics that found the administration of the cannabinoid cannabidiol (CBD) inhibits the growth of human glioma cells both in vitro (e.g., a petri dish) and in animals in a dose-dependent manner. Investigators concluded, “Non-psychoactive CBD produce[s] a significant antitumor activity both in vitro and in vivo, thus suggesting a possible application of CBD as an antineoplastic agent (something which prevents the growth of malignant cells.)”
- And finally, a clinical review in the December 2003 issue of the journal Expert Opinion on Therapeutic Targets that summarized “the demonstrated antitumor actions of cannabinoids,” and elaborated on “possible avenues for the future development of cannabinoids as antitumor agents.”
Advantages of Marijuana: Creates a state of euphoria; easiness; contentment. Also shown to widen your span of deduction and creativity. It's not lethal, besides an obvious minimal damage to your lungs, as it is plant matter being inhaled in gas form (not counting in the fact of burnt paper in a rolled joint, although multiple other uses are available). It's shown to help with the effects of HIV/Aids and Cancer (is well-known for the coping of chemotherapy effects); as well as a large amount of other diseases/illnesses. While tobacco and alcohol easily increases anger;rage;mindlessness (alcohol) and lung cancer; emphysema; byssinosis(brown lung syndrome) (tobacco) - all marijuana does to you is that it makes you feel happy and gives you a need to eat a bag of chips. Marijuana is also a non-addictive drug, although people have trouble with tobacco addiction. One more thing: There are no deaths due to the inhaling of marijuana.
Deaths per year from:
Tobacco=340,000-395,000
Alcohol (not including accidents)=125,000+
Drug overdose (prescription) =14,000-27,000
Drug overdose (illegal) =3,800-5,200
Marijuana =0
Disadvantages of marijuana: Besides the obvious red-eye and munchies; temporary memory loss. The main disadvantage is that it's illegal.
Deaths per year from:
Tobacco=340,000-395,000
Alcohol (not including accidents)=125,000+
Drug overdose (prescription) =14,000-27,000
Drug overdose (illegal) =3,800-5,200
Marijuana =0
Disadvantages of marijuana: Besides the obvious red-eye and munchies; temporary memory loss. The main disadvantage is that it's illegal.
SCIENCE IGNORED NO MORE
Fortunately, researchers at Madrid, Spain’s Complutense University, School of Biology have generously picked up where U.S. researchers so abruptly left off. In 1998, the research team – led by investigator Manuel Guzman – discovered that THC can selectively induce program cell death in brain tumor cells without negatively impacting the surrounding healthy cells. Then in 2000, Guzman’s team reported in the journal Nature Medicine that injections of synthetic THC eradicated malignant gliomas (brain tumors) in one-third of treated rats, and prolonged life in another third by six weeks. A commentary to the study noted that the results were the first to convincingly demonstrate that cannabis-based treatments may successfully combat cancer.
Today, Guzman believes that enough favorable clinical evidence exists supporting pot’s anti-cancer properties to warrant clinical trials in humans. “The scientific community has gained substantial knowledge of the palliative and anti-tumor actions of cannabinoids during the past few years,” Guzman wrote in the October 2003 issue of Nature Reviews Cancer. “Anti-tumor compounds should selectively affect tumor cells [and] it seems that cannabinoids can do this, as they kill [malignant] tumor cells but do not affect their non-transformed counterparts and might even protect them from cell death. … As cannabinoids are relatively safe compounds, it would be desirable that clinical trials using cannabinoids … could accompany [ongoing] laboratory studies to allow us to use these compounds in the treatment of cancer.” Guzman concludes the article by noting that the Spanish Ministry of Health recently approved a human clinical trial – the first ever – aimed at investigating the effects of intracranially administered THC on the life expectancy of volunteers suffering from malignant brain tumors.
“Cannabinoid research continues to show tremendous potential in the treatment of cancer,” summarizes University of Southern California professor Mitch Earleywine, author of the book Understanding Marijuana: A New Look at the Scientific Evidence. However, he laments that the “vast majority of this work originates outside the United States, often in countries that lack our economic and scientific advantages. Let’s hope that our drug policy won’t stymie the battle against the second leading cause of death in America.”
Indeed. Let’s not add a potential treatment for cancer to the ever-growing list of victims of pot prohibition
"Marijuana, The Forbidden Medicine'' by Lester Grinspoon M.D. and James B. Bakalar pub. Yale University Press New Haven, 1993.
"Therapeutic Issues of Marijuana and THC (Tetrahydrocannabinol)'' by J. Thomas Ungerieder, Therese Andrysiak in "The International Journal of the Addictions'' Vol. 20 pp. 691-699. ed. pub. M. Dekker New York, 1985.)