STUDY: POT 'MODERATELY' USEFUL AS MEDICINE

WASHINGTON - Reliable data on the use of marijuana for medical
purposes have been difficult to get because of its
classification.

The active substances in marijuana may be ``moderately'' useful for
treating such problems as pain, nausea and appetite loss, but smoked
marijuana has little future as a medicine, a panel of experts advising
the federal government said Wednesday.

The long-awaited review comes after several states legalized marijuana
for medical use and was immediately seized upon by marijuana advocates
as an endorsement of their position.

``We are very pleased with this report, which clearly shows there is
scientific evidence that marijuana has bona fide therapeutic effects
for some patients,'' said Chuck Thomas, the director of the
Washington-based Marijuana Policy Project. ``Patients already using
marijuana should be given the benefit of the doubt and should not be
arrested.''

The report, prepared by 11 scientists convened by the National Academy
of Sciences' Institute of Medicine, specifically warned against smoked
marijuana because of risks of lung damage. The panel advocated
research aimed at isolating marijuana's ingredients and testing them
in randomized controlled trials.

Barry McCaffrey, the White House drug czar who requested the report,
said he endorsed it ``thoroughly,'' and called it a ``significant
contribution to discussing the issue from a scientific and medical
viewpoint.'' He said he wouldn't oppose limited studies of smoked
marijuana until a less harmful way of inhaling the substance's active
ingredients is found.

``I would note, however, that the report says smoked marijuana has
little future as an approved medication,'' McCaffrey said. ``You
should not expect to go into an ICU in 15 years and find someone with
prostate cancer with a blunt stuck in his face as a pain management
tool.''

The 250-page report was prepared using published medical studies on
marijuana's physiological effects and possible clinical benefits, and
took testimony from researchers and patients.

The claims for marijuana are very broad. People have used it as
treatment for nausea caused by chemotherapy, appetite loss arising
from AIDS, the painful spasms of multiple sclerosis the sight-
threatening condition known as glaucoma and the memory loss of
Alzheimer's disease.

Reliable data on the drug's benefits have been been hard to get
because of its designation as a controlled substance. The Drug
Enforcement Administration places marijuana - along with other
addictive drugs - in the category reserved for substances with ``a
high abuse potential.'' Many of the claims for pot are based on small,
poorly designed studies, or on ``clinical anecdotes,'' the recounted
experience of individual people.

The body produces a marijuana-like substance naturally that stimulates
specific receptors on nerve cells distributed widely in the brain.
Marijuana contains about 30 active ingredients, collectively known as
``cannabinoids,'' that also activate these receptors. One cannabinoid
drug, dronabinol, is licensed in the United States for use in appetite
stimulation in AIDS patients, and to prevent nausea and vomiting
caused by chemotherapy.