SOME MDS RECOMMENDING MARIJUANA FOR MEDICAL USE

McGill Study's Findings Come On Eve Of Decriminalization Bill

Marijuana has come a long way since the days when it was vilified in public
health films like 'Reefer Madness.' As Ottawa prepares to reduce the
penalties for possessing small amounts, a new study suggests a few doctors
are actually suggesting marijuana to some of their patients.

As federal lawmakers prepare to pass legislation decriminalizing possession
of small amounts of marijuana for personal use, Montreal's McGill
University Health Centre has issued a study concluding some doctors already
are suggesting their patients use cannabis for a variety of medical purposes.

According to research published in March by Dr. Mark Ware, a pain physician
at the MUHC, 16 per cent of people cited in his survey used marijuana for
medical reasons after their doctor made the suggestion.

A total of 947 people living in the United Kingdom who participated in the
study used marijuana for medical purposes. More than a third (35 per cent)
said they used it six or seven days a week. Th e majority (68 per cent)
said it helped with their symptoms and made them feel better.

Younger males among those likely to use it as medicine

The study found that people with chronic pain (25 per cent) were most
likely to use cannabis for medical reasons, followed by patients with
multiple sclerosis (22 per cent), depression (22 per cent), arthritis (21
per cent) and neuropathy (19 per cent). Younger people, males, and those
who had previously used cannabis recreationally, were also more likely to
use it for medicinal purposes.

Other key findings in the study:

- - About 45 per cent of the respondents claimed marijuana worked better than
their prescribed medication. About 30 per cent who answered a question on
side-effects said prescribed drugs were worse than cannabis, with 34 per
cent saying the side eff ects were much worse. About 75 per cent of
respondents said their medical symptoms returned or got worse when they
stopped using marijuana.

- - The majority of users (82 per cent) smoked the drug. Other methods
included eating it (43 per cent) and making tea out of it (28 per cent).
Twenty-seven per cent of respondents reported using one to two grams of
marijuana per day, two per cent used 10 or more grams a day, and seven per
cent used between five and nine grams a day.

The most extensive study of its kind to date

Dr. Ware said in an interview with The Chomedey News that his survey is
probably the most extensive study of medicinal cannabis use among
chronically ill patients conducted to date. He said he undertook the study
after being approached by GW Pharmaceuticals, a drug company which is
developing new products based on cannabis.

"The interest from the pharmaceutical companies reflects the fact that, at
least at that level, there is potential therapeutic value worth investing
money and research and, obviously, raising considerable amounts of capital
to do this work," he said. "That probably reflects the growing basic
science understanding of how the ingredients of cannabis work in various
syndromes, including pain."

While Dr. Ware said he believed that physicians are gradually becoming
aware of the potential therapeutic uses of marijuana, he added that he
wouldn't go so far as to say they support or are promoting its use.

"I think they're gradually becoming aware of its potential and waiting for
drug development to bring the necessary research forward so that safety and
efficacy is there, before they actually start prescribing the drug," he
said. He acknowledged that recent preoccupation by the public and media
with the use of raw herbal marijuana probably heightened corporate interest
in developing laboratory-grade cannabis-based pharmaceuticals.

Reasons 'political' for not developing marijuana drugs

Dr. Ware agreed that a generally negative perception of marijuana until
recently, especially among doctors and scientists, may have prevented it
from being put to practical use. "I think there were other reasons why the
pharmacompanies haven't been interested in the past. Some of those are
probably more political than anything else," he said.

"It's not a drug that had been recognized to have medicinal value until
relatively recently, so there was reluctance to get involved. It may well
be that there were considered to be other analgesics that were thought to
be easier to prepare and deliver."

According to Dr. Ware, what has helped most to improve marijuana's
reputation as a viable pharmaceutical has been the discovery of receptors
in the body which are targets for compounds found in cannabis. "There's
actually a naturally-occurring neurobiological basis for cannabinoid drugs
- - drugs based on cannabis - to have an action," he said.

How to capture benefits, while avoiding intoxication?

"This suddenly made (the drug companies) say 'Well, hang on, maybe there is
something we can get involved in here.'" The key issue for most
pharmaceutical companies, he added, remains how to capture the beneficial
effects of marijuana, while avoiding the psychoactive side-effects that
cause people to become intoxicated.

With regards to the federal government's decriminalization bill, federal
Justice Minister Irwin Cotler said in a recent interview with The Chomedey
News that the Liberals' marijuana legislation, expected to pass before the
summer break, will decriminalize possession of small amounts for personal use.

"We're not talking about legalization," Cotler said, adding that he has
often found himself lately explaining the distinction to legislators from
the United States.

"It just means that for a particular group of younger people, we don't want
to criminalize a younger generation for the personal use of small amounts
of marijuana. But we're not saying it's legal. It's a ticketing offence at
this point."