JOINTS HELP ON THREE FRONTS

IN THE years since Jo (not her real name) was given her AIDS diagnosis,
part of her regular medication has been two joints of marijuana. She
smokes one before dinner, the other before going to bed.

Every day Jo, 37, downs 24 tablets, some for the virus itself, and
antibiotics to prevent opportunistic infections.

The marijuana helps relieve the nauseous side-effects of the medication,
dulls the pain and stimulates her appetite. "It is just so important when
you are HIV-positive to maintain your weight," she said. "They have
anti-nausea drugs, but they don't reduce the nausea, the marijuana does."

The conventional treatment for the severe pain is morphine, but Jo finds
cannabis takes the edge off the pain without mind effects.

Jo was diagnosed HIV-positive in 1989. For her, the NSW prescribed
cannabis trial is a "breakthrough in the treatment of HIV" and she hopes
the Victorian Government keeps an open mind to the results.

"People generally think HIV has pretty much gone away, that we have drugs
giving us a better quality, but in reality quite a few of us are on a lot
of drugs to keep us going. We're living with a lot of side-effects and
this is one way to get us through," she said.