MEDICAL MARIJUANA

The recent wave of obituaries for the brilliant scientist and author
Stephen Jay Gould (IHT, May 22) commonly left out a significant fact: He
was a user of medical marijuana. Diagnosed with cancer in 1982 and given
eight months to live, he survived 20 years, enduring chemotherapy thanks to
medical marijuana. While other drugs failed to curb the nausea caused by
his treatment, he wrote, marijuana "worked like a charm." He added, "It is
beyond my comprehension that any humane person would withhold such a
beneficial substance from people in such great need." Gould went on to
testify in a 1998 Canadian court case that eventually resulted in the
establishment of that nation's medical marijuana program. What a shame that
U.S. leaders failed to consult this great scientist before declaring war on
the medical use of marijuana.

Bruce Mirken

Washington