A Medical Marijuana Patient Who Does Need 75 Plants

By The Denver Post | August 8, 2016
Re: “Colorado right to limit large, private medical marijuana grows,” July 26 guest commentary.

The Denver Post’s editorial on private medical marijuana grows, using terms like “dope” and “weed,” declared that not “a single patient” needs 75 cannabis plants.

Meet Ezra.

Diagnosed with epilepsy at birth, Ezra was not expected to survive past his first birthday due his extreme number of seizures (500 per day). Ezra also had dystonia so severe, it caused howling pain, multiple broken bones, and his spine to bend backwards to a 90-degree angle. Ezra’s extreme situation is documented on his You Caring page.

Ezra’s mother tried high doses of pure high-THC cannabis oil. Once she reached 750 mg daily, Ezra was finally able to rest comfortably. He is now free of pain, and has remained that way for a year.

For Ezra, cannabis is a miracle.

But he needs a lot. He can’t smoke it. He must ingest it, which requires more. Ezra needs a purer form of cannabis than the standard commercial edible. Only clear, clean oil with high levels of delta-9 tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). Even the best commercial product has 555 g/ml, while Ezra’s mother’s tests at 750 g/ml. Ezra’s single mother brought him to Colorado without a job. She could not afford dispensary prices or their lack of consistent selection.

For minors, there must be two separate doctors who independently evaluate the patient. The law allows any medically necessary amount of cannabis. Ezra needs greater than 75 plants, as determined by two doctors. - Full Article

Medicinal Vannabis Trial Available for Queensland Children with Severe Drug-Resistant Epilepsy

By ABC Australia | July 27, 2016
Queensland children with severe drug-resistant epilepsy can now apply to take part in a medicinal cannabis clinical trial, following a deal signed with a British drug company.

The State Government last year announced the trial of medical marijuana, but has now signed a memorandum of understanding with UK-based pharmaceutical company GW Pharmaceuticals to access Epidiolex.

Epidiolex is a liquid form of pure cannabidiol.

Health Minister Cameron Dick said the State Government was now calling on parents of children suffering persistent seizures to register if they wanted to be part of the research.

“Our project is driven by two things — compassion and hope,” he said.

“These children suffer from a terribly debilitating condition.”

The research team from the Lady Cilento Children’s Hospital in Brisbane will develop and lead the trials.

Dr Andrew Hallahan, Children’s Health Queensland’s executive director of medical services, said the study would not be randomised, which meant all participants would take the drug and none would be on a placebo.

He said each child would have their dose gradually increased over a period of months.

“It’s really a study to examine in the first instance — tolerability — how safe it is and get an idea of potentially its potential efficacy,” Dr Hallahan said.

“At its best, what we would have is another option for specialist doctors from paediatric neurologists to offer to help children.

“The initial studies that I have seen don’t indicate that it’s going to be a miraculous cure for epilepsy and all drugs have their side effects.

“That’s part of why we’re doing this as a proper trial to make sure we know what’s going on.” - Full Article

Tallahassee Marijuana Dispensary Will be First to Open in Florida

By WCTV | July 20, 2016
A Tallahassee medical marijuana dispensary is the first in the state of Florida to receive authorization from the Florida Department of Health.

Trulieve dispensary says it will open next week and begin sales, becoming the first dispensary in the state of Florida to open its doors.

The company has a press conference scheduled for its location at 800 Capital Circle SE next Tuesday at 2 p.m.

“We are happy to announce that we have passed all inspections — from growing and processing to dispensing — and are the very first medical cannabis provider in the state to receive these formal authorizations. And we are most excited to get this much anticipated medicine to the patients of Florida,” said Trulieve CEO Kim Rivers.

Trulieve will have low-THC cannabis available for statewide delivery immediately, the company says. Medical marijuana with higher levels of THC is expected to be available in August. - Full Article

Study Aims to Examine Whole-Plant Cannabis in Treatment for Sports Injuries

Dutch researcher Dr. Arno Hazekamp will lead study of 30 former NFL players

By The Denver Post | July 7, 2016
A push for cannabidiol research has gained steam in recent months, with current and former NFL players backing two studies on CBD’s efficacy in alleviating football-related pain without getting them high. But another study, led by a California-based cannabis extract producer Constance Therapeutics and the Gridiron Cannabis Coalition, aims to examine whether whole-plant cannabis is more effective than isolated compounds in treating players’ pain.

Led by Dutch researcher Dr. Arno Hazekamp, the study will include approximately 30 former NFL players in California, where marijuana is legal for medicinal purposes and soon could be legal for recreational use, as well. The players will be administered marijuana, via vapor or tincture, and monitored to determine the drug’s effectiveness in alleviating their pain and symptoms from concussions. The study, funded by donors and Constance Therapeutics, is expected to start later this summer with no set end date.

Chris Kluwe, a former punter who played nine years in the NFL, is among those who have volunteered to participate. Kluwe used marijuana during his career and still uses it in retirement to ease lingering pain from four knee surgeries and years of wear and tear. The study, he says, is key to not only promoting awareness of alternative, and possibly safer, pain relievers than the narcotics players often receive from teams, but to also prompt the NFL and players association to revise the substance-abuse policy.

“The way the NFL has it now is really not a bad system because what it does is it touches guys who really do have a problem and probably should get some sort of counseling,” Kluwe said. “What I’d like to see them do is be much more lenient in terms of the penalties that are assessed on guys. So instead of having someone like Josh Gordon — who gets suspended for an entire year — go, ‘OK, we’re going make resources available to you,’ but also look at it like maybe this guy really does need this to help him play this game. ‘How can we make it so that he’s still active and functional in his everyday life and able to play in the NFL as well?’” - Full Article

Hawaii Medical Marijuana Dispensaries Expected to Open Later This Year

By West Hawaii Today | July 5, 2016
State officials say they have yet to inspect Hawaii’s eight licensed medical marijuana businesses, making it unlikely that the dispensaries will open by July 15, the earliest date legislators had allowed them to begin selling their products.

Department of Health officials say they are uncertain when each licensee will open up shop, The Garden Island reported. “The Department of Health is unable to predict the progress by each licensee because there are a number of requirements that are outside of our department’s control,” spokeswoman Janice Okubo said.

The eight businesses were selected in April to open the state’s first medical marijuana dispensaries. Three of the businesses are opening on Oahu, while the Big Island and Maui will both have two of the businesses. One medical dispensary was selected to open on Kauai.

Shane Peters, spokesman for Kauai’s sole dispensary Green Aloha Ltd., declined to comment, but he said he would be able to share information on its status sometime in July.

“Green Aloha Ltd. is doing their best to open in a manner that allows their operation to exceed expectation,” said Christopher Garth, executive director of the Hawaii Dispensary Alliance, a medical marijuana advocacy group. “Hopefully we can have someone opening their doors that have a robust menu and quality tested products by the end of year.” - Full Article

FDA Approves Insys Therapeutics’ 2nd Cannabis-Based Drug

By Forbes | July 5, 2016
On June 21, Todd Hagopian recommended Insys Therapeutics (INSY). Since then, the stock has gained nearly 20%. After a stock runs like this, many investors are tempted to sell. However, in situations like this, I’ve found it valuable to know which side of the trade the people with superior track records are on before making any trading decisions.

Todd started his Biotech fund at Marketocracy in March, 2011. His returns have averaged 27.91% since then, which compares nicely to the S&P 500’s 9.03% return over the same period. Over the last five and three year periods, he did better than the top U.S. Equity fund manager. Before taking anyone’s investment advice, you should always check out their track record. Click here to see Todd’s.

Ken Kam: Insys has had a nice run since you recommended it. How big can Syndros be for Insys?

Todd Hagopian: This week, the FDA approved Syndros, which will be INSY’s 2nd FDA-approved Cannabis-based drug. Syndros is an appetite-boosting drug, which will help people dealing with Cancer, or AIDS-related weight loss. The sales forecast for this drug are in the hundreds of millions, and should effectively double the revenue of the company over the next few years.

Kam: Are you buying or selling Insys on this news?

Hagopian: My $32 price target was based off of $500M in annual sales, a number which should be relatively reasonable given this second approved drug. My $32 price target is about a 100% increase to today’s selling price, making this stock still a bargain.

Kam: You talked about, Insys, GW Pharmaceuticals and Cara Therapeutics as forming a new sector of biotech. It seems like there has been a lot of news about all three lately. - Full Article

Cannabis Compounds Could be Used to Treat Alzheimer’s, Research Suggests

‘Although other studies have offered evidence that cannabinoids might be neuroprotective against the symptoms of Alzheimer’s, we believe our study is the first to demonstrate that cannabinoids affect both inflammation and amyloid beta accumulation in nerve cells’

By Independent | June 30, 2016
A component in cannabis can fight toxic proteins which cause Alzheimer’s disease, research has suggested.

The research has been welcomed as providing potential clues for how Alzheimer’s could be treated therapeutically and a manuscript of the preliminary findings have been published in the journal Aging and Mechanisms of the Disease.

The scientists, from the Salk Institute in California, have found evidence that tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and other compounds found in cannabis can remove a toxic protein associated with Alzheimer’s known as ‘amyloid beta’.

Paper author and postdoctoral researcher Antonio Currais explains: “Inflammation within the brain is a major component of the damage associated with Alzheimer’s disease, but it has always been assumed that this response was coming from immune-like cells in the brain, not the nerve cells themselves.

“When we were able to identify the molecular basis of the inflammatory response to amyloid beta, it became clear that THC-like compounds that the nerve cells make themselves may be involved in protecting the cells from dying.” - Full Article

Cannabis Trialed as Melanoma Treatment by University of Canberra

By ABC News Australia | June 29, 2016
Researchers at the University of Canberra will collaborate with a pharmaceutical company to test the efficacy of medicinal cannabis in treating melanoma.

The university announced a $1 million deal with Israel-based Cann Pharmaceutical to provide specific medical-grade strains of cannabis, which will be administered to patients along with the current standard of care for melanoma patients.

Molecular and cellular biology professor Sudha Rao said the research could benefit the almost-55,000 Australians that live with the skin cancer.

“Australians have the highest rate of melanoma in the world, with estimates of more than 13,000 new cases to be diagnosed in 2016 alone,” she said.

“When you consider that melanoma is the third most common cancer in Australia and New Zealand, and almost 1,800 people will die as a result of this cancer this year, we need to work harder at finding effective treatments.”

Professor Rao previously worked on preventing the recurrence of breast cancer and other aggressive cancers.

The canabanoids will be administered to patients along with chemotherapy, and researchers will monitor the impact on melanoma stem cells. - Full Article

Ebbu Announces Groundbreaking Scientific Research of “Entourage Effect”

Ebbu conducts never-before-published research on the effects of cannabinoids and terpenes on receptors in the body

By Yahoo Fiance | June 23, 2016
Ebbu continues to push the boundaries of cannabis science with the announcement today of significant new discoveries, never published in the cannabis research literature. Ebbu has built a state-of-the-art cellular pharmacology drug discovery lab with a poly-pharmaceutical approach in order to understand how the different compounds of cannabis work in concert with each other on the mind and body.

“Once again Ebbu is forging new frontiers. Our cellular pharmacology discovery lab is testing individual and combinations of cannabinoids and terpenes on cannabinoid receptors and other targets that interact closely with the endocannabinoid system,” said Jon Cooper, founder and CEO of Ebbu.

Since the late 1990s, thanks to the pioneering research of Raphael Mechoulam and many others, it’s been understood that the building blocks of cannabis (cannabinoids and other compounds) have a greater effect on the body together than when separated into individual compounds. It’s called the “entourage effect.” However, little has been known about exactly how the entourage effect works because, until recently, study in the US has been stymied by the near complete legal prohibition on marijuana and because most international studies have been focused on individual cannabinoids.

“Think of the effect when you combine chocolate and peanut butter; you experience a third taste. The endocannabinoid system works essentially the same way,” remarked Cooper. “We are studying different compounds that when combined will deliver desirable experiences. We believe this groundbreaking work will result in the most consistent and predictable products in the industry.”

“Ebbu has completed the initial pharmacological fingerprinting of CB1 and has nearly completed its analysis of TRPV1,” said Brian Reid, chief scientist at Ebbu. Cannabinoid receptor 1, or CB1, is recognized as the cannabinoid receptor responsible for the main psychoactive effect of cannabis, and TRPV1, the transient receptor potential cation channel subfamily V member 1, also known as the capsaicin receptor and the vanilloid receptor 1, is a very important target for the perception of pain. Mr. Reid further stated, “Our findings are remarkable. We have identified 11 compound combinations that have synergistic or other notable effects on these two receptors.”

Specifically, Ebbu has found:

• 6 terpenes that moderately increase potency of THC at CB1
• 2 terpenes that strongly increase the potency of THC at CB1
• 2 cannabinoids that moderately increase the effect of THC
• 1 cannabinoid that has a unique interaction with THC. It’s both an antagonist and intensifies the effect of THC at CB1. - Full Article

Girl Ditches Several Presription Medications For Raw Cannabis Juice & Look What Happened

By Collective Evolution | June 13, 2016
It’s quite remarkable how many ‘success’ stories are out there when it comes to using cannabis for medicinal purposes. If we consider cancer, for example, many people have used or incorporated medical marijuana into their healing routine. One great example is Mykala Comstock. Mykala had T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukaemia, a very rare and aggressive form of childhood leukaemia. In July of 2012, doctors discovered a basketball-sized mass of lymphoblasts in her chest. Her mass was so large that she was not able to be sedated for risk of death from the pressure on her esophagus and heart. Chemotherapy wasn’t working, so it got to the point where doctors strongly recommended a bone marrow transplant along with full body radiation. Her parents said no, and started using a strict cannabis routine from that point on. Ever since she started, the cancer went into remission. It’s now four years later and Mykala is still completely cancer free. This is just one of many examples.

Earlier this year we (Collective Evolution) covered a story regarding a little girl who is using cannabis to treat her epilepsy. You can watch that video here.

When it comes to cannabis and science, it’s firmly established in scientific literature that this plant has a wide range of health benefits, and many people are choosing to opt out of traditional treatment, which doesn’t always work (neither does cannabis), to try cannabis. Here is a great video of a molecular biologist explaining how THC completely destroys cancer cells. It’s not just THC, however, it’s also other ingredients found within the plant. Here is a list we published almost three years ago of 20 medical studies proving that cannabis shows very strong potential for cancer treatment. These types of discoveries are important, especially given the fact that prescription medications have raised a lot of controversy. Fraudulent science has kills more than 100,000 people a year in the United States alone.

Below is another remarkable story of a young woman who was bedridden for years, with multiple ailments, as explained in the video. She was on a variety of prescription medications, and doctors were not sure if she would even make it to see the age of 30. She decided to consult a doctor about his experience with patients and how they use cannabis. She went on a cannabis juicing treatment and the results were so significant that it changed her life. - Full Article

Mounting Research Supports Use of Cannabis for Pain Management

By Milwaukee Wisconsin Journal Sentinel | June 10, 2016
Compared with alcohol and nicotine, cannabis is a benign drug.

Given its medical uses, including for certain mental conditions, it contrasts sharply with booze and tobacco, which have no medicinal value.

All drugs have potential side effects, so we need to apply a dispassionate and scientific cost-benefit analysis, rather than myths and biases, to determining substance use policies.

Are the advantages of using a certain drug sufficient to offset its harmful effects? When it comes to alcohol and nicotine, the answer is a resounding “No!” In America, roughly 88,000 people die annually from alcohol abuse while another 480,000 perish from smoking tobacco. The World Health Organization estimates tobacco use costs $500 billion in economic damage annually, not to mention the toll in human suffering.

America’s number-one recreational drug, alcohol, either contributes to or causes suicide, rape, domestic violence, vehicular homicide and, if used to excess, a host of medical problems, some fatal.

In contrast, cannabis itself will not kill you. Compared with alcohol and many prescription medicines, marijuana is nontoxic. As the Drug Enforcement Administration itself acknowledges, “No death from overdose of marijuana has been reported.” Aspirin kills more people. - Full Article

Ohioans Can Start Using Medical Marijuana Legally in September

Gov. John Kasich signed the bill on Wednesday

By Dayton Daily News | June 9, 2016
Marijuana will be legal for medical use in Ohio starting in September.
Gov. John Kasich signed the bill Wednesday that makes Ohio the 25th state in the country to legalize cannabis for medical use, even though the Federal Drug Administration still classifies it as a controlled substance with no legal use.
The bill will not allow marijuana to be smoked. It will have to be used in patches, vapors, edibles, etc. The bill also does not allow for users to grow marijuana at home.

While marijuana grown in Ohio is months away from being available, those with doctor’s notes can use medical marijuana from other states where it is legal starting in September, 90 days from Wednesday. The Ohio medical marijuana program is expected to be fully operational in about two years.

Those who use marijuana legally can still be fired and denied unemployment benefits if they violate their workplace drug policies.
The Ohio Department of Commerce, State Medical Board and Board of Pharmacy will supervise the use of medical marijuana in the state.
Local jurisdictions would be allowed to block medical marijuana dispensaries and businesses from moving into their areas.
Last year, ResponsibleOhio put a proposed constitutional amendment on the statewide ballot that would have legalized marijuana for both medical and recreational use and granted exclusive growing rights to the 10 investor groups bankrolling the campaign. Voters soundly rejected the proposal. But polls showed that 80 to 90 percent of Ohioans favor legalizing medical marijuana. - Full Article

Medical Cannabis a Growing Business

By Albuquerque Journal | June 6, 2016
Rachael Speegle, 34, left a full-time job as a critical care nurse last year to work at an Albuquerque medical marijuana dispensary and growing operation started by her husband.

Speegle quickly discovered that people who came to the Verdes Foundation dispensary in Albuquerque had lots of questions that called for her nursing skills.

“Their questions were so simple,” she said. For example: “How do I talk to my doctor about this? Why does my nausea feel better when I smoke it than when I eat it?”

Verdes is one of 13 licensed nonprofit producers that operate 16 dispensaries in Bernalillo County. Statewide, 23 licensed producers operate 37 dispensaries in 16 counties.

That number is certain to grow in coming months as existing licensed producers, including the Verdes Foundation, open new locations. In addition, 12 nonprofits licensed by the New Mexico Department of Health last year are setting up new growing facilities and dispensaries around the state. - Full Article

Meet Sue Taylor, the Black Grandmother Leading the Charge to Bring Marijuana to the Elderly

By Jezebel | June 2, 2016
Sue Taylor is an African-American grandmother who runs three miles a day and describes her late 60s as the time of her life. She’s a retired Catholic school principal living in Berkeley, California, who wears pearls and stylish pantsuits, holds a divinity school degree, and attributes her “perfect health” to marijuana, which she uses orally and topically for pain relief and better sleep. She says her spiritual journey has led her to realize her soul’s purpose: to connect the elderly with weed. She’s on a national mission to do just that.

Sue obviously isn’t anyone’s stereotypical pot user, and she says that’s one reason she’s the perfect candidate to approach seniors about pot. She sits on the Commission on Aging in Alameda County and visits retirement homes and senior groups, hosting seminars locally and nationally to educate people about various cannabis medicine options. Sue is one of just two people certified through the State of California to educate senior living facility staff and caregivers about medical marijuana, which means that nurses and facility directors who take her classes can receive continuing education units toward their yearly certifications.

If you told Sue Taylor 20 years ago that she’d be doing all of this, she probably would have laughed in your face. She, like many, was raised with the Reefer Madness-esque scare tactics of the (failed and disastrous) war on drugs. For most of her life, she believed marijuana was a hard and deadly drug. She also knew that as a woman raising black sons in America, pot was unsafe territory that led to arrests and ruined lives. - Full Article

Illinois’ Medical Marijuana Industry Getting Something It Desperately Needs: More Patients

By Fox 32 | May 30, 2016
It is likely Illinois legislators will adjourn their spring session later this week having failed for the second straight year to enact a balanced budget.

Governor Rauner and Democratic leaders, though, did agree to extend Illinois’ troubled medical marijuana program, and they’re also adding two new medical conditions to a list of those that can be treated with cannabis.

The deal gives the struggling medical marijuana industry in Illinois something it desperately needs: more patients.

“We know this program can work,” said Paul Lee of Dispensary 33.

Since Lee’s Dispensary 33 opened last December, it’s faced the same problem plaguing every purveyor of medical marijuana in Illinois. Barely 6,200 patients have completed the fingerprinting and background checking needed before they may legally buy cannabis. Hence the excitement that Gov. Rauner is now willing to let the program add thousands of potential new patients: those with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and those whose doctors say they may live only six months or less.

“We definitely think it’s a very good idea to expand the program. And we feel that a lot of different people need more access,” Lee said.

Written into Senate Bill 10, the deal extends the temporary Medical Cannabis program’s expiration date until July 1, 2020, instead of the end of next year. - Full Article

Phoenix VA Blocks Local Doctor From Giving Lecture on Marijuana Study

By KTAR News 92.3FM | May 26, 2016
A Phoenix doctor is conducting a study this summer focusing on how marijuana affects veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder.

Dr. Sue Sisley wants to give a lecture on her cannabis study to medical staff at the Phoenix Veterans Affairs Medical Center. She said the hospital is blocking her from making a presentation, even though her study has been approved by the Food and Drug Administration.

“The notion that the Phoenix VA hospital refuses to allow that information to be shared with their medical staff is really shameful,” Sisley said.

She added if the VA medical staff gets the information, they could recommend vets that might be good fits for the study.

“The highest density of veterans who meet those criteria are at the Phoenix VA hospital,” Sisley said.

She said the VA has a duty to support science that might uncover new treatments for vets with PTSD.

“If they refuse to do that, I think that is negligent and it’s an abomination,” Sisley said.

Even though medical marijuana is legal in Arizona, it is still a federal crime to possess pot. Dr. Samuel Aguayo, associate chief of staff for research at the Phoenix VA medical center, said they are not permitted to promote or recruit veterans for marijuana research.

“VA medical staff are not authorized to make a decision on whether marijuana and marijuana research is appropriate for veterans,” Aguayo said. - Full Article

Seniors Are Filling Their Prescriptions — at a Pot Shop

By CBS This Morning | May 19, 2016
The 55-and-older crowd is now the fastest-growing demographic of pot users in the country. Between 2013 and 2014, the number increased from 2.8 million to 4.3 million.

In California, where medical marijuana is legal, seniors are learning how to fill their prescriptions — at a pot shop. They want to know the highs and the lows of marijuana use for the aches and pains of growing old, reports CBS News correspondent Barry Petersen.

Eva Aguillara, 80, uses it to help with mobility.

“Every medication has a risk. I’ve made my choice,” she said.

Seniors account for only 14 percent of the nation’s population, but they use more than 30 percent of all prescription drugs including some highly-addictive painkillers. So pot is fast becoming a pill alternative. Marijuana use is up 53 percent with the 55-and-over crowd.

Harborside in Oakland is one of California’s largest medical dispensaries. Owner Steve DeAngelo wants more seniors to make the switch.

“There’s [an] ironic, almost tragic phenomenon, which is that seniors, who are one of the groups who can most benefit from use of cannabis, are the single group which remains most opposed to reforming cannabis laws,” DeAngelo said.

That opposition started when seniors were just juniors, kids growing up with movies like “Reefer Madness” and government anti-drug campaigns.

It’s still illegal under federal law, but now almost half of Americans live in a state where medical or recreational pot is legal.

Leland Rucker lives in Colorado, where two years ago, pot went on sale for recreational use. Rucker has been using it since the ’70s.

“It’s been a really positive thing in my life. As a writer, it’s the best way- being stoned is a good way to work,” Rucker said.

Research is now showing marijuana can be helpful. - Full Article

NFL Players Hope to Start ‘Revolution’ in Favor of Medical Marijuana

By Sports | News May 18, 2016
Ravens tackle Eugene Monroe never thought about marijuana as medicine. He simply went about the routine of the seemingly invincible professional football player: If he was in pain, he took prescribed painkillers.

But as Monroe became more and more concerned about the potential negatives — such as addiction and accidental overdose — he began to research marijuana as an alternative. Now he’s convinced, he’s outspoken, he’s involved and he’s on a mission: He wants a marijuana-friendly NFL.

“We’re no longer in an era where the government decided that marijuana is illegal with no scientific basis,” Monroe told Sporting News. “Now we have the ability to look at it and determine what it’s comprised of and how those things have an effect on our bodies, and we know now that marijuana has a very positive effect on our bodies, especially in the case of the issues that are brought up through playing football.”

Monroe is among several current and former players who hope to change minds about medical marijuana, even as there’s little evidence that real change is attainable anytime soon. Though Monroe and others see cannabis as a healthier option than the opiates prescribed by NFL doctors, critics — including the NFL — remain resistant as questions linger about marijuana’s viability as a treatment option.

But as players, the league and the public continue to learn of the toll an NFL career can take on the body, the debate is likely to only get louder. - Full Article

Medical Marijuana, For Babies and Their Desperate Parents

By CNN | May 16, 2016
Haifa, Israel (CNN)Moments of joy are all too brief for Lavie Parush. They have been since the 2-year-old was born. “Gray” was the word his father used to describe his son, born unconscious. That night, Lavie had his first seizure.

“Immediately, they took him to the emergency room,” said his father, Asaf Parush. “They doped him up and he was basically passed out the first week of his birth.”
For six months, Parush and his wife, Noa, held on to the belief that Lavie’s condition would improve. But the seizures worsened. He suffered dozens a day. Doctors diagnosed him with epilepsy and cerebral palsy. Lavie was severely brain damaged.

Doctors put the baby on one drug after another to try to stop the seizures. Each drug required another visit to the hospital. And each one led to another disappointment as the seizures continued unabated. Some drugs had severe side effects, Parush said. Steroids, for example, weakened Lavie’s immune system and caused him to become incredibly bloated.
Just before Lavie’s first birthday, Parush heard about the use of medical marijuana — commonly called medical cannabis in Israel — to treat epilepsy. - Full Article

Seniors and Marijuana

By CBS | May 1, 2016
Can it really be true that so many older people nowadays will “Just Say Yes”? Yes to using marijuana, that is? Our Cover Story is reported by Barry Petersen:

Sue Taylor works hard to stay fit, and stay healthy. This 68-year-old is a regular at the gym, eats kale to keep her cholesterol down, and at home, “homemade” is her motto.

But there’s one thing in her healthy lifestyle that may come as a surprise: she includes MARIJUANA in her quest to stay youthful.

She showed Petersen her Gummi Cares: “It has the consistency of a gummi, and I use it for sleep and pain when I need to.”

Taylor was a high school principal, preaching the dangers of drugs. But after her son got into the pot business, and as she began to learn more about marijuana, she changed her mind. Now she is a convert — make that an ADVOCATE — for aging Americans using marijuana.

She speaks at community meetings, explaining why pot may be good for them.

And she’s got statistics on her side. Polling confirms that more and more Americans age 55 and up are using more and more marijuana.

One reason is geography: almost half of Americans live in a place where marijuana is legal for recreational or medical purposes.

Sue (who’s known as “the Weed Lady”) lives in California, one of the states where medical marijuana requires only a doctor’s prescription.

So what are the kinds of things marijuana helps if you’re a senior? “Number one is arthritis,” Taylor said. “There are tinctures and rubs that you could actually put on your legs, on your knees, across your back, wherever you’re having any arthritic pain. Most seniors use the cannabis for pain and to sleep.” - Full Article

DEA Approves PTSD Marijuana Study

By Military Times April 21, 2016
The Drug Enforcement Agency has given its blessing to a study on the effect of medical marijuana on post-traumatic stress disorder, the first randomized, controlled research in the U.S. for PTSD that will use the actual plant instead of oils or synthesized cannabis.

According to the research’s nonprofit sponsor, Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies, or MAPS, the DEA’s approval gives researchers the go-ahead to buy the marijuana for the study from the National Institute of Drug Abuse.

Once the marijuana has been secured, the group will begin recruiting and enrolling participants, perhaps as early as June, MAPS spokesman Brad Burge said.

“The contract with the state of Colorado was signed on April 20 — an unofficial national holiday in some circles — meaning the funds are en route to MAPS. We are now preparing to place the order for the marijuana for the study,” Burge said in an email to Military Times. - Full Article

Bud for Buddy: These People Are Giving Marijuana to Their Pets

By NBC News | April 20, 2016
If you believe medical marijuana can help humans deal with pain, chemotherapy or anxiety, why not try it on pets?

Gi Gi Griffin is willing to try. The widowed real estate broker from the upscale Pacific Palisades area of Los Angeles looks like the last person you’d see walking into a pot dispensary in Hollywood. But she’s not here for herself. She’s here to buy cannabis for her 6-year-old Sheltie, Joy.

“I just knew I wanted to try whatever would help with my dog,” she said.

She’s part of the latest growth market for pot: Pets.

Joy was diagnosed with bladder cancer in January, and veterinary cancer specialists presented Griffin with a range of treatment options, from anti-inflammatory drugs to chemotherapy and radiation (“I was told it would be close to $7,000”).

Instead, she took the advice of a neighbor who had recovered from cancer surgery with the help of medical marijuana.

“She suggested that I try something like that for Joy.”

Griffin used her friend’s connections to get into a dispensary, and she is currently spending about $120 a month on various so-called cannabidiols, or CBDs, which she mixes into Joy’s food. “Look at her,” Griffin said, stroking the healthy-looking dog sitting beside her. “She eats well, she as a lot of energy, and I think she’s doing well.” - Full Article

Gov. Wolf Signs Pennsylvania Medical Marijuana Bill Into Law

By ABC 6 News | April April 17, 2016
Gov. Tom Wolf has signed a bill legalizing medical marijuana in Pennsylvania into law. The bill will go into effect in the next month.

Wolf sat surrounded by a crowd of supporters Sunday, including law makers from both sides of the isle, who in a bi-partisan effort lobbied to make medical marijuana legal.

“We stopped being liberals and started being problem solvers, and we stopped being conservatives and started being compromisers,” said Sen. Daylin Leach (D-Pa.). “And we stopped being politicians and started being human beings.”

Patients with serious medical conditions, ranging from Autism to chronic pain, will be able to access medical marijuana with a physician’s prescription, and access it at an approved dispensary.

The legislation gives the Department of Health power to authorize up to 150 dispensaries across the state.

“All we are asking here is to have the ability to have that doctor make a decision in conjunction with his or her patient that will make that patient’s life better,” said Wolf, adding today was a, “Great Day for Pennsylvanians.”

Dana Ulrich, who has fought for access to the drug for her 8-year-old daughter, said she knew this day would come after working tirelessly with lawmakers for years.

“They are going to save the lives of millions of people from this day on,” said Ulrich.

It’s expected to take 18-24 months for the program to be fully implemented.

In the meantime, patients in Pennsylvania can cross state lines to access the drug at dispensaries in other states. - Full Article

More and More Doctors Want to Make Marijuana Legal

By The Washington Post | April 15, 2016
A group of more than 50 physicians, including a former surgeon general and faculty members at some of the nation’s leading medical schools, has formed the first national organization of doctors to call on states and the federal government to legalize and regulate the use of marijuana in the interest of public health.

The group — which is announcing its formation Monday, under the name Doctors for Cannabis Regulation (DFCR) — is endorsing the legalization of marijuana for adult recreational use, a break from the position of the American Medical Association, the largest organization of doctors in the country. DFCR argues that the prohibition and criminalization of marijuana use does more harm to the public than good. Citing hundreds of thousands of annual marijuana arrests, racial and economic disparities in marijuana enforcement, and the role of prohibition in keeping marijuana prices high and lucrative to violent drug dealers, the physicians say that creating a legal and regulated marijuana market is the best way to ensure public safety, combat the illicit drug trade and roll back the negative consequences of strict enforcement policies on disadvantaged communities.

The emergence of the group comes at a crucial moment in the national debate over marijuana legalization. More than 60 percent of the public now says that it supports marijuana legalization. Support for allowing medical use of marijuana with doctors’ supervision is closer to 90 percent. Over 35 million Americans use marijuana recreationally each year, according to the latest federal statistics. Research organizations, medical groups and even many national lawmakers have called on federal authorities to revisit policies toward marijuana that have remained essentially unchanged for nearly 50 years. - Full Article

Senators Move to Give Veterans Access to Medical Marijuana

By Military Times | April 14, 2016
The Senate Appropriations Committee on Thursday passed an amendment that would let Veterans Affairs doctors discuss and recommend marijuana as a potential medical treatment in states where it is legal.

An addition to the fiscal 2017 Military Construction, Veterans Affairs and Related Agencies appropriations bill, the bipartisan amendment sponsored by Sen. Steve Daines, R-Montana, and Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Oregon, would let VA doctors discuss marijuana as a potential medical treatment, similar to the allowances given civilian physicians in medical marijuana states.

The move marks the second time senators have tried to improve access to medical marijuana for veterans who are treated at VA medical facilities and want to use marijuana for medical purposes.

The provision was approved by the full Senate last November in the fiscal 2016 VA appropriations bill but was stripped from the final law.

Under the amendment, VA would be prohibited from using funds to “interfere with the ability of veterans to participate in medicinal marijuana programs approved by states or deny services to such veterans.”

In January, 21 lawmakers wrote VA Secretary Bob McDonald urging him to allow doctors to discuss and recommend marijuana. The group, including 19 Democrats and two Republicans, wanted VA to abandon a policy that prohibits physicians from discussing the drug, which is still illegal under federal law. - Full Article

Kyle Turley’s Leading 30 Former Players in Study of Medical Marijuana

By NBC Sports | April 14, 2016
Rounding up 30 NFL players to smoke some weed probably wouldn’t be that difficult an endeavor, and you’d likely get Snoop Dogg to show up.

But this time, it’s in the interest of science.

According to Abby Haglage of the Daily Beast, a group led by former Saints, Rams and Chiefs tackle Kyle Turley is providing 30 former players to test medical marijuana as a treatment for chronic pain and depression.

Turley started the group, the Gridiron Cannabis Coalition, to raise awareness for the medical use of marijuana. Turley fears he has lingering brain issues, and admitted calling the league’s 24-hour support line after having suicidal thoughts.

“American Football is plagued with multiple ailments and diseases currently void of non-addictive treatments and cures,” says Turley. “The GCC is determined to resolve this impasse to allow layers and the public option of an organic treatment for injury and illness through Cannabis.”

The GCC has paired with a company called Constance Therapeutics, which provides extracts and oils from the whole plant. Those extracts will be given to the former players, who will self-report results. - Full Article

Pennsylvania to be 24th Medical Marijuana State

By Fox 29 News| April 13, 2016
Pennsylvania is poised to become the 24th state to legalize a comprehensive and public medical marijuana program after a vote Wednesday in the state House of Representatives. The bill is headed to the desk of Gov. Tom Wolf, who supports it. Here are major elements of the 80-page bill:

PATIENTS

Patients must receive a certification from a physician registered with the Department of Health and have a valid identification card issued by the department that includes their name, address and date of birth. A patient must be diagnosed with one of the following 17 conditions: cancer; HIV; AIDS; ALS; Parkinson’s disease; multiple sclerosis; damage to the nervous tissue of the spinal cord with objective neurological indication of intractable spasticity; epilepsy: inflammatory bowel disease; neuropathies; Huntington’s disease; Crohn’s disease; post-traumatic stress disorder; intractable seizures; glaucoma; sickle cell anemia; autism; neuropathic pain; or severe chronic or intractable pain that is untreatable.

USE

Medical marijuana may only be dispensed as a pill, oil, tincture or liquid; in a topical form, such as a gel, cream or ointment; or in a form medically appropriate for vaporization or nebulization. Patients wouldn’t be able to legally obtain marijuana in a form they could smoke.

GROWING AND SELLING

The state would license up to 25 growers and processors, and as many as 50 dispensaries, which could each operate three locations. Dispensaries and growers could not be located within 1,000 feet of a school or day care center, although the Department of Health would be able to waive that requirement on a case-by-case basis. Growers, processors and dispensaries would have to meet local zoning laws. Patients would not be allowed to legally grow their own marijuana.

BUYING

A parent or guardian may lawfully obtain medical marijuana from another state or country to be administered to a minor. - Full Article

This 85-Year-Old Chemist Has Made Deciphering Marijuana’s Medical Secrets His Life’s Work

He is hopeful cannabis research has finally reached a possible inflection point.

By The Wall Street Journal | April 11, 2016
Raphael Mechoulam, an Israeli chemist, is best known for his work in the field of cannabis, including helping to isolate and synthesize its active component, called THC. But he is increasingly impatient to see his findings translate into clinical trials.

At the age of 85, he is hopeful the field to which he has devoted his life’s work has reached a possible inflection point. In March, the National Institutes of Health held a neuroscience research summit focused on marijuana and cannabinoids.

Monday, he’s in Boston attending a personalized cannabinoid medicine conference, where he’ll meet with other scientists in the burgeoning field and pick up a lifetime achievement award. Even after so many years of research, he says, “There are so many things to look into.”

Here are edited excerpts from the conversation with Dr. Mechoulam.

WSJ: You are credited with isolating the psychoactive component of cannabis, called THC, as well as identifying the endogenous cannabinoid system. What do endocannabinoids do?

Dr. Mechoulam: The compound in cannabis, the THC, actually mimics something going on in our body, a natural thing. This is not something unusual. We have seen that many, many times with a lot of other drugs…We thought if this compound mimics something happening in the body…then let’s find (it)…We started looking for these compounds and after quite a lot of work…we found two compounds. We called one of these compounds anandamide and the other 2-AG.

WSJ: You believe anandamide might play a role in human health. Where do things stand with testing that idea?

Dr. Mechoulam: Anandamide has never been given to humans. In order to give a compound to a human, one has to go through a number of steps and these cost money and nobody has done it. So strangely enough, we are in an unusual position when, for example, insulin was discovered in the early 20s, almost 100 years ago, it was looked into and became a drug within six months. It was administered to human beings shortly after it was discovered. It’s being used today. Anandamide, which was discovered 25 years ago, has never been given to humans. - Full Article

UCSD Event to Examine Medical Marijuana

Half-day symposium will present the latest cannabis research to the public

By San Diego Union-Tribune | April 11, 2016
People wanting to learn more about the latest scientific findings on medical marijuana can attend a free symposium on the topic Wednesday at UC San Diego.

The event, scheduled for 8:30 a.m. to 12:15 p.m., is slated to be held in the university’s Medical Education and Telemedicine Building in La Jolla, on the school’s main campus. It’s meant to give an overview of research discoveries about cannabis and explain what’s still unknown.

Topics will range from what scientists know about how marijuana affects a child’s developing brain to what benefits and risks it brings to adult patients.

Hosted by the UC San Diego Clinical and Translational Research Institute, the symposium is scheduled to start with a presentation on the developmental effects of cannabis in animal-based lab studies. Scientists also intend to talk about the risks of exposure to marijuana through breastfeeding and the possibility of users suffering addiction and withdrawal symptoms.

Experts also plan to discuss how the nationwide ABCD Study, an ongoing research project examining cognitive development in 10,000 healthy children, may bring new insights on medical marijuana. Finally, presenters intend to go over knowledge about the use of medical marijuana for treatment of nerve pain and the drug’s effects on spasticity in multiple sclerosis.

The event is directed by Christina Chambers, director of the institute’s Center for Life Course Research, and Dr. Dilip Jeste, the university’s associate dean for healthy aging and senior care. - Full Article

Syracuse AIDS Patient Shocked by Medical Marijuana Cost

By Syracuse | April 10, 2016
Brian Wieder, an AIDS patient, was stunned when he discovered medical marijuana would cost him about $400 a month in cash.

Wieder, 65, moved to Syracuse in 2014 from California with his husband, Javier. In California, Wieder was enrolled in the state’s medical marijuana program and used to spend about $75 a month.

He recently purchased medical marijuana from two new dispensaries in the Syracuse area. Now he wonders if he will be able to afford to continue using it.

“People will freak out when they go to the dispensary,” Wieder said. “They will have to bring hundreds of dollars with them.”

Cash only at medical marijuana dispensaries

Medical marijuana is not covered by health insurance because it’s not approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and is still classified as an illegal drug by the federal government.

Dispensaries, which accept cash only, negotiate prices with the state.

Wieder was diagnosed with AIDS in 2004. Before he got sick, he operated his own health care recruiting company which recruited doctors and nurses in China, Thailand and South America. Prior to that he worked as director of human resources at St. Luke’s Hospital in San Francisco and for Sheraton International in Hong Kong. - Full Article

Q&A: New California Marijuana Czar on Pot Use: ‘It Appears There is a Medical Need’

By The Los Angeles Times | April 8, 2016
ri Ajax has two years to set up California’s first system to license, regulate and tax medical marijuana. Gov. Jerry Brown recently appointed the Republican to become the first chief of the Bureau of Medical Marijuana Regulation.

Ajax, 51, was previously chief deputy director at the California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control, where she worked in various positions since 1995. In her new role, she faces a moving target: California voters are likely to vote on an initiative in November that would legalize recreational use of marijuana.

The measure includes a provision that would transform Ajax’s office into a Bureau of Marijuana Control that would also be responsible for regulating non-medical cannabis, significantly expanding Ajax’s responsibilities. Ajax’s office has been loaned $10 million by the state to set up a 25-person bureau that can begin issuing licenses on Jan. 1, 2018.

Ajax sat down Thursday for an interview at her Sacramento office.

What about your background has prepared you to oversee the regulation of medical marijuana?

Twenty-one years at the Alcoholic Beverage Control [Department], starting out early on as an agent and then working my way through the ranks. So I dealt with licensing structures and alcohol licenses and enforcement of those licenses in my various positions. And alcohol is a highly regulated product, so I think it is beneficial in setting up this structure for medical cannabis. I think it’s going to be helpful. I also had a lot of stakeholder involvement with the public and prevention groups and the industry and law enforcement.

Did you vote in favor of Proposition 215, the measure legalizing medical marijuana, and why?

I don’t remember, to be quite honest with you. That was a long time ago. - Full Article

Constance Therapeutics and Gridiron Cannabis Coalition Partner to Advance Research Into the Benefits Whole Plant Cannabis Extracts Offer Athletes With Sports-Related Injuries

By Business Wire | April 7, 2016
Constance Therapeutics, a whole plant cannabis extract producer, and Gridiron Cannabis Coalition (GCC), an organization dedicated to the advancement of medical cannabis, today announced a partnership to advance research into the benefits that whole plant cannabis extracts can offer athletes suffering from chronic pain, brain trauma and other sports-related injuries. Constance Therapeutics and GCC will conduct research that surpasses lesser CBD-only approaches and takes into account that tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) is often needed for optimal therapeutic benefit, as illustrated by “The Entourage Effect.” This partnership was formed to drive a new generation of care for athletes – Care 2.0 – in which whole plant cannabis extracts are utilized as part of an integrative treatment option to traditional pharmaceutical medications, which have had adverse effects on many National Football League (NFL) players.

“My mission is to save lives and change minds,” said Boo Williams, a former National Football League tight end who played for five years with the New Orleans Saints and Kansas City Chiefs. “I have learned that cannabis is a science and a plant that helps people. My experience with cannabis has taught me that it is a far better option than the pills that get shoved at players. If I can save one life or improve one life with this study that GCC and Constance Therapeutics are doing, I will have accomplished my mission. The approach being taken by Constance Therapeutics is a different one than what most people associate with cannabis. This company uses science to create extracts that are useful for many conditions. The science behind the extracts and the promise they hold for conditions like pain management have intrigued me on many levels, and I am looking forward to seeing the outcomes from the research involving me and other former NFL players.”

Unlike hemp oils and extracts that only contain cannabidiol (CBD), Constance Therapeutics products are based on scientific research, specifically The Entourage Effect. The company only produces whole plant cannabis extracts that contain all of the naturally occurring compounds within cannabis, including THC and CBD, as well as other cannabinoids, terpenes and flavonoids. The Entourage Effect shows that whole plant cannabis extracts from the female cannabis plant (not hemp) are more effective than isolated compounds, such as CBD (S. Ben-Shabat, with Raphael Mechoulam, 1998). Further research suggests that THC and CBD interact synergistically and that the cannabis extracts have other constituents yet to be identified that can significantly modulate the ability of THC and CBD (Ryan, Drysdale, Pertwee and Platt, 2006). Finally, the synergistic relationship between these compounds has been found to be a potential treatment for pain, inflammation, depression, anxiety, addiction, epilepsy, cancer, fungal and bacterial infections (Russo, 2011)

“I was inspired to work with GCC because so many athletes have been failed by traditional medicine, just as I have,” said Constance Finley, founder and chief executive officer of Constance Therapeutics. “After cycling through several prescription drugs with the hope of finding relief from my rare autoimmune disease, I reluctantly tried medical cannabis. This ended up being the decision that would save my life, and it led me to develop my own cannabis extracts and form Constance Therapeutics. It is now my mission to help others seeking alternatives to what are often highly addictive pharmaceuticals.” - Full Article

Medical Cannabis Company to Launch Opioid-Replacement Protocol in Minnesota

By Duluth Tribune | April 6, 2016
Seeking an alternative to opioid drugs, Vireo Health has released a draft protocol outlining the replacement of oxycodone, morphine and others with medical cannabis for pain treatment.

The protocol, called FREDOM — Flexible Reduction and Expedited Discontinuation of Opioid Medications — is being developed as a potential alternative for doctors treating patients with chronic pain.

“As an emergency medicine physician, I saw firsthand that opioids are overused, frequently abused and too often the result of fatal overdoses,” said Dr. Kyle Kingsley, Vireo CEO. “We view this protocol and the data that will follow as a first step in combating this public health crisis.”

More than 14,000 people in the U.S. died from prescription painkiller abuse in 2014, according to the CDC. Vireo plans to collect observational data from those using medical cannabis as an opioid alternative — particularly in Minnesota. Starting Aug. 1, it becomes legal in the state for patients to treat intractable pain — pain that can’t be cured or otherwise treated — with medical cannabis.

The company has opened its draft protocol to the public with the hopes of developing a better understanding of how cannabis can be used as an alternative for treating pain to other drugs — legal and illicit alike, according to a Vireo press release. - Full Article

A Patient’s Tale of Medical Marijuana Use (for Pain)

By Philly Inquirer | April 3, 2016
Dana Kelley recalls the exact moment when her neurologist suggested she try medical marijuana.

The retired Army Intelligence linguist said it caused her emotional upheaval and led her to question her willingness to continue living in constant pain.

Kelley’s neck and back were severely fractured in a car crash three years ago in her hometown of Pennsville, Salem County. She underwent five surgeries, including a fusion of a large part of her spinal cord, and was prescribed morphine and opiates.

Last September, Kelley, 53, met with Andrew Medvedovsky, a board-certified neurologist and pain specialist with RA Pain Services, at his Turnersville office, one of several in South Jersey. She didn’t know then that he was one of the 360 doctors statewide who is registered with the New Jersey Medical Marijuana Program and who approve patients to use cannabis.

Patients and their advocates say a shortage of enrolled doctors is one of the big reasons that so few patients - only about 7,000 statewide - have been able to obtain cannabis. When the program started, the number of doctors was so small that many patients were traveling to a North Jersey gynecologist who had enrolled and who was willing to examine non-gynecological patients to give them cannabis recommendations. - Full Article

Israel Is Cornering The Medical Marijuana Market

By Forward | March 30, 2016
TEL AVIV - Already a pioneer in high-tech and cutting-edge agriculture, Israel is starting to attract American companies looking to bring medical marijuana know-how to a booming market back home.

Since 2014, U.S. firms have invested about $50 million in licensing Israeli medical marijuana patents, cannabis agro-tech startups and firms developing delivery devices such as inhalers, said Saul Kaye, CEO of iCAN, a private cannabis research hub.
“I expect it to grow to $100 million in the coming year,” Kaye said at iCAN’s CannaTech conference in Tel Aviv this month, one of the largest gatherings of medical marijuana experts.

Scientists say strict rules, some set by the Drug Enforcement Administration, limit cannabis studies in the United States, where the legal marijuana market is valued at $5.7 billion and expected to grow to $23 billion by 2020.
“In the United States it’s easier to study heroin than marijuana,” said U.S. psychiatrist Suzanne Sisley, who has researched the effects of cannabis as a treatment for American military veterans suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.

“With marijuana you have to go through added layers of government red tape. It highlights the way marijuana research is being shackled by politics,” said Sisley, Director of Medicinal Plant Research at Heliospectra.
While scientific exploration may be restricted, 23 U.S. states now permit medical cannabis, and recreational use is allowed in four states and Washington D.C. This is despite the fact that at the federal level, marijuana is still classified as a dangerous narcotic with no medicinal value. - Full Article

More Veterans Using Marijuana for PTSD

By CBS News | March 22, 2016
A growing number of states are weighing whether to legalize marijuana to treat post-traumatic stress disorder. But for many veterans, the debate is already over.

They’re increasingly using cannabis even though it remains illegal in most states and is unapproved by the Department of Veterans Affairs because major studies have yet to show it is effective against PTSD.

While the research has been contradictory and limited, some former members of the military say pot helps them manage their anxiety, insomnia and nightmares. Prescription drugs such as Klonopin and Zoloft weren’t effective or left them feeling like zombies, some say.

“I went from being an anxious mess to numbing myself with the pills they were giving me,” said Mike Whiter, a 39-year-old former Marine who lives in Philadelphia, where marijuana is illegal. “Cannabis helped me get out of the hole I was in. I started to talk to people and get over my social anxiety.” - Full Article

Ravens’ Eugene Monroe Sends Out More Than 30 Tweets Urging NFL Players to Donate to Marijuana Research

By Complex | March 15, 2016
Yesterday, the NFL finally admitted that there is a link between playing football and the degenerative brain disease CTE. And while it likely struck a chord with many NFL players, no one responded to the news about it quite like Ravens offensive tackle Eugene Monroe.

Monroe took to Twitter this morning and revealed that he is donating $10,000 to an organization called Realm of Caring Foundation that conducts marijuana research in an effort to find ways in which marijuana could be used to help those NFL players who have suffered injuries and, more specifically, head injuries. He also urged other NFL players to do the same and sent out more than 30 tweets on the topic.

We’ve gone through Monroe’s timeline and picked out all the tweets he has sent so far today. He’s clearly very passionate about this cause in light of what the NFL admitted yesterday. You can read his tweets below: - Full Article

Another Reason to Hate Debbie Wasserman Schultz: Her War on Medical Marijuana

DNC Chair dopes Florida with opiates despite heroin epidemic, but doesn’t endorse drug to soothe suffering cancer victims

By The Observer | March 2, 2016
Medical marijuana has been a bipartisan issue in Florida for the past several years. In 2014, 58 percent of Floridians voted in favor it—just shy of the 60 percent needed to pass. The same year, Republican Governor Rick Scott signed into law the Compassionate Medical Cannabis Act, allowing very limited uses to alleviate pain for cancer patients, Lou Gehrig’s disease, or epilepsy. The bill was co-sponsored by Democrats and Republicans, and many cities and counties across the state have taken measures to decriminalize the drug.

In November 2016, medical marijuana will appear on Florida voters’ ballots once again, and a new medical marijuana bill is headed to Florida’s State Senate this week after being approved in the rules committee. Despite bipartisan support across the state, Florida may not join the 23 other states and Washington, D.C. that have already legalized medical marijuana, due in large part to the efforts of DNC Chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz.

In 2015, Politico reporter Marc Caputo wrote an article revealing Ms. Wasserman Schultz’s correspondence with an Orlando lawyer and medical marijuana proponent named John Morgan. Mr. Morgan alleged Ms. Wasserman Schultz offered to change her stance on medical marijuana if Mr. Morgan retracted negative statements he made to the media about Ms. Wasserman Schultz. “No,” Mr. Morgan told Politico, “she is a bully. I beat bullies up for a living.” - Full Article

Ex-Longhorn Ricky Williams - the King of Weed - On How Cannabis is an Alternative to Pills in Life of Pro Sports

By Sports Daily | February 29, 2016
One of the other former NFL players and panelists Sunday at the Southwest Cannabis Conference and Expo called Ricky Williams “the father of cannabis in sports,” a title only Bill Walton might challenge.

Whatever his credentials, Ricky — Texas’ last Heisman Trophy winner, the 2002 NFL rushing champ and inductee last year into the College Football Hall of Fame — feels it’s his obligation to wear the label.

Hail, then, the King of Weed.

“I think if we open our minds and are willing to put our necks out there and be ourselves,” he told 500 or so conventioneers, “we’ll prove to ourselves we’re OK, and we’ll prove how wonderful this plant is.”
“Enjoy it,” Jim McMahon added. “I certainly have.”
Before you get the idea this two-day event at the Fort Worth Convention Center was like a weekend at Willie’s, maybe we should clear up any misconception. For instance, scroll all the way down to the bottom of the conference’s website and check out the word “NOTICE,” followed by a disclaimer:

“There will be no cannabis on site or used at the expo.”

Sort of like getting a birthday invitation, and at the bottom it reads “NO CAKE.”

Now that we’ve exhausted the Cheech and Chong material, let’s consider the real reason Williams, former Super Bowl quarterback McMahon and Marvin Washington, a Kimball-ex and an 11-year NFL veteran, answered a few questions from a moderator Sunday. All three were on hand to advance claims about the medical benefits of cannabis. - Full Article

Marijuana Sales May Be Tricky for Hawaii

By Honolulu Star Advertiser | February 28, 2016
With less than five months to go before medical marijuana dispensaries can open in Hawaii, business owners could be facing unique obstacles in a state of islands separated by federal waters.

Dispensaries can open as soon as July 15, but industry experts say they could be confronted with challenges unlike those in other states, such as navigating rules that ban inter-island transport and limit the number of growers — all of which could cause marijuana shortages. A lack of labs to test the crop presents another challenge for state lawmakers.

“Hawaii is going to be a really interesting market in general, basically because of the geography,” said Chris Walsh, managing editor of Marijuana Business Daily. “First, it’s a chain of islands separated by bodies of water, and second, it’s remote.”

The Hawaii Department of Health is currently reviewing dispensary applications, and plans to award licenses in April. Actor and marijuana advocate Woody Harrelson and video game designer Henk Rogers are among 59 Hawaii residents who have applied for licenses.

Under a law passed in 2015, Hawaii will grant eight licenses for marijuana businesses, each of which can have two production centers and two dispensaries. Three licenses will be awarded for Oahu, two for Hawaii Island, two for Maui and one for Kauai.

However, the law banned inter-island transport. Marijuana advocates say that will separate the industry into distinct economies on each island, unlike other states. It could also lead to marijuana shortages, and go as far as preventing some dispensaries from even sellingmarijuana until laboratories are approved. - Full Article

Marine Requests Medical Marijuana Approval

By Fox 5 San Diego | February 26, 2016
U.S. Marine Sergeant Sean Major is making a national push for approval to be the first active duty service member to use medical marijuana.

Major has received a physicians recommendation for medical cannabis use in October. He currently is prescribed more than 20 different pill variations.

The 25-year old wounded warrior has suffered four traumatic brain injuries in his seven years of service.

“I sustained my first traumatic brain injury in 2010 on the Pacific Rim… I’ve had one coming back from my deployment,” said Major.

He’s hoping the corps will hear him out and allow him to potentially be the first active member allowed to use the drug. He claims it would help with his sleeping habits and anxiety from PTSD.

“If I was missing an arm or a leg you could see that I was injured but with traumatic brain injury its almost like your computer is damaged,” said Major. - Full Article

Medical Marijuana Legalized in Australia

By CNN | February 25, 2016
The Australian Parliament passed a measure Wednesday legalizing medical marijuana.

The amendments to the Narcotic Drugs Act will allow cannabis to be legally grown for medical and scientific purposes for the first time in Australia.

“This is an historic day for Australia and the many advocates who have fought long and hard to challenge the stigma around medicinal cannabis products so genuine patients are no longer treated as criminals,” Minister for Health Sussan Ley said in a statement.

“This is the missing piece in a patient’s treatment journey and will now see seamless access to locally-produced medicinal cannabis products from farm to pharmacy.”

The decision came exactly a year after 25-year-old Daniel Haslam lost his life to terminal bowel cancer. Haslam used medical marijuana to ease his pain and nausea before he died last February.

His mother, Lucy, started a medical cannabis advocacy group called United in Compassion and petitioned for the government to make it legal. - Full Article

Medicinal Cannabis for Your Pet? Here’s What You Need to Know.

By Greenflower | February 16, 2016
We love our pets. We always want the best care for them and it is no fun when they’re sick.

As cannabis continues to work its way back into the country’s pharmacopeia, people are finding that this plant can have substantial therapeutic value for animals as well as humans.

That’s right. Medical cannabis for your pet.

Some people may call the cannabis movement a trend or a craze, but this herb’s therapeutic properties are science-based fact.

According to Oakland-based veterinarian Dr. Gary Richter, cannabis can be used to treat a variety of medical conditions including:

• Arthritis and other causes of pain
• Seizures
• Cancer treatment
• Cancer pain
• Inflammatory Bowel Disease
• Allergies/ itching
• Anxiety
• Glaucoma
• Appetite support
• Quality of life / Hospice care

And yet, as with many types of medicine, we still have a lot to learn.

If you’re considering medical cannabis for your pet, here are some important points you want to keep in mind.

And of course, be sure to consult with a trusted veterinarian before giving medical cannabis to your pet.

Pets have endocannabinoid systems, too. - Full Article

Ex-Bear Jim McMahon: Medical Marijuana Got Me Off Narcotic Pain Pills

By Chicago Tribune | January 29, 2016
Former Super Bowl champion and Chicago Bears quarterback Jim McMahon says an unfairly demonized drug helped him recover from the pain of his football career: medical marijuana.

McMahon was in Chicago this week, where he attended Tuesday’s Bears reunion marking the 30th anniversary of their Super Bowl victory. He was also featured in an ESPN “30 for 30” screening of a documentary about the team, which includes a focus on his health struggles.

Now 56, McMahon has been plagued by debilitating health problems following his 15-year career and multiple concussions in the National Football League. He has been diagnosed with early onset dementia and has severe headaches, depression, memory loss, and vision and speech problems. He also said he suffered a broken neck.

As a result, he joined a pending class-action lawsuit accusing the NFL of negligence and misconduct in handling concussions.

Since going public with his health issues, McMahon said he has recently been feeling significantly better after chiropractic neck treatments to relieve the pressure.

But the key to getting off the prescription narcotic painkillers he took throughout his career, he said, was medical marijuana. - Full Article

First Medical Marijuana Dispensaries in New York Open

By The New York Times | January 7, 2016
New York joined the ranks of nearly half the states on Thursday in allowing the use of medical marijuana with the opening of eight dispensaries statewide, serving a variety of tinctures, concentrates, vapors and other forms of the drug.

How many patients actually received medicine from those dispensaries, however, was uncertain; several locations around the state had customers who entered, but it was not clear if any actually bought the drug, or were qualified to do so under the state’s strict guidelines. On Thursday, officials at the state’s Department of Health said that only 51 patients had been certified for the program thus far, though that process only began on Dec. 23 and requires the approval of a physician who has registered with the state.

Still, several facilities formally marked their openings on Thursday morning, including one on East 14th Street in Manhattan, a sleek space adorned with security cameras, and sandwiched between a health care provider and a falafel establishment. The site, run by a company called Columbia Care, which also operates facilities in Arizona and Washington, D.C., attracted several potential customers, including one man who showed reporters his purple and white New York State medical marijuana card.

“I wanted to find out the pricing, I wanted to find out the availability, I wanted to find out what the deal with it was,” said the man, 53, who declined to give his name for privacy reasons but said he suffered from neuropathy. “I spoke with the pharmacist, spoke with the people. They were as excited about seeing me as I was excited about seeing them.” - Full Article

Former NFL Players Call for Medical Marijuana to be Taken Off Banned List

By The Guardian | January 3, 2016
Football players take an alarming array of pain medication to get back on the field but some believe medical cannabis is a safer and more effective alternative

To understand football, Nate Jackson says, you need to remember one inherent truth about the game: a human body was not made to absorb that kind of punishment.

“There’s no safe way to get hit by a truck,” Jackson puts it.

Jackson, author of the football memoir Slow Getting Up, spent six seasons playing tight end for the Denver Broncos. Recounting a lifetime of football-related injuries is nearly impossible, because, as he put it: “You’re always kind of battling with something.”

To hurry players back from injury, a cocktail of pain pills and anti-inflammatory injections are typically dispensed. Hydrocodone, Vicodin, Percocet, Toradol, Celebrex, Vioxx (before it was recalled for increasing the long-term risk of heart attacks and strokes) and so on. The widespread use of highly potent prescription pain drugs, some argue, has allowed the NFL to become the multibillion-dollar industry that it is today, but at a price. - Full Article

DEA Eases Cannabis Study Requirements

By Forbes | December 24, 2015
Christmas came early for cannabis research scientists. The U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) decided to ease some of the regulatory requirements that had been imposed on those who were conducting FDA-approved clinical trials on cannabidiol (CBD).

“This is certainly a step in the right direction towards the development and proof of CBD as an empirically efficacious compound. These modifications will streamline the research process regarding CBD’s possible medicinal value and help to bolster existing scientific research and studies,” said Seth Yakatan, CEO of Kalytera. Kalytera is one of the leading research companies that is developing synthetic CBD (Cannabidiol) compounds for various ailments including Osteporosis, Prader-Willi Syndrome, and Obesity.

Since marijuana or cannabis is a schedule 1 controlled substance, researchers are subjected to very restrictive procedures in order to study the drug. Many states, patients, doctor’s groups and drug companies all desire more information regarding the effects of cannabis on various illnesses, but with difficult conditions placed on those trying to do the studies the results lag the demand. The changes are meant to streamline the research process and help the existing scientific studies. The DEA has sent letters to those scientists affected by the decision that is in effect immediately. - Full Article

Medical Marijuana Company Touts New Plant

By NBC11 KARE | December 16, 2015
One of Minnesota’s medical marijuana manufacturers says it’s cultivating an extra potent form of the plant that could help reduce costs for patients.

Medication sold through the state’s program has a combination of two major chemical compounds. Minnesota Medical Solutions announced Wednesday they’ve bred a plant with much higher amounts of cannibidiol (CBD), which helps treat seizures and other ailments.

Vireo Health Chief Executive Kyle Kingsley, MD, says that will reduce costs by requiring fewer plants to extract the same amount of medicine. He says the new strain has been verified by an independent lab. Vireo Health is parent company of Minnesota Medical Solutions of Otsego.

Kingsley said CBD is not intoxicating, unlike THC, the other main chemical in medical marijuana. It is the ratio of the two chemicals that has Kingsley tooting the company’s horn.

“Standard medicinal plant is going to have a 1-1 ratio,” explained Kingsley. “Charlotte’s Web has a 20-1 ratio. Our new strain has a 34-1 ratio. So, this is a pretty dramatic leap forward in CBD content.”

High costs for medicine have held down enrollment in Minnesota’s program. Kingsley says he expects to cut costs by as much as 10 percent in the next year.

“This allows us to produce high CBD medications in a much more efficient manner,” said Kingsley, “Within the next year, we anticipate that this novel development, this new strain, is going to drive down costs for all patients at Minnesota Medical Solutions dispensaries.” - Full Article

The Outsourcing of American Marijuana Research

By Newsweek | December 15, 2015
In 1964, Raphael Mechoulam rode a public bus from Tel Aviv back to his lab at Israel’s Weizmann Institute of Science in Rehovot while holding 11 pounds of Lebanese hashish in a plastic bag. He received his giant stash—the first of many over the next 50 years—from a police officer who had confiscated it from smugglers. “Advantages of living in a small country,” the chemist, now 85, says with a mischievous smirk.

That hashish turned out to be a gift to science and modern medicine. A few months later, Mechoulam used it to, for the first time in history, isolate, elucidate the structure of and fully synthesize tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the psychoactive ingredient in cannabis. Scientists knew that marijuana got you high but had struggled for decades to figure out exactly how. Mechoulam and his colleagues were also the first to decode the exact structure of cannabidiol (CBD), the primary nonpsychoactive component of marijuana, and the first to test the medicinal properties of THC. Today, thousands of children around the world receive THC drops to cope with cancer and epilepsy.

“While morphine had been isolated from opium 150 years previously, and cocaine had been isolated 100 years previously, the chemistry of cannabis was unknown,” says Mechoulam. To determine the psychoactive ingredient in marijuana, Mechoulam became his own test subject. To begin, he and his team identified several compounds in the plant, including THC and CBD, and injected them into monkeys. THC was the only compound that elicited a reaction from the monkeys, most often drowsiness. “A few months later, we tested it on humans, on ourselves,” says Mechoulam. “We had a group of 10 friends, including my wife and I. Half of us took THC, sprinkled on a piece of cake, and half took the piece of cake without anything else.” Everyone who ate the THC-laced desserts had some type of reaction. Bingo. - Full Article

‘Grandma’s Magic Remedy:’ Mexico’s Medical Marijuana Secret

By Yahoo News | December 14, 2015
When her legs ache, this Mexican grandmother rubs them with marijuana-infused alcohol. She is well aware the homemade remedy defies the country’s cannabis ban, but her family has used the concoction to treat ailments since she was a child, handing it down the generations.

“I really have a lot of faith in it,” said the slender 53-year-old, a housewife and amateur dancer who spoke to AFP about her cannabis use on condition of strict anonymity.

“When I’m very tired, I spread it on my legs, feet and body. It’s really good. I can go without salt but not without marijuana with alcohol. My grandmother used it,” she said, holding a plastic bottle filled with the leaves and liquid.

In turn, she used the family remedy to care for her three children, and three grandchildren. For the kids, a piece of cotton soaked in the liquid is placed in the bellybutton to fight fevers. When they’re congested, the alcohol is rubbed on the chest and back.

A debate on whether to legalize marijuana for recreational or medicinal uses in Mexico is in its infant stages, but Mexicans have used cannabis for therapeutic purposes for centuries.

The national discussion was launched in November when the Supreme Court issued a landmark ruling authorizing four people to grow and smoke marijuana for personal use, opening the door for others to seek similar permits. - Full Article

Veterans March to White House, Lobby for Medical Marijuana as Treatment for War Trauma

By Fox 5 | November 25, 2015
As the nation honored those who have served on Veterans Day, a group of veterans marched to the White House Wednesday to lobby for medical marijuana as a treatment for war trauma, including Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).

The march started at D.C.’s Veterans Affairs Headquarters, and headed down Pennsylvania Avenue to the White House. As part of their protest, the group of veterans threw thousands of empty prescription pill bottles onto the sidewalk. According to organizers, they were collected from across the country in memory of those “whose sacrifices did not end on the battlefield.”

Organizers said their goal was to raise awareness of dangerous prescription medications, which they say are often prescribed to treat war trauma. They say they’re being unjustly deprived of cannabis therapy. They say with a current veteran suicide rate of 22 per day, it’s time for the Veterans Administration to recognize that there are alternative forms of treatment available. - Full Article

Pennsylvania State Health Department to Fund Research into Medical Marijuana to Treat Childhood Seizures

By The Itelligencer | November 24, 2015
The Pennsylvania Department of Health on Monday opened the application process for research into the use of cannabidiol, a compound found in marijuana plants, to treat children with intractable seizures.

Qualified research facilities will be able to compete for $2 million in funding from the Commonwealth Universal Research Enhancement Program to support the study of cannabidiol, also called CBD, to treat children with epilepsy and other neurological diseases who experience medication-resistant seizures, the health department said in an announcement.

CBD is a natural cannabinoid within the cannabis sativa plant. When it is isolated from the rest of the plant, it has no psychotropic effects in humans. However, initial studies indicate it may have pharmaceutical benefits, including reducing the frequency of seizures.

A manufacturer of pharmaceutical grade CBD will provide a course of treatment for 50 pediatric patients at no cost to the research awardees, but the drug must be provided to patients at no cost. The awardees will work with the manufacturer to ensure compliance with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s approved expanded access drug status.
The health department’s request for applications document is posted online at www.emarketplace.state.pa.us. The deadline to apply is Dec. 8. The funding will be available in summer 2016.

Middletown resident Tom Nadzam said his 8-year-old granddaughter, Lorelei Ulrich, could benefit from medical marijuana because she suffers hundreds of debilitating seizures each day due to epilepsy, according to doctors. But he said he takes news of a possible study with a “grain of salt” because Lorelei was asked to participate in two similar studies that never came to fruition. - Full Article