Illegal Drugs: Part 5
Dorsett Bennett Salem-News.com

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Salem-News.com's legal expert Dorsett Bennett, a retired attorney, continues his look at the benefits of medical cannabis.


Courtesy: NORML

(SALEM, Ore.) - Research involving the active compounds of marijuana has been conducted on a number of diseases and medical conditions. They include but are not limited to; Alzheimer's disease, chronic pain, multiple sclerosis, osteoporosis, and rheumatoid arthritis, Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (Lou Gehrig's disease), diabetes mellitus, dystonia, fibromyalgia, gastrointestinal disorders, gliomas (brain tumors), hepatitis C, human immunodeficiency virus, hypertension, in continents, methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus, pruritus, sleep apnea, Tourette's syndrome.

I will briefly cover the first five of those diseases and/or conditions listed. Because of space limitations, I have only listed part of the available materials/studies.

Alzheimer's Disease

Over 4.5 million Americans are estimated to be afflicted with this disease. The Journal of Neuroscience reported in its February 2005 issue that researchers at Complutense University and the Cajal Institute in Spain found administration of a cannabinoid prevented cognitive impairment and decreased neurotoxicity in rats injected with a protein believed to induce Alzheimer's. Additional cannabinoids were also found to reduce the inflammation associated with Alzheimer's disease in human brain tissue in culture. The researchers determined that cannabinoids succeed in preventing the neurodegenerative process occurring in Alzheimer's disease.

Researchers at the Scripps Research Institute in 2006 reported that THC inhibits the enzyme responsible for the aggregation of plaque that is the primary marker for Alzheimer's disease in a matter "considerably superior" to approved Alzheimer's drugs such as donepezil and tacrine. They concluded THC may provide an improved therapeutic option for Alzheimer's disease by simultaneously treating both the symptoms and progression of the disease. Writing in the Journal of neuroscience in 2007, researchers at the Ohio State University Department of psychology and neuroscience reported that rats treated with the artificial cannabinoid, Win 55, 212-2, experienced a 50% improvement in memory and a 40% to 50% reduction in inflammation compared to the non-treated control rats.

Chronic Pain

Survey data indicates that the use of cannabis is common in chronic pain populations, and several recent clinical trials indicate that inhaled marijuana can significantly alleviate neuropathic pain. A pair of clinical trials recently demonstrated that smoking cannabis reduces neuropathic pain in patients with HIV by more than 30 percent compared to placebo.

In 2008 investigators at the University of California at Davis assessed the efficacy of inhaled cannabis on pain intensity among 38 patients with central or peripheral neuropathic pain in a randomized, placebo-controlled, crossover trial. They reported: Cannabis reduced pain intensity and unpleasantness equally. Thus, as with opioids, cannabis does not rely on a relaxing or tranquilizing effect, but rather reduces both the core component of nociception (nerve pain) and the emotional aspect of the pain experience to an equal degree."

Preclinical data indicates that cannabinoids, when administered in concert with one another, are more effective at ameliorating neuropathic pain than the use of a single agent. Investigators at the University of Milan reported in 2008 that the administration of single cannabinoids such as THC or CBD produce limited relief compared to the administration of plant extracts containing multiple cannabinoids, terpenes (oils), and flavonoids (pigments).

Multiple Sclerosis

Clinical and anecdotal reports of cannabinoids' ability to reduce MS-related symptoms such as pain, spasticity, depression, fatigue, and incontinence are plentiful in the scientific literature. Patients with multiple sclerosis typically report engaging in cannabis therapy, with one survey indicating that nearly one in two MS patients use the drug therapeutically.

Recent clinical and preclinical studies also suggest that cannabinoids may inhibit MS progression. Researchers the University College of London's Institute of Neurology reported that administration of the synthetic cannabinoid agonist provided "significant neuroprotection" in an animal model of multiple sclerosis. "The results of this study are important because they suggest that in addition to symptom management ... cannabis may also slow the neurodegenerative processes that ultimately lead to chronic disability in multiple sclerosis and probably other disease," researchers concluded.

As a result of the scientific literature, the British government is now sponsoring a three-year clinical trial to assess the long-term effects of cannabinoids on both MS-associated symptom management as well as disease progression. Health Canada also recently approved the prescription use of cannabis abstracts for the treatment of MS-associated neuropathic pain. Similar approval of cannabis extracts is pending in Britain and Europe.

Osteoporosis

Initial references regarding the potential use of cannabinoids to protect against the onset of osteoporosis are available in the scientific literature beginning in the early 1990s. To date, however, no clinical work has taken place investigating the use of cannabis for this indication.

Writing in the January 2006 issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, investigators at the Bone Laboratory of the Hebrew University in Jerusalem reported that the administration of the synthetic cannabinoid agonist slowed the development of osteoporosis, stimulated bone building, and reduced bone loss in animals. Follow up research published in the Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences in 2007 reported that the activation of the CB2 cannabinoid receptor reduced experimentally-induced bone loss and stimulated bone formation. Investigators have previously reported that mice deficient in the experienced age-accelerated bone loss reminiscent of human osteoporosis.

Rheumatoid Arthritis

In January 2006, investigators at the British Royal National Hospital for Rheumatic Disease reported successful treatment of arthritis with cannabinoids in the first-ever controlled trial assessing the efficacy of natural cannabis extracts on RA. Investigators reported that administration of cannabis extracts over a five week period produced statistically significant improvements in pain on movement, pain at rest, quality of sleep, inflammation, and intensity of pain compared to placebo. No serious adverse effects were observed.

Preclinical data also indicates that cannabinoids can moderate the progression of RA. Writing in the August 2000 issue of the Journal of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, investigators at London's Kennedy Institute for Rheumatology reported that (CBD) administration suppressed progression of arthritis in vitro and in animals.

Summarizing the available literature in the September 2005 issue of the Journal of Neuroimmunology, researchers at Tokyo's National Institute for Neuroscience concluded, Cannabinoid therapy of RA could provide symptomatic relief of joint pain and swelling as well as suppressing joint destruction and disease progression.

Acknowledgment

I wish to acknowledge extensive use of materials prepared by NORML, the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, along with materials from ProCon.org. and the National Library of Medicine.

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