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Bulletin .

A newsletter about cannabis and cannabinoids as medicine

2012
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    IACM-Bulletin of December 30, 2012

    🏷️ Science/Human — Cannabis users have a decreased risk for the development of diabetes according to a large study

    According to a representative study with 10,896 citizens of the United States cannabis users had a significant lower risk for the development of diabetes mellitus compared to non-users. The study was headed by Dr Tripathi B. Rajavashisth, Professor at David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California in Los Angeles. Authors used data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey conducted by the National Center for Health Statistics of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The study included four groups: non-cannabis users (61.0%), past cannabis users (30.7%), light (one to four times/month) (5.0%) and heavy (more than five times/month) current cannabis users (3.3%).

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    IACM-Bulletin of December 16, 2012

    🏷️ Science/Human — Cannabis may be helpful in some patients with cluster headache according to a survey

    A survey with 139 patients suffering from cluster headache suggests that a considerable number of people with this condition may profit from a treatment with cannabis. The questionnaire was distributed and evaluated by scientists of the Emergency Headache Centre of the Hôpital Lariboisière in Paris, France. 63 of the 139 participants (45.3 per cent) had a history of cannabis use.

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    IACM-Bulletin of December 2, 2012

    🏷️ Science/Human — Cannabis effective in epilepsy according to two case reports

    Two patients with epilepsy were able to control their seizures by the use of cannabis, scientists from the Epilepsy Center at the Department of Neurology of the University of California in San Francisco, USA, reported in the journal Epilepsy & Behavior. Both stopped cannabis use upon admission to the epilepsy monitoring unit of the Department and developed a dramatic increase in seizure frequency documented by video-EEG telemetry. With this technique patients can be continuously monitored and recorded with a video camera and an EEG (electroencephalograph).

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    IACM-Bulletin of November 18, 2012

    🌐 USA — Massachusetts becomes the 18th state to legalize the medical use of cannabis

    On 6 November Massachusetts voters have overwhelmingly approved a bill to legalize the medical use of cannabis. The law allows the use of cannabis by people with cancer, chronic pain, AIDS, multiple sclerosis and other conditions determined by a doctor. It will create non-profit treatment centres to grow and provide cannabis to patients or their caregivers. Now 18 states and the District of Columbia allow the medical use of cannabis: Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Montana, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Washington.

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    IACM-Bulletin of November 4, 2012

    🌐 USA — Voters in several states decide on cannabis-related issues on 6 November

    On Election Day two states - Arkansas and Massachusetts - will be deciding whether to allow cannabis use for medical reasons, as 17 states have done previously. Arkansas would be the first southern state to join the group.

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    IACM-Bulletin of October 21, 2012

    🌐 USA — Petition for allowing cannabis as medicine before federal court

    Supporters of legal use of cannabis for medicinal purposes asked a federal appeals court on 16 October to do what Congress and U.S. presidents have resisted for decades and help ease the level of regulation surrounding cannabis. The association Americans for Safe Access said there was no reason for the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) to control cannabis as tightly as it does heroin.

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    IACM-Bulletin of October 7, 2012

    🏷️ Science/Human — Cannabis affects people differently and this can be seen in images of brain activity

    In a clinical study with 21 healthy men, who were given 10 mg oral THC, some participants reacted with transient minor psychotic symptoms and the others not. And this difference was associated with differences in brain activity shown by brain imaging. This is the result of a placebo controlled study at the Institute of Psychiatry of King's College London, UK, under the guidance of Professor Philip McGuire, head of the Department of Psychosis Studies of the institute. The sample was subdivided on the basis of a scale used to measure the intensity of so-called “positive” symptoms in schizophrenics following administration of THC. There were 11 participants with transient psychotic symptoms (changes in perception, feelings of grandiosity, etc.) and 10 participants without such symptoms.

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    IACM-Bulletin of September 23, 2012

    🏷️ Science 🌐 UK — Antiepileptic efficacy of cannabidivarin will be tested in clinical studies

    Scientists at the University of Reading have demonstrated for the first time that a previously unstudied cannabinoid in the cannabis plant could lead to effective treatments for people with epilepsy. The team at the Department of Pharmacy and School of Psychology has discovered that cannabidivarin (CBDV) has the potential to prevent more seizures, with few side effects. Cannabidivarin is a cannabinoid of this CBD group.

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    IACM-Bulletin of September 9, 2012

    🏷️ Science/Human — Nabilone effective in the treatment of neuropathic pain in diabetes

    Nabilone reduces pain in patients with diabetes suffering from peripheral neuropathic pain, which does not respond to other medication. This is the result of a double-blind, placebo-controlled study conducted at the Department of Clinical Neurosciences, University of Calgary, Canada. 37 patients were administered the synthetic cannabinoid nabilone for 4 weeks in addition to their current medication, of whom 26 achieved additional pain relief of more than 30 per cent and 11 were non-responders. Responders were included in a further 5-week double-blind treatment period, where 13 received flexible-dose nabilone (1-4 mg/day) and 13 a placebo.

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    IACM-Bulletin of August 26, 2012

    🏷️ Science/Human — Long-term use of cannabis extract is associated with sustained effect on spasticity in MS patients

    According to an open study in the UK with 146 patients with multiple sclerosis and spasticity the cannabis extract Sativex was still effective after one year of treatment. The study was headed by Dr Michael Serpell, professor of anaesthesia at the Pain Clinic in Gartnavel of the University of Glasgow. During a 6-week controlled trial, Sativex had a clinically relevant effect on spasticity. Mean treatment exposure of an open follow-up study was 334 days and patients administered on average 7.3 sprays (about 20 mg THC and 18 mg CBD) per day.

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    IACM-Bulletin of August 12, 2012

    🏷️ Science/Human — Oral treatment with an endocannabinoid effective against chronic pain in a clinical study

    The oral intake of an endocannabinoid caused pain reduction in 610 patients, who were unable to effectively control chronic pain with standard therapies. This is the result of an observational study at the University of Rome "Tor Vergata," Italy. 600 mg of the endocannabinoid PEA (palmitoylethanolamide) was administered twice daily for 3 weeks followed by single daily dosing for 4 weeks, in addition to standard analgesic therapies or as single therapy.

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    IACM-Bulletin of July 29, 2012

    🏷️ Science/Human — Cannabis improves symptoms of multiple sclerosis in large clinical study

    In a clinical study with 279 patients suffering from multiple sclerosis a cannabis extract improved muscle stiffness, pain, spasms and sleep. The Multiple Sclerosis and Extract of Cannabis (MUSEC) study was headed by Dr. John Zajicek, a professor of the University of Plymouth, and conducted at 22 hospitals in the UK. One capsule of the extract contained 2.5 mg THC and 1.25 mg CBD (cannabidiol). A 2 week dose titration phase, in which participants could increase daily doses from 5 mg to a maximum of 25 mg of THC, was followed by a 10 week maintenance phase.

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    IACM-Bulletin of July 15, 2012

    🏷️ Science 🌐 Israel — Clinical studies with a Cannabis strain with high CBD content may soon begin

    The company Tikun Olam has developed a cannabis strain that contains 15.8 per cent CBD (cannabidiol) and less than one per cent THC. The strain is called Avidekel and does not cause psychological effects. Raphael Mechoulam, a professor of medicinal chemistry at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem, said that it showed promise as a potent anti-inflammatory drug. Ruth Gallily, a professor emerita of immunology at Hebrew University, who works for the company and has been studying CBD for more than 12 years, has been testing the effects of Tikun Olam's CBD-enhanced cannabis on mice. She expects clinical trials to begin in a few months.

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    IACM-Bulletin of July 1, 2012

    🏷️ Science/Human — Cannabis effective in a patient with stiff person syndrome

    The cannabis extract Sativex was effective in the treatment of a patient suffering from stiff person syndrome (or stiff-man syndrome). Physicians at the Neurology Department of the University Hospital of Ribera in Alzira, Spain, presented the case of a 40-year-old man with progressive muscle stiffness and intermittent spasms for 6-years. The cannabis spray was introduced after a series of unsatisfactory traditional medical treatments. Considerable improvement was verified after 14 months.

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    IACM-Bulletin of June 17, 2012

    🏷️ Science/Human — Synthetic cannabinoid improves survival after severe brain injury in clinical study

    In a clinical study with 97 comatose patients a synthetic cannabinoid (named KN38-7271) improved survival in the acute early phase after a head injury. The trial was conducted in 14 European neurosurgical centres. KN38-7271 binds both to the CB1 and the CB2 receptor, similar to THC and some other cannabinoids. Participants received 1 or 0.5 mg of the cannabinoid or a placebo within 4.5 hours of the injury. Efficacy was measured by survival and by neurological improvement or deterioration 7 and 14 days and 1, 3, and 6 months after the injury. Intracranial pressure and cerebral perfusion pressure were analysed from start of treatment to end of day 7.

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    IACM-Bulletin of June 3, 2012

    🏷️ Science/Human — THC did not slow the progress of multiple sclerosis in large clinical study

    THC capsules failed to slow the progression of multiple sclerosis (MS) in a large British study led by Dr. John Zajicek, a professor of neurology at the Peninsula College of Medicine and Dentistry of the University of Plymouth, UK. Despite promising signs in an earlier study with a duration of 12 months, researchers found patients who took capsules containing THC fared no better than those given a placebo after a treatment of 3 years.

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    IACM-Bulletin of May 20, 2012

    🏷️ Science/Human — Smoked cannabis reduces symptoms of multiple sclerosis

    A clinical study of 30 adult patients with multiple sclerosis at the University of California in San Diego has shown that smoked cannabis may be an effective treatment for spasticity. The placebo-controlled trial also resulted in reduced perception of pain. Principal investigator Dr Jody Corey-Bloom and colleagues randomly assigned participants to either the intervention group (which smoked cannabis once daily for three days) or the control group (which smoked identical placebo cigarettes). After an 11-day interval, the participants crossed over to the other group.

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    IACM-Bulletin of May 6, 2012

    🌐 USA — Connecticut will become the 17th state to legalize the medical use of cannabis

    A bill legalizing cannabis for medicinal purposes has passed the Connecticut Senate on 5 May. The state joins 16 other states and Washington D.C. in enacting such legislation. State senators voted 21-to-13 in favour of the measure. The state House of Representatives already passed the measure. Governor Dannel P. Malloy, who has said he supports the measure, is expected to sign the legislation into law.

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    IACM-Bulletin of April 22, 2012

    🏷️ Science/Human — The cannabis extract Sativex improves cancer pain in large clinical study

    Patients with advanced cancer, who already receive opioids for pain treatment, may profit from additional cannabis. This is the result of a clinical study with 360 patients, who either received the cannabis extract Sativex or a placebo for 5 weeks in addition to their current opioid medication. Researchers intended to evaluate the analgesic efficacy and safety of the extract. Patients received either 1-4 sprays, 6-10 sprays or 11-16 sprays of Sativex per day. Each spray contains 2.7 mg THC and 2.5 mg CBD. At baseline patients in the Sativex group rated their pain intensity as 5.8 points and in the placebo group as 5.7 points on a scale from "0 = no pain" to "10 = pain as bad as you can imagine."

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    IACM-Bulletin of April 8, 2012

    🌐 World — Increasing numbers of patients use cannabis for medicinal purposes

    An increasing number of patients in the world are using cannabis for therapeutic reasons, with available data from countries, which have installed programs for their citizens. Good data are available for Israel, Canada, the Netherlands and many states of the US with medicinal cannabis laws and registries. In several more countries only a few patients are allowed to use cannabis for medicinal purposes, including Germany, Norway, Finland and Italy. In many other countries such as Spain and some states of the US without a registry such as California the number of medicinal users is estimated to be high, but no detailed data are available.

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    IACM-Bulletin of March 25, 2012

    🏷️ Science/Cells — Cannabinoids inhibit spread of the HI-virus in late-stage AIDS

    Researchers of Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York, USA, have discovered that cannabinoids that bind to CB2- receptors activate other receptors on certain human immune cells that can directly inhibit the HI-virus in late-stage AIDS. "We knew that cannabinoid drugs like marijuana can have a therapeutic effect in AIDS patients, but did not understand how they influence the spread of the virus itself," said study author Dr. Cristina Costantino. "We wanted to explore cannabinoid receptors as a target for pharmaceutical interventions that treat the symptoms of late-stage AIDS and prevent further progression of the disease without the undesirable side effects of medical marijuana."

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    IACM-Bulletin of March 11, 2012

    🏷️ Science — Use of cannabis was not associated with disease severity after a first psychotic episode in a prospective two-year controlled trial

    Researchers of Yulius, a Mental Health Institute in Dordrecht, The Netherlands, conducted a randomized, open-label, controlled trial to investigate the association of cannabis use with measures for mental health and social role functioning in 124 patients suffering from non-affective first-episode psychosis. Patients were followed for 2 years. Other patient characteristics that were expected to be independently associated with outcome, among them alcohol and other drug use, were assessed at baseline.

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    IACM-Bulletin of February 26, 2012

    🏷️ Science — The levels of endocannabinoids are increased by high intake of an omega-6 fatty acid and cause obesity in animals

    Linoleic acid, which is found in relatively high amounts in soybean, sunflower and corn oil, increased levels of endocannabinoids in mice and caused obesity according to research by scientists from the University of Bergen, Norway, and the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, USA. Researchers investigated the effects of a 14-week diet high in linoleic acid, an omega-6 fatty acid. They hypothesized that this fatty acid, a precursor of arachidonic acid, from which endocannabinoids are formed, would induce endocannabinoid hyperactivity. Intake of linoleic acid was increased from 1 per cent to 8 per cent of calories of the diet, intended to reflect the increase of omega-6 fatty acids in the food of US Americans during the 20th century. This was mainly due to a dramatic increase in the consumption of soybean oil used for the production of margarines, vegetable oil, fast food, baked goods and other processed foods.

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    IACM-Bulletin of February 12, 2012

    🏷️ Science 🌐 Israel — Cannabis effective in cancer symptoms according to survey

    At the Israeli Oncologists Union conference in Eilat in January researchers said more doctors should recommend cannabis to cancer patients. They noted that most cancer patients currently being treated with medical cannabis are advised of the option only in the advanced stages of the illness. More than two-thirds of cancer patients who were prescribed medical cannabis to combat pain are satisfied with the treatment, according to an Israeli study. The study conducted recently at Sheba Medical Center, Tel Hashomer, in conjunction with the Israel Cancer Association involved 264 cancer patients who were treated with cannabis for a full year.

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    IACM-Bulletin of January 29, 2012

    🌐 USA — Arizona will completely implement the voter-approved medical cannabis law of 2010

    The governor of Arizona, Jan Brewer, on 13 January directed state officials to implement sections of an approved 2010 voter initiative that allows for the licensed production and distribution of cannabis for therapeutic purposes. The law removes criminal penalties for the use and possession of up to 2.5 ounces (about 70 grams) of cannabis by patients who are registered with the state Department of Health. The law also mandates the state to adopt rules for the establishment of up to 125 cannabis dispensaries, which would be legally authorized to produce and dispense cannabis to patients with authorisation.

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    IACM-Bulletin of January 15, 2012

    🏷️ Science — Cannabis smoking does not impair lung function according to large long-term study

    Cannabis does not impair lung function - at least not in the doses inhaled by the majority of users, according to the largest and longest study ever to consider the issue, which was published in the Journal of the American Medical Association. US researchers conducted a longitudinal study collecting repeated measurements of pulmonary function and smoking over 20 years from 1985 to 2006 in 5115 men and women. "Occasional and low cumulative marijuana use was not associated with adverse effects on pulmonary function," authors summarized the results. Lifetime exposure to cannabis cigarettes was expressed in joint-years, with 1 joint-year of exposure equivalent to smoking 365 joints (cannabis cigarettes) or filled pipe bowls.

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    IACM-Bulletin of January 1, 2012

    🌐 France — Two acquittals by criminal courts due to medical use of cannabis

    According to the television channel France 2 on the evening of 28 December two different French criminal courts have acquitted two patients suffering from chronic diseases from the charge of illegal cannabis possession in the past days. One of them is an AIDS patient who was arrested due to the possession of 400 grams cannabis and declared before the court that it was for personal use and for medicinal purposes. The second acquittal happened in the case of a multiple sclerosis sufferer.

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