To say there's been a dramatic shift in sentiment
toward marijuana over the past decade is an
understatement.
In just one decade, the American public went
from opposing the legalization of marijuana by a
margin of three to one to favoring its legalization
by nearly a three-to-two margin, according to
statistics from research firm Gallup.
What's fueled this sudden surge in marijuana
interest among the public? I'd opine it's been a
mixture of the need for states to collect tax
revenue to narrow budget deficits and the
visibility of the positive effects of medical
marijuana coming to light. Medical marijuana is
most often prescribed by physicians as a
treatment for cancer pain and as an appetite
stimulant. There are currently 23 states that have
legalized medical marijuana, and four (Oregon,
Washington, Colorado, and Alaska) that have
legalized the drug for recreational adult use.
You never knew this about marijuana
There's much more to the marijuana debate than
whether or not it should be legalized for
recreational use. Select drug developers around
the world are examining the properties of
cannabinoids from the cannabis plant, as well as
marijuana itself, to determine whether or not
they could have a medically beneficial effect
against certain diseases.
Whether you realize it or not, these five diseases
may be successfully fought with or cured by
marijuana.
1. Brain cancer
Brain cancer is a scary diagnosis because surgery
is often difficult, and the blood-brain barrier
makes most standard chemotherapy options
ineffective.
However, in May, London researchers released a
report in Molecular Cancer Therapeutics that
showed pretreating brain tumors with the
cannabinoids THC and CBD prior to radiation
therapy led to a dose-dependent increase in
tumor cell death due to heightened
radiosensitivity. During the trial, researchers
concluded that tumors that were pretreated
wound up being just one-tenth the size of tumors
in the control group.
Cannabinoid-based drug developer GW
Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: GWPH ) currently
has two compounds in clinical development
(GWP42002 and GWP42003) for glioma and is the
company to watch in this space.
2. Alzheimer's disease
Another serious brain disease is dementia, of
which a majority of cases wind up being
Alzheimer's disease. According to the Alzheimer's
Association, the number of Alzheimer's cases is
expected to rise by 176% to 13.8 million by 2050,
and this follows a 68% increase between 2000
and 2010.
The good news is, based on a
multi-author abstract published
in the Journal of Alzheimer's
Disease last year, cannabinoid
THC may be useful in slowing the
formation of beta amyloid, the
plaque that floats around in
Alzheimer's disease patients'
brains that reduces their
cognitive function. After
examining the effect of THC on
beta amyloid protein precursor cells, researchers
noted at the six-hour, 24-hour, and 48-hour marks
that THC lowered beta amyloid levels.
Although a handful of small studies have been
undertaken concerning marijuana's effect on
Alzheimer's, no larger drug developers currently
have any clinical trials under way in this
indication. But, I'd suggest it's certainly one worth
closely monitoring considering the limited success
of traditional pharmaceuticals in treating
Alzheimer's.
3. Epilepsy
Epilepsy is the fourth most common neurological
problem, trailing only Alzheimer's, stroke, and
migraine. Epilepsy affects about 150,000 people in
the U.S. annually, and over their lifetime, people
have about a 1-in-26 chance of developing
epilepsy.
Source: GW Pharmaceuticals.
We don't need to reference abstracts here,
though, as GW Pharmaceuticals has produced
scintillating early-stage results for Epidiolex in two
rare types of childhood epilepsy, Dravet
syndrome and Lennox-Gastaut syndrome. As my
colleague and biotech guru Brian Orelli recently
reported, 56% of Dravet syndrome patients
observed their seizure frequency drop in clinical
studies, while 52% of patients with drop seizures,
often associated with Lennox-Gastaut syndrome,
had their seizure frequency reduced.
4. Type 2 diabetes
Diabetes is what you might refer to as a silent
killer. Even though it doesn't swiftly kill patients, it
is a chronic, lifelong condition that can lead to a
number of co-morbidities that can eventually lead
to death. Within the U.S., per the Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention, there are 29.1
million people with diabetes -- 90% to 95% of
which are type 2 diabetics.
Yet, in May 2013 a three-authored study
published in The American Journal of Medicine
observed that marijuana could play a key role in
controlling people's blood sugar levels. The study,
which looked at 4,657 people, including both
active and former marijuana users, showed that
current marijuana users had a 16% reduction in
fasting insulin levels and an accompanying 17%
drop in HOMA-IR, which measures insulin
resistance and beta-cell function. Surprisingly,
marijuana users also had slimmer waistlines!
Not to sound like a broken record, but GW
Pharmaceuticals is also developing a drug known
as GW42004 for type 2 diabetes. In a phase 2a
study, it led to a statistically significant reduction
in fasting plasma glucose levels with a positive
trend of increased insulin sensitivity. Obviously, a
drug approval here could have broad treatment
implications. GWP42004 is currently in phase 2b
trials.
5. Schizophrenia
Lastly, schizophrenia has been diagnosed in
about 3.5 million people in the United States, or
slightly more than 1% of the population,
according to the Schizophrenia and Related
Disorders Alliance of America. The costs to treat
schizophrenia range from $32.5 billion to $65
billion annually.
In 2012, a study published in
Translational Psychiatry hinted
that cannabinoid CBD may prove
to be an attractive substitute for
current antipsychotic
treatments. In total, the study
examined 39 patients, dosing 20
with CBD and 19 with
amisulpride. While both led to
similar Brief Psychiatric Rating
Scale scores upon study
completion, it was noted that the CBD group had
fewer side effects than the amisulpride group.
Keep in mind that THC, not CBD, is the
hallucinogenic component of marijuana.
As should be no surprise by now, GW Pharma is
also developing GWP42003 as a potential
treatment for schizophrenia. Following positive
early-stage results, the drug has moved into
phase 2a with a results readout expected in the
second half of this year.
One thing to remember
While marijuana has shown very promising
benefits in research-driven and clinical studies, we
have to keep one thing in mind as investors:
Marijuana is still a schedule 1 drug according to
the federal government.
Being classified as a schedule 1, or illicit, drug
denotes that marijuana has no medical benefits
in the view of the government, which could make
it extremely difficult for drug developers to
advance new studies. The Food and Drug
Administration hasn't exactly taken a negative
stance on cannabinoid-based medications, but
my personal opinion is that it'll be extra critical of
approving studies considering the wide scope of
conflicting safety data we've witnessed in studies
over the past decade. For a company such as GW
Pharmaceuticals, it means the possibility of
having to jump through more safety hurdles, or
maybe even having its drug restricted to a certain
subset of patients.
As a consumer, I'm excited about the potential
benefits marijuana can offer sufferers of these
diseases. But as an investor, I'm still keeping a
substantial distance between myself and a still
immature and undefined marijuana industry.

The plant fine for face oo.

Oshey!!!
Smoking on that good weed

xreal:
The plant fine for face oo.

E fine for body too, according to how dem tell me.