cannabis

A draft guidance issued by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), a U.K. advisory board, and a review by England’s National Health Service (NHS) call for more research into medical cannabis for multiple sclerosis and other conditions. NICE also recommended against prescribing Sativex as a treatment for…

If you’re using marijuana and have surgery scheduled, take heed. In Colorado, where medical marijuana was legalized in 2000 and recreational use in 2012, medical personnel are discovering that weed may complicate the surgical process. The concern, according to an article in Kaiser Health News, is that marijuana…

Medical cannabis products, jointly developed by GB Sciences Louisiana (GBSL) and the Louisiana State University Agricultural Center‘s (LSU AgCenter) Therapeutic Cannabis Program, are now available for purchase by qualified patients with illnesses that include multiple sclerosis (MS) at nine state-licensed pharmacies. The decision, announced by the Louisiana Department…

Valeritas Holdings‘ proprietary h-Patch device can be used to administer cannabidiol by an under-the-skin (subcutaneous) infusion, prolonging the time the medication remains in circulation in the body and maximizing its therapeutic effects, a preclinical study has found. Cannabidiol (CBD) is a cannabis-derived, purified liquid formulation that has…

Study Examines Gadolinium Deposits in MS Patients’ Brains, But Still Can’t Determine Relationship with Disease Severity Here’s some new information about gadodiamide, a contrast dye that is injected during some MRIs. The study confirms that gadolinium, the substance on which gadodiamide is based, builds up in the brain, but…

Last night in bed, my calf muscles started cramping. Again. Usually, it’s just my left leg, but last night it was both. The pain wouldn’t ease with my usual stretching routine so I reached for my little bottle of cannabidiol (CBD) oil. I’ve been experimenting with CBD oil on and…

EHP-101, a cannabidiol-based experimental therapy for multiple sclerosis, was able to recover myelin in damaged nerve fibers and lessen neuroinflammation in a mouse model of MS, data show. Emerald Health Therapeutics, the manufacturer of EHP-101, also announced plans to open Phase 2 clinical trials in patients by…

The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) has determined that the cannabidiol-based active ingredient of EHP-101, an investigational oral treatment for multiple sclerosis (MS) under development by Emerald Health Pharmaceuticals (EHP), should not be classified…

Last weekend a mother brought 4,000£ ($5,200 U.S.) of medicinal cannabis from Holland into the U.K. for her daughter with severe epilepsy. It was confiscated by customs. Last year medicinal cannabis was partially legalized in the U.K. when a similar incident happened. Doctors can now issue prescriptions.

In partnership with the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, the MS Society of Canada has announced $1.5 million to fund research over five years on the effects of cannabis on multiple sclerosis (MS) symptoms and disease progression. Studies have shown that for each 10-degree increase in latitude, patients newly diagnosed…

You know that the use of marijuana as a medicine and its derivative cannabidiol (CBD) is close to being widely accepted as a useful natural product when articles about its pain-relieving properties appear in Consumer Reports. Yes, I’m referring to the nonprofit magazine that provides unbiased ratings on products…

Axim Biotechnologies announced that it has succeeded in microencapsulating cannabinoids (chemical compounds in cannabis) into the company’s patented chewing gums, which are used to treat several disease symptoms, including pain and spasticity associated with multiple sclerosis (MS). Since the active cannabinoids are degradable in the body, the company needed…

A request for a potential cannabis-based treatment for multiple sclerosis to be given Fast Track designation, speeding its development as it readies to enter clinical testing, is now before the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), MMJ International Holdings announced. MMJ-001, as this lead candidate is known, aims to treat…

Medical Marijuana ‘Can Help Everyone,’ Says Director at Maryland Cannabis Facility Keeping in mind that the person quoted in this article, Mr. Castleman, is growing medical marijuana to make money, I wouldn’t expect him to say anything else. On the other hand, I firmly believe that some forms of…

Warning the reporter accompanying him not to take any pictures, veteran horticulturalist Michael Castleman punches an electronic code and unlocks the door to Room 209, nicknamed the “Mother Room.” Photography is indeed forbidden inside this living vault, which contains 20 phenotypes of cannabis plants thriving under the glare of 25…

OWC Pharmaceutical Research is planning new clinical studies to evaluate the activity and safety of its cannabinoid-enriched sublingual soluble tablet. The company announced that an Institutional Review Board (IRB) in Israel approved its request to conduct a safety and tolerability trial there. The company also is asking to amend the…

MS Patients Report Beneficial Effects of Cannabis with Few Side Effects, Survey Shows This survey agrees with what I’ve found in my limited experience with cannabis (in my case, CBD oil). A small amount can ease some of my spasticity and help me to get a better…

Many multiple sclerosis (MS) patients report that cannabis has beneficial effects on their symptoms with minimal side effects, according to a survey that also showed that varying effects on health may be due to differences in how users consume cannabis. Findings from the survey were reported in the…

As debate continues about the effects of medical marijuana on multiple sclerosis (MS) and other diseases, cannabis company GB Sciences and Louisiana State University (LSU) have agreed on a cannabinoid research and development project. This collaboration between a public and a private enterprise is a first in the therapeutic cannabis…

As I’m writing this, my right arm is tight and my right hand is cramped up. I was out working last night and night work always shatters me the next morning when I awaken with exacerbated MS symptoms. Luckily, I never learned to be a copy typist when I…

Stanford Researchers Open Medical Cannabis Company with Oral Therapy for MS Pain, Spasticity as Initial Goal Let’s be clear up front. There’s no indication that you’ll be able to buy a cannabis pill from this company anytime soon — or ever. The company’s website says that testing…

A new medical cannabis company called Katexco Pharmaceuticals aims to develop oral therapies that harness the brain’s endocannabinoid and nicotine receptors to treat inflammatory diseases such as multiple sclerosis. Co-founded by two Stanford University researchers — Jonathan Rothbard, PhD, and Lawrence Steinman, MD — Katexco will leverage their expertise…

Data from two European trials — a real-life study in Italy, and a long-term Czech trial looking at impact on cognition — supported the efficacy of a widely approved cannabinoid spray in treating moderate to severe spasticity (muscular stiffness or involuntary spasms) in multiple sclerosis (MS) patients who…

Thousands of scientists, doctors, pharmaceutical company executives and others — representing about 100 countries — will meet for three days to discuss and debate the latest developments in multiple sclerosis (MS) at the 34th Congress of the European Committee for Treatment and Research in Multiple Sclerosis, best known as…

Emerald Health Pharmaceuticals announced that it has begun enrolling healthy volunteers for a Phase 1 clinical trial evaluating the safety and tolerability of EHP-101, a potential cannabidiol treatment for multiple sclerosis (MS) and scleroderma. The randomized, double-blind, and placebo-controlled study (ACTRN12618001390279p) will  investigate the safety and pharmacokinetics (how…

Spasticity scales may be insufficient to reflect the actual benefits of Sativex (nabiximols) treatment on spasticity symptoms in people with multiple sclerosis (MS), according to a small case series study. The results support the need to conduct a more extensive and functional examination to clarify treatment responses and help…

Medical cannabis has created a dilemma for medical providers who care for people who might benefit from its use. I’ve been thinking more about this lately because my home state of Ohio will have legal medical marijuana dispensaries starting on Sept. 8. The law passed in 2016, and it…

MMJ International has filed two applications with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) requesting permission to begin clinical studies testing its pharmaceutical grade cannabis-based therapies in easing symptoms associated with multiple sclerosis and Huntington’s disease. “The filing of these applications with the FDA brings us one step…

Cannabidiol Increases Inflammatory Suppressor Cells, New MS Mouse Study Shows There’s quite a bit of anecdotal evidence that the use of marijuana can help reduce the symptoms of multiple sclerosis (MS). Here’s a report about a study that suggests a reason that could be happening. Non-psychoactive cannabidiol (CBD),…

Non-psychoactive cannabidiol (CBD), one of the active compounds in medical cannabis, significantly reduced clinical signs of multiple sclerosis (MS)-like disease in an experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis mouse model. Researchers found that CBD promoted the increase of inflammatory-suppressor cells called myeloid-derived suppressor cells. The findings were reported in the study “Cannabidiol Attenuates Experimental Autoimmune…