Medical Cannabis

Cannabidiol As A Novel Inhibitor Of Id-1 Gene Expression In Aggressive Breast Cancer Cells

CBD represents the first nontoxic exogenous agent that can significantly decrease Id-1 expression in metastatic breast cancer cells leading to the down-regulation of tumor aggressiveness. In 2007, at the California Pacific Medical Center Research Institute, a study was published by Sean McAllister in the journal Molecular Cancer Therapeutics titled: Cannabidiol as a novel inhibitor of Id-1 gene expression in aggressive breast cancer cells.  →

CBD Protects Against Myocardial Ischemic Reperfusion

From the American Journal of Physiology – Heart and Circulatory Physiology published in September 2007, research from Israel has shown that CBD causes reduced infarct size in an in vivo rat model of ischemia and reperfusion. Furthermore, it seems that this effect is not direct and may be mediated by a reduced inflammatory response. Thus CBD may be a promising novel treatment for myocardial ischemia.  →

Cannabis And HIV Infection

Mount Sinai School of Medicine researchers discovered that marijuana-like chemicals trigger receptors on human immune cells that can directly inhibit a type of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) found in late-stage AIDS, according to findings published online in March of 2012 in the journal PLoS ONE. Triggering CB1 causes the drug high associated with marijuana, making it undesirable for physicians to prescribe. The researchers wanted to explore therapies that would target CB2 only. The Mount Sinai team infected healthy immune cells with HIV, then treated them with a chemical that triggers CB2 called an agonist. They found that the drug reduced the infection of the remaining cells.  →

Smoked Cannabis for Spasticity in Multiple Sclerosis


Smoking marijuana can relieve muscle tightness, spasticity (contractions) and pain often experienced by those with multiple sclerosis, says research out of the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine. The findings, published in May of 2012 in the Canadian Medical Association Journal, included a controlled trial with 30 participants to understand whether inhaled cannabis would help complicated cases where existing pharmaceuticals are ineffective or trigger adverse side effects.  →

Cannabis For Chronic Neuropathic Pain


Chronic neuropathic pain? From the Canadian Medical Association comes a journal article published in 2010. They found that a single inhalation of 25 mg of 9.4% tetrahydrocannabinol herbal cannabis three times daily for five days reduced the intensity of pain, improved sleep and was well tolerated.  →

Medicinal Use of Marijuana


The New England Journal of Medicine dated February 28, 2013 covered opposing views about recommending cannabis. A case vignette is followed by specific options, neither of which can be considered either correct or incorrect. In short essays, experts in the field then argue for each of the options. Comments by readers are numerous and can be reviewed in the online version of this article. Also in the online version, readers can participate in forming community opinion by choosing one of the options and, if they like, providing their reasons.  →

Decreased Prevalence of Diabetes in Marijuana Users


The British Medical Journal hypothesised that the prevalence of DM would be reduced in marijuana users due to the presence of one or more cannabinoids because of their immunomodulatory and anti-inflammatory properties. In this article published in February, 2011, they found that marijuana use was independently associated with a lower prevalence of DM. Further studies are needed to show a direct effect of marijuana on DM.  →

The Endocannabinoid System in Normal and Pathological Brain Aging


This December 2012 review, published in Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B out of Germany, suggests that activating the brain’s cannabinoid system may trigger a sort of anti-oxidant cleanse, removing damaged cells and improving the efficiency of the mitochrondria, the energy source that powers cells, ultimately leading to a more robustly functioning brain.  →