Pubdate: 18 Oct 2000
Source: Manchester Evening News (UK)
Website: www.manchesteronline.co.uk
Address: Manchester Evening News, 164 Deansgate, Manchester, M60 2RD, UK
Contact:  0161 839 0968
Author: Why Are We Waiting?

WHY ARE WE WAITING?

It is estimated that there are some 80,000 people in the country with 
Multiple Sclerosis. It is also estimated that around 10,000 of these people 
are using cannabis, illegally, to alleviate their symptoms.

A very small fraction of these people have been permitted to take part in 
clinical trials to prove what they already know, that cannabis is effective 
in relieving their suffering. These are the lucky ones. The rest face a 
stark choice. Either suffer in silence or live in fear of arrest and 
prosecution..

Courageous people like Colin Davies, who presented a bouquet of cannabis to 
the Queen, shouldn't have to resort to such stunts to make the point that 
it is cruel to make these suffering people wait any longer for a legal 
supply of this drug.

Two years ago a House of Lords Select Committee completed a comprehensive 
study of medical cannabis and concluded there was enough evidence to 
warrant allowing doctors to prescribe cannabis for certain conditions, yet 
we are still years away from making this a reality. I guess time flies when 
you're not in pain.

Why Are We Waiting?

Why Are We Waiting
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