Pubdate: Sat, 13 May 2000 Source: Arkansas Democrat-Gazette (AR) Copyright: 2000 Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, Inc. Contact: 121 East Capitol Avenue, Little Rock, Arkansas, 72201 Website: http://www.ardemgaz.com/ Forum: http://www.ardemgaz.com/info/voices.html Author: Delbert 0. Lewis HELP AVAILABLE FOR MISERY I had polio in 1951, three years before the Salk vaccine. There was great debate in 1954 about whether America should use the imperfect vaccine or do more research for a perfect medicine. The decision was made to begin vaccinations immediately and save hundreds of thousands of children from the misery of paralyzing polio. The Salk vaccine had actually been developed several years earlier, but needed to be perfected in Rhesus monkeys, which were in short supply. More research was needed. The newer Sabin oral vaccine was not as safe as expected because a few children got polio every year from the vaccine itself. More research was needed. Now scientists have discovered that 100 million Americans received polio vaccine contaminated with Simian Virus 40, or SV 40, which is suspected of causing human cancer today. More research is still needed. There will always be need for research but don't hurt people now just because something is imperfect or "potentially harmful" later. I now experience Post-Polio Syndrome, for which there is no known medication or cure, but which can be helped by medicinal cannabis. More research is again needed. Dr. Richard Nugent, a state Health Department official, believes "more research is needed" before medicinal cannabis should be legalized. Denying a desperately needed medicine to seriously ill and dying people violates the physician's Hippocratic Oath to "do no harm" by permitting preventable harm to continue. I would gladly accept Nugent's "potentially dangerous side-effects" in 20 years to get a little relief from the misery today. Delbert 0. Lewis Little Rock - --- MAP posted-by: Greg