Pubdate: Fri, 16 Feb 2007
Source: Yale Daily News (CT Edu)
Copyright: 2007 Yale Daily News
Contact:  http://www.yaledailynews.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1614
Author: Megan Evans, Contributing Reporter
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/mmj.htm (Marijuana - Medicinal)

MONOPOLY ON SALE OF RESEARCH MARIJUANA MAY END

Proponents argue that it eases pain and could be useful in the 
treatment of multiple sclerosis, cancer and HIV. Others say it's an 
illegal drug with the potential for long-term damage. But a new Yale 
study on marijuana may bring scientists one step closer to the answer 
- -- especially after a breakthrough court ruling that could lift a key 
limitation on future research.

Yale medical school researchers weighed in on the debate over 
marijuana's effect on the respiratory system, synthesizing the 
findings of 34 articles in a variety of medical journals from 1966 to 
2005. Their conclusions, which question the link between long-term 
marijuana use and pulmonary disease, were published in the Archive of 
Internal Medicine on Monday, the same day that a judge recommended 
lifting a 65-year ban on privately growing marijuana for research purposes.

The researchers found that long-term exposure to marijuana smoke may 
result in many of the same health problems caused by tobacco smoke, 
such as coughing, wheezing and phlegm. But, they said, there is no 
direct evidence linking long-term marijuana use to other 
smoking-related diseases like emphysema and lung cancer. But eleven 
of the 12 relevant studies examined found that marijuana smoke leads 
to the relaxation and opening of air passages in the short term, an 
argument medical marijuana proponents look to for support.

Still, the authors said, more research is necessary before doctors 
will know enough about cannabis to prescribe it like other drugs.

"There are no other drugs on the market that a doctor would say, 
'smoke two of these and tell me how you feel in the morning,'" said 
Brent Moore, a psychiatry professor at the School of Medicine who 
worked on the study.

Medicinal marijuana has become a hot-button issue in recent years, 
and scientists looking to contribute research on the subject have 
begun to speak out about the availability, or lack thereof, of 
cannabis for use in research. For the past 65 years, the National 
Institute on Drug Abuse has monopolized the sale of cannabis to all 
interested researchers. This may soon change, however, as a Drug 
Enforcement Agency judge recommended that a University of 
Massachusetts professor be granted a license to grow research-grade 
marijuana for use in privately funded studies.

Most of Yale's research on marijuana has been limited to using 
subjects currently dealing with substance abuse problems, Moore said. 
The subjects, usually found through newspaper advertisements and 
other traditional recruitment avenues, must have previously used drugs.

But research into the long-term effects of marijuana has a number of 
limitations, the report said. For one, it is difficult to account for 
the possibility that participants have a history of tobacco smoking. 
In addition, there are no standardized measures for dose and duration 
of use, said Jeanette Tetrault, Yale researcher and first author of 
the study. All of the study's authors agreed that more research into 
the effects of marijuana must be conducted before any conclusions can be drawn.

"Maybe smoking marijuana is the problem," Tetrault said. "Maybe the 
compound itself has positive effects. Maybe we need to focus on 
delivery. More research still needs to be done."

Many scientists said they saw the judge's ruling as a breakthrough in 
the process of marijuana research, increasing the availability of the 
drug for use in privately funded studies. The DEA has 20 days either 
to accept or reject the court's recommendation to allow the UMass 
professor to start growing cannabis.
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MAP posted-by: Richard Lake