Pubdate: Fri, 26 Sep 2014 Source: New Age, The (South Africa) Copyright: 2014 TNA Media (Pty.) Contact: http://thenewage.co.za/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/5339 Author: Mangosuthu Buthelezi Note: Prince Mangosuthu Buthelezi MP is president of the Inkatha Freedom Party Page: 21 TRUTH ABOUT THE DAGGA DEBATE The Medical Innovation Bill pursued through Parliament is not to legalise cannabis but rather to provide alternatives for cancer patients RECENTLY a debate has been revived on the Medical Innovation Bill introduced in Parliament by the late Dr Mario Oriani-Ambrosini, an IFP MP and a close friend of mine. Dr Oriani-Ambrosini fought a long and courageous battle with terminal lung cancer, during which he ploughed all his energies into researching cancer and how it might be stopped. He rejected the conventional cancer treatments of chemotherapy and radiotherapy, for they offered no cure and would only prolong his life for a few months, while robbing him entirely of quality of life. For anyone who has walked the road of cancer themselves or with a loved one, the debilitating effects of traditional cancer treatments are familiar. Nausea, hair loss, pain and overwhelming fatigue are externalities. What may be less visible are the fear, anxiety, anger and even guilt experienced by cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy because it is expensive, often ineffective and prevents them from being the wife, mother, father, friend or employee that they are accustomed to being. In the final stages of cancer, medical practitioners commonly prescribe morphine for the enormous pain which can rob the family of conversations they need to have and farewells that need to be said, because the patient is hardly conscious or able to express their thoughts. Surely, there must be a better way? Why is it that hundreds of years of medical science have come up with nothing better than chemotherapy and radiotherapy? OrianiAmbrosini believed they were working with the wrong paradigm. He also discovered that South Africa's legal framework prevents our medical practitioners from trying anything different or innovative. On his journey to seek an effective treatment, he undertook intensive research and used his own body for experimenting with alternative treatments wherever he was convinced that the science behind it was plausible. He travelled to Italy to undertake a promising and very simple treatment, being illegally administered. He explored ancient herbal treatments which were sent to him by the Dalai Lama, who had heard of his illness. He investigated developmental treatments in the West, using vitamins and ozone therapy, as well as dendritic cell therapy. In his favour, Dr Oriani-Ambrosini had resources that few ordinary South Africans have. He also had a brilliant and questioning mind, a sound background in critical thinking and research and a wide network of scientific and medical professionals who were waiting for someone to ask the necessary questions. That question revolves around the clear absence of innovation in a country so perfectly suited to finding alternative solutions. South Africa has thousands of legally recognised traditional healers who already use plants and herbs as part of cancer treatment. If there is any country in the world that should be open to exploring alternative treatments, this is it. And if there were ever a time to do it, it is now. Presently there is a worldwide shift towards medical innovation and towards exploring the potentials in the natural world. This bodes well, for one in three people across the world is now being diagnosed with cancer. In the coming years, every family will face this battle. Among the alternative treatments that Oriani-Ambrosini discovered was the widespread use of cannabinoids present in the resin of the flowering cannabis plant, in their active constituent forms such as THC (tetrahydrocannabinol), CBD (cannabidiol), CBG (cannabigerol) and CBC (cannabichromene). Extensive medical testing has proved the efficacy of these cannabinoids in treating many forms of cancer as well as diabetes, HIV, multiple sclerosis, glaucoma and a myriad of other diseases. Convinced by the research, Oriani-Ambrosini began using specially processed cannabis oil, in the form of suppositories. He understood from the research that smoking marijuana would not deliver the beneficial effects delivered by cannabis oil. Just as one would not brew tea from the roots of a tea plant, or eat the stalks of a mielie, the different parts of the cannabis plant have different purposes and different effects. It was very important to him that he maintain clarity of mind and he carefully monitored the psychotropic effects of cannabis oil. Again, the research bore out. Cannabis oil does not produce a "high". It does not affect the mind and is non-addictive. It is, in fact, entirely different to smoking marijuana. Even in his final days, Oriani-Ambrosini was clear-minded. He was able to have important conversations with his family and friends. He could say his farewells when there was no longer any hope of a cure. The pain relief offered by cannabis oil and cannabis creams was a godsend. Towards the end, when cannabis cream was rubbed onto his back, where the tumours were evident as lumps in his skeletal frame, he visibly relaxed and the look of anguish was erased. However, cannabis oil is not only for pain relief. It has been proven in medical studies to shrink tumours and decrease the number of tumours. This would offer a wonderful alternative to those who are forced to undergo radiotherapy to shrink tumours before they can be surgically removed. Throughout his long and difficult journey, Oriani-Ambrosini was acutely aware that the average South African would not be able to access all the treatments available and would likely not even know about them. Travelling from one end of the globe to the Recently a debate has been revived on the Medical Innovation Bill introduced in Parliament by the late honourable Dr Mario Oriani-Ambrosini He rejected the conventional cancer treatments of chemotherapy and radiotherapy, for they offered no cure Nausea, hair loss, pain and overwhelming fatigue are externalities. In the final stages of cancer, medical practitioners commonly prescribe morphine Surely, there must be a better way? other to find the best individualised treatment is just not feasible. Thus he began to pursue a one-stop centre for medical innovation and innovative treatment within South Africa. Through the Medical Innovation Bill, he sought to establish a dedicated medical facility where anyone diagnosed with cancer can go to explore their options, receive information, and be treated. At this centre, medical practitioners would be legally free to innovate and could try alternative treatments, with the informed consent of patients. Patients would not be guinea pigs for irrational experimentation. On the contrary, patients would be empowered with sovereignty over their own body, while innovative treatments would be peer-reviewed on site. If we are going to find a cure for cancer, it will happen at this centre. It is therefore critical that people understand the intent and the impact of the Medical Innovation Bill. Unfortunately, in our newspapers the shorthand of journalism often refers to "the dagga bill" and "the legalisation of dagga". This is not what the bill suggests. Instead it provides a way to regulate the use of cannabis for medical treatment, allow those who need it to get it and ensure that it is good quality, properly checked and properly prescribed. Presently, anyone seeking cannabis oil is forced to go underground to find people who provide it, which compromises the safety of patients. There are also no controls as to the quality of the oil received, which creates a serious health risk. Why should cancer patients be made to feel like criminals when they search out the treatment that offers the most hope? And why are doctors' hands tied in the pursuit of a cure? I support the Medical Innovation Bill because it seeks to right these obvious and damaging wrongs. I firmly believe that South Africa must become the centre of medical innovation. - --- MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom