Pubdate: Wed, 27 Apr 2016
Source: Honolulu Star-Advertiser (HI)
Copyright: 2016 Associated Press
Contact: 
http://www.staradvertiser.com/info/Star-Advertiser_Letter_to_the_Editor.html
Website: http://www.staradvertiser.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/5154
Author: Michael Casey, Associated Press

DOCTORS TRY POT AS TREATMENT FOR THOSE ADDICTED TO OPIOIDS

CONCORD, N.H. (AP) - The growing number of patients who claim 
marijuana helped them drop their painkiller habit has intrigued 
lawmakers and emboldened advocates, who are pushing for cannabis as a 
treatment for the abuse of opioids and illegal narcotics like heroin, 
as well as an alternative to painkillers.

It's a tempting sell in New England, hard hit by the painkiller and 
heroin crisis, with a problem: There is very little research showing 
marijuana works as a treatment for the addiction.

Advocates argue a growing body of scientific literature supports the 
idea, pointing to a study in the Journal of Pain this year that found 
chronic pain sufferers significantly reduced their opioid use when 
taking medical cannabis. And a study published last year in the 
Journal of the American Medical Association found cannabis can be 
effective in treating chronic pain and other ailments.

But the research falls short of concluding marijuana helps wean 
people off opioids - Vicodin, Oxycontin and related painkillers - and 
heroin, and many medical professionals say it's not enough for them 
to confidently prescribe it.

In Maine, which is considering adding opioid and heroin addiction to 
the list of conditions that qualify for medical marijuana, Michelle 
Ham said marijuana helped her end a years-long addiction to 
painkillers she took for a bad back and neck.

Tired of feeling "like a zombie," the 37-year-old mother of two 
decided to quit cold turkey, which she said brought on convulsions 
and other withdrawal symptoms.

Then a friend mentioned marijuana, which Maine had legalized in 1999 
for chronic pain and scores of other medical conditions. She gave it 
a try in 2013 and said the pain is under control. And she hasn't gone 
back on the opioids.

"Before, I couldn't even function. I couldn't get anything done," Ham 
said. "Now I actually organize volunteers, and we have a donations 
center to help the needy."

Bolstered by stories like Ham's, doctors are experimenting with 
marijuana as an addiction treatment in Massachusetts and California. 
Supporters in Maine are pushing for its inclusion in qualifying 
conditions for medical marijuana, and Vermonters are making the case 
for addiction treatment in their push to legalize pot.

There are some promising findings involving rats, and a 2014 JAMA 
study showed that states with medical marijuana laws had nearly 25 
percent fewer opioid-related overdose deaths than those without, but 
even a co-author of that study said it would be wrong to use the 
findings to make the case for cannabis as a treatment option.

"We are in the midst of a serious problem. People are dying, and as a 
result, we ought to use things that are proven to be effective," said 
Dr. Richard Saitz, chairman of the Department of Community Health 
Sciences at the Boston University School of Public Health.

Cannabis could have limited benefits as a treatment alternative, said 
Harvard Medical School's Dr. Kevin Hill, who last year authored the 
JAMA study that found benefits in using medical marijuana to treat 
chronic pain, neuropathic pain and spasticity related to multiple 
sclerosis. But he urged caution.

"If you are thinking about using cannabis as opposed to using opioids 
for chronic pain, then I do think the evidence does support it," he 
said. "However, I think one place where sometimes cannabis advocates 
go too far is when they talk about using cannabis to treat opioid addiction."

The findings in the Journal of Pain study that found chronic pain 
sufferers reduced their opioid use when using medical pot were 
limited because participants self-reported the data.
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