The General
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Anna Knecht's 11th birthday began the same as most days in her young life – with two grand mal seizures. The wheelchair-bound fifth grader was born with Dravet Syndrome, a genetic mutation that causes frequent and severe seizures on a daily basis. Deb Knecht, Anna's mother, said her daughter can experience up to 400 seizures in one day. "It takes a lot out of her," Knecht said. "It's like running two marathons." Deb Knecht's husband, Mark, said the progressive disease may kill Anna before she reaches adulthood.
"Time is not on our side," he said. "She will get much worse. We need to get this under control before that happens." That's why the Knechts want state lawmakers to pass legislation that will legalize the use of cannabis oil in Pennsylvania to treat Dravet Syndrome. Without it, the family will move to Colorado, where the oil is available. The dilemma struck a chord with congregation members at Anna's church, New Fellowship Covenant Church in Hampden Township. The church hosted a birthday card signing celebration Wednesday for Anna, where supporters signed cards addressed to state lawmakers urging for the passage of Senate Bill 1182, "The Compassionate Use of Medical Cannabis Act."
"She's exhausted every type of medication possible and there's evidence out there that it will help minimize her seizures," said Donna Basehore, a congregation member and family friend of the Knechts. "It doesn't create the marijuana-type high that's perceived by most of the population." Mark Knecht said the family first learned of the unorthodox treatment after watching Dr. Sanjay Gupta's documentary investigating the medicinal marijuana industry, titled "Weed." Gupta wrote in an editorial for CNN.com that the federal government has no evidence to support marijuana's schedule one classification. Gupta described schedule one substances as the category "of the most dangerous drugs that have no accepted medicinal use and a high potential for abuse."
"They didn't have the science to support that claim, and I now know that when it comes to marijuana neither of those things are true," he wrote. "It doesn't have a high potential for abuse, and there are very legitimate medical applications. In fact, sometimes marijuana is the only thing that works." The Knechts also want the federal government to declassify marijuana as a schedule one controlled substance, a status that limits researchers who want to test the drug's effect on a range of diseases. But it was Gupta's profile of Charlotte Figi, a Colorado girl also diagnosed with Dravet Syndrome, that caught the Knechts' attention most. "By age three she was having 300 a week, despite being on seven different medications," Gupta wrote. "Medical marijuana has calmed her brain, limiting her seizures to two or three per month." "Charlotte has done extremely well," Mark Knecht said. "We are just asking for that to be a possibility for Anna."
News Moderator - The General @ 420 MAGAZINE ®
Source: Cumberlink.com
Author: Christen Smith
Contact: Customer Service
Website: Family pleads with state legislature to legalize cannabis oil daughter's treatment
"Time is not on our side," he said. "She will get much worse. We need to get this under control before that happens." That's why the Knechts want state lawmakers to pass legislation that will legalize the use of cannabis oil in Pennsylvania to treat Dravet Syndrome. Without it, the family will move to Colorado, where the oil is available. The dilemma struck a chord with congregation members at Anna's church, New Fellowship Covenant Church in Hampden Township. The church hosted a birthday card signing celebration Wednesday for Anna, where supporters signed cards addressed to state lawmakers urging for the passage of Senate Bill 1182, "The Compassionate Use of Medical Cannabis Act."
"She's exhausted every type of medication possible and there's evidence out there that it will help minimize her seizures," said Donna Basehore, a congregation member and family friend of the Knechts. "It doesn't create the marijuana-type high that's perceived by most of the population." Mark Knecht said the family first learned of the unorthodox treatment after watching Dr. Sanjay Gupta's documentary investigating the medicinal marijuana industry, titled "Weed." Gupta wrote in an editorial for CNN.com that the federal government has no evidence to support marijuana's schedule one classification. Gupta described schedule one substances as the category "of the most dangerous drugs that have no accepted medicinal use and a high potential for abuse."
"They didn't have the science to support that claim, and I now know that when it comes to marijuana neither of those things are true," he wrote. "It doesn't have a high potential for abuse, and there are very legitimate medical applications. In fact, sometimes marijuana is the only thing that works." The Knechts also want the federal government to declassify marijuana as a schedule one controlled substance, a status that limits researchers who want to test the drug's effect on a range of diseases. But it was Gupta's profile of Charlotte Figi, a Colorado girl also diagnosed with Dravet Syndrome, that caught the Knechts' attention most. "By age three she was having 300 a week, despite being on seven different medications," Gupta wrote. "Medical marijuana has calmed her brain, limiting her seizures to two or three per month." "Charlotte has done extremely well," Mark Knecht said. "We are just asking for that to be a possibility for Anna."
News Moderator - The General @ 420 MAGAZINE ®
Source: Cumberlink.com
Author: Christen Smith
Contact: Customer Service
Website: Family pleads with state legislature to legalize cannabis oil daughter's treatment
