Ron Strider
Well-Known Member
Doug and Stacy Olexy have heard the stories about medical marijuana, and they are filled with hope.
Stacy has a brother in California, the first state to launch a medical marijuana program 21 years ago.
"He has friends who have actually been prescribed, and they've benefited through a huge impact on health," she said.
A few years ago, the West Reading couple watched a CNN special about marijuana and learned about a little girl whose epilepsy came under control via the drug.
"We've really been studying this," Stacy Olexy said.
The Olexys collect those stories, and then they look at their daughter, Ava, 11, as she stares into a computer screen.
"There's a whole part of her brain that's locked up, and we're still trying to find the right keys," Stacy Olexy said.
Ava has autism, and it affects how she sees the world. Loud noises or flashing lights in a room can send her mind into a spiral.
Ava can get a perfect score on a test of the state capitals, but she can't string together sentences, her mom says. Keeping her eyes focused for more than a few seconds is an achievement.
"If there was something that could help her so she didn't have to worry about how fast the fluorescent lights were blinking or how loud the echo was in the hallway, it could literally change her everyday life," Stacy Olexy said.
The Olexys have never let their daughter try the cadre of attention-deficit stimulants doctors have suggested, fearing the long-term side effects, but they are interested in medical marijuana.
When it comes to autism and nearly all the 17 conditions it has been cleared to treat in Pennsylvania, medical marijuana remains an unproven entity. The research showing its medical use is limited at best.
For the Olexy family, that has meant weighing the upside against the unknown. The clinical studies are lacking, but Pennsylvania's program will begin dispensing medical marijuana sometime in 2018, state health officials have said.
The Olexys are ready to try it.
"We could be the study," Stacy Olexy said.
Marijuana 'miracle'?
The power of the anecdote has taken medical marijuana a long way over the last two decades.
Testimonials about the seizures reduced, the tremors halted and the pain erased have fueled the movement to the point 29 states have cleared marijuana for medicinal use.
The people who are in the business of making and selling medical marijuana know how these stories can change perception, taking marijuana from a street drug to a government-regulated medicine.
Last month, Kevin Murphy told a crowd at Conrad Weiser Middle School his own story. Murphy is the managing member of High Street Capital and a principal financial backer of Prime Wellness, the company approved to grow medical marijuana in South Heidelberg Township and many other states.
During the presentation, Murphy talked about the patients he's met. He mentioned a woman in Connecticut with stage 4 lung cancer.
She received a heavy dose of cannabis and is in remission, he said.
"Some could say that's a miracle, that's an act of God," he said. "I kiddingly say to my colleagues: Well, we rival Mother Theresa on these miracles because they could be beatifying some of us soon here."
Still in its infancy
Anecdotes are meaningful, but they do not have as much sway with doctors.
Double-blind, controlled studies are much more convincing. Study results confirmed by multiple researchers at different institutions move the needle even more.
In 2017, for an array of conditions, medical marijuana still needs to pass the research test.
"The short answer is we're in the infancy of this field," said Dr. Charles Pollack, director of The Lambert Center for the Study of Medicinal Cannabis and Hemp at Thomas Jefferson University. "We have a lot of anecdotal data, a lot of miraculous case reports."
In January, the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine published a report reviewing over 10,000 marijuana studies since 1999.
It found there has been "conclusive or substantial evidence" the drug can help for chronic pain, nausea from chemotherapy and symptoms of multiple sclerosis.
Beyond that, there's much to prove, Pollack said.
"We need to start shedding light on these efficacy issues," he said.
The good news, Pollack said, is the safety of the drug has been largely confirmed, as it does not appear to lead to significant adverse reactions in patients. It's still important to keep strains of the drug with more THC, or the psychoactive component, away from kids and patients who have psychotic disorders like schizophrenia, he said.
Federal roadblocks
Several roadblocks have always existed in the study of medical cannabis, said Dr. Sue Sisley, a prominent medical marijuana researcher based in Arizona.
For one, the drug is still listed in Schedule I of the federal Controlled Substance Act with other drugs deemed to have no medical use.
Researchers and universities have also struggled to get an adequate supply of cannabis for study. For decades, the federal Drug Enforcement Administration has licensed one lab in Mississippi to grow all the medical marijuana used for clinical research.
Earlier this year, Sisley was in the spotlight when she criticized the quality of the federal supply of medical marijuana.
Pennsylvania's medical marijuana program offers a new opportunity to learn more, she said.
"You can't collect data on patients who are on the black market," she said. "By Pennsylvania creating a regulated marketplace, we will have legitimate, legal patients who are accessing lab-tested cannabis. We can understand what they are using, correlate that to their clinical experiences and get some more insight."
Physicians may want more data, but they should still certify patients who qualify for the program, Sisley said.
"As physicians, we always want rigorous, controlled studies," Sisley said. "We're not going to be able to get that with the impediments the government puts in front of us."
Willing volunteers
Brian Cutts of South Heidelberg Township would like to volunteer himself as a medical marijuana case study.
During the meeting at Weiser Middle School, Cutts talked about his health woes over the last six years.
Cutts has peripheral neuropathy and has no feeling in his fingertips and feet. He uses a cane to get around, and it's getting harder and harder to walk.
With the pain, he said he fits all the criteria to try medical marijuana.
"I'm really interested in what this can do for me," he said. "I need help."
Donna Boulanger of Spring Township wanted her mother to try medical marijuana.
"We asked the oncologists," she said, "and they didn't know anything about it. The doctors looked at us like we were idiots for asking. I would have done anything to help take away her pain."
Her mother, Joanne Boulanger, 77, of Wernersville, died in April. Five years ago, she was diagnosed with lung cancer that eventually spread to her bones.
Donna Boulanger believes medical marijuana could help more patients like her mother.
"There wasn't any controlling her pain, even though she was on super high doses of oxycodone," Donna Boulanger said. "That was really constipating her, and that was really worse than the pain."
Help with autism?
Luci Schaeffer of Sinking Spring said she is thinking about whether medical marijuana could help her son, Adam, who's 15 and has autism.
"He has a lot of anxiety about things that we can't really understand," she said. "He's often nervous. At times, he feels like he is communicating clearly, but we are not understanding what he's trying to tell us. That causes him to get frustrated, and sometimes, that can lead to aggression."
If medical marijuana could help Adam focus at school or ease his anxiety, it's worth trying, she said.
"For us, we just want to make life easier for him, but we don't want to change who he is," she said. "I think there could be a chance that this could be good for him."
The potential risks or side effects seem to be less harsh than some of the other medications that have been recommended, she said.
"I'd just be willing to give it a try because I don't think it would hurt him," she said. "It would either work or it wouldn't."
Pennsylvania and Delaware are the only states that list autism as a qualifying condition for medical marijuana.
As it stands, there's essentially no data supporting whether it could help patients with autism, Pollack said.
Stacy and Doug Olexy said they felt comfortable trying it with their daughter. The strain of medicine they want to try would not get their daughter high, but they hope it helps give her some clarity.
"If there are any clinical studies they are doing, we're in," Doug Olexy said.
Now, it's a matter of finding a doctor who will refer Ava to a dispensary, her parents said.
"It's not going to cure autism or epilepsy," Stacy Olexy said. "It's going to curb symptoms."
If medical marijuana could help their daughter focus or express the thoughts circling her head, it would be more than enough, they said.
"We celebrate the little things," Stacy Olexy said. "To open the door to help her communicate and function in her everyday life, that would be amazing. It would be worth all the effort."
News Moderator: Ron Strider 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: Many see medical marijuana as a wonder drug, wait to try it | Reading Eagle - NEWS
Author: Matthew Nojiri
Contact: Reading Eagle Reading, PA | contact-us | readingeagle.com
Photo Credit: Facebook
Website: Reading Eagle Reading, PA | Berks County News | readingeagle.com
Stacy has a brother in California, the first state to launch a medical marijuana program 21 years ago.
"He has friends who have actually been prescribed, and they've benefited through a huge impact on health," she said.
A few years ago, the West Reading couple watched a CNN special about marijuana and learned about a little girl whose epilepsy came under control via the drug.
"We've really been studying this," Stacy Olexy said.
The Olexys collect those stories, and then they look at their daughter, Ava, 11, as she stares into a computer screen.
"There's a whole part of her brain that's locked up, and we're still trying to find the right keys," Stacy Olexy said.
Ava has autism, and it affects how she sees the world. Loud noises or flashing lights in a room can send her mind into a spiral.
Ava can get a perfect score on a test of the state capitals, but she can't string together sentences, her mom says. Keeping her eyes focused for more than a few seconds is an achievement.
"If there was something that could help her so she didn't have to worry about how fast the fluorescent lights were blinking or how loud the echo was in the hallway, it could literally change her everyday life," Stacy Olexy said.
The Olexys have never let their daughter try the cadre of attention-deficit stimulants doctors have suggested, fearing the long-term side effects, but they are interested in medical marijuana.
When it comes to autism and nearly all the 17 conditions it has been cleared to treat in Pennsylvania, medical marijuana remains an unproven entity. The research showing its medical use is limited at best.
For the Olexy family, that has meant weighing the upside against the unknown. The clinical studies are lacking, but Pennsylvania's program will begin dispensing medical marijuana sometime in 2018, state health officials have said.
The Olexys are ready to try it.
"We could be the study," Stacy Olexy said.
Marijuana 'miracle'?
The power of the anecdote has taken medical marijuana a long way over the last two decades.
Testimonials about the seizures reduced, the tremors halted and the pain erased have fueled the movement to the point 29 states have cleared marijuana for medicinal use.
The people who are in the business of making and selling medical marijuana know how these stories can change perception, taking marijuana from a street drug to a government-regulated medicine.
Last month, Kevin Murphy told a crowd at Conrad Weiser Middle School his own story. Murphy is the managing member of High Street Capital and a principal financial backer of Prime Wellness, the company approved to grow medical marijuana in South Heidelberg Township and many other states.
During the presentation, Murphy talked about the patients he's met. He mentioned a woman in Connecticut with stage 4 lung cancer.
She received a heavy dose of cannabis and is in remission, he said.
"Some could say that's a miracle, that's an act of God," he said. "I kiddingly say to my colleagues: Well, we rival Mother Theresa on these miracles because they could be beatifying some of us soon here."
Still in its infancy
Anecdotes are meaningful, but they do not have as much sway with doctors.
Double-blind, controlled studies are much more convincing. Study results confirmed by multiple researchers at different institutions move the needle even more.
In 2017, for an array of conditions, medical marijuana still needs to pass the research test.
"The short answer is we're in the infancy of this field," said Dr. Charles Pollack, director of The Lambert Center for the Study of Medicinal Cannabis and Hemp at Thomas Jefferson University. "We have a lot of anecdotal data, a lot of miraculous case reports."
In January, the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine published a report reviewing over 10,000 marijuana studies since 1999.
It found there has been "conclusive or substantial evidence" the drug can help for chronic pain, nausea from chemotherapy and symptoms of multiple sclerosis.
Beyond that, there's much to prove, Pollack said.
"We need to start shedding light on these efficacy issues," he said.
The good news, Pollack said, is the safety of the drug has been largely confirmed, as it does not appear to lead to significant adverse reactions in patients. It's still important to keep strains of the drug with more THC, or the psychoactive component, away from kids and patients who have psychotic disorders like schizophrenia, he said.
Federal roadblocks
Several roadblocks have always existed in the study of medical cannabis, said Dr. Sue Sisley, a prominent medical marijuana researcher based in Arizona.
For one, the drug is still listed in Schedule I of the federal Controlled Substance Act with other drugs deemed to have no medical use.
Researchers and universities have also struggled to get an adequate supply of cannabis for study. For decades, the federal Drug Enforcement Administration has licensed one lab in Mississippi to grow all the medical marijuana used for clinical research.
Earlier this year, Sisley was in the spotlight when she criticized the quality of the federal supply of medical marijuana.
Pennsylvania's medical marijuana program offers a new opportunity to learn more, she said.
"You can't collect data on patients who are on the black market," she said. "By Pennsylvania creating a regulated marketplace, we will have legitimate, legal patients who are accessing lab-tested cannabis. We can understand what they are using, correlate that to their clinical experiences and get some more insight."
Physicians may want more data, but they should still certify patients who qualify for the program, Sisley said.
"As physicians, we always want rigorous, controlled studies," Sisley said. "We're not going to be able to get that with the impediments the government puts in front of us."
Willing volunteers
Brian Cutts of South Heidelberg Township would like to volunteer himself as a medical marijuana case study.
During the meeting at Weiser Middle School, Cutts talked about his health woes over the last six years.
Cutts has peripheral neuropathy and has no feeling in his fingertips and feet. He uses a cane to get around, and it's getting harder and harder to walk.
With the pain, he said he fits all the criteria to try medical marijuana.
"I'm really interested in what this can do for me," he said. "I need help."
Donna Boulanger of Spring Township wanted her mother to try medical marijuana.
"We asked the oncologists," she said, "and they didn't know anything about it. The doctors looked at us like we were idiots for asking. I would have done anything to help take away her pain."
Her mother, Joanne Boulanger, 77, of Wernersville, died in April. Five years ago, she was diagnosed with lung cancer that eventually spread to her bones.
Donna Boulanger believes medical marijuana could help more patients like her mother.
"There wasn't any controlling her pain, even though she was on super high doses of oxycodone," Donna Boulanger said. "That was really constipating her, and that was really worse than the pain."
Help with autism?
Luci Schaeffer of Sinking Spring said she is thinking about whether medical marijuana could help her son, Adam, who's 15 and has autism.
"He has a lot of anxiety about things that we can't really understand," she said. "He's often nervous. At times, he feels like he is communicating clearly, but we are not understanding what he's trying to tell us. That causes him to get frustrated, and sometimes, that can lead to aggression."
If medical marijuana could help Adam focus at school or ease his anxiety, it's worth trying, she said.
"For us, we just want to make life easier for him, but we don't want to change who he is," she said. "I think there could be a chance that this could be good for him."
The potential risks or side effects seem to be less harsh than some of the other medications that have been recommended, she said.
"I'd just be willing to give it a try because I don't think it would hurt him," she said. "It would either work or it wouldn't."
Pennsylvania and Delaware are the only states that list autism as a qualifying condition for medical marijuana.
As it stands, there's essentially no data supporting whether it could help patients with autism, Pollack said.
Stacy and Doug Olexy said they felt comfortable trying it with their daughter. The strain of medicine they want to try would not get their daughter high, but they hope it helps give her some clarity.
"If there are any clinical studies they are doing, we're in," Doug Olexy said.
Now, it's a matter of finding a doctor who will refer Ava to a dispensary, her parents said.
"It's not going to cure autism or epilepsy," Stacy Olexy said. "It's going to curb symptoms."
If medical marijuana could help their daughter focus or express the thoughts circling her head, it would be more than enough, they said.
"We celebrate the little things," Stacy Olexy said. "To open the door to help her communicate and function in her everyday life, that would be amazing. It would be worth all the effort."
News Moderator: Ron Strider 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: Many see medical marijuana as a wonder drug, wait to try it | Reading Eagle - NEWS
Author: Matthew Nojiri
Contact: Reading Eagle Reading, PA | contact-us | readingeagle.com
Photo Credit: Facebook
Website: Reading Eagle Reading, PA | Berks County News | readingeagle.com
