NORML's Weekly News Bulletin -- July 13, 2006 |
Posted by CN Staff on July 13, 2006 at 12:54:25 PT Weekly Press Release Source: NORML Cannabinoids Curb Brain Tumor Growth, First-Ever Patient Trial Shows July 13, 2006 - Madrid, Spain Madrid, Spain: THC administration decreases recurrent glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) tumor growth in humans, according to the findings of the first-ever clinical trial assessing cannabinoids' anti-tumor action. Investigators at Complutense University in Spain administered THC intratumorally in nine patients diagnosed with recurrent GBM, an extremely rapid and lethal form of brain tumor. Patients in the study had previously failed standard therapy (surgery and radiotherapy) and had clear evidence of tumor progression. THC treatment was associated with reduced tumor cell proliferation in two subjects, authors reported. Investigators did not determine whether THC positively impacted patients' survival, though they did conclude that cannabinoid therapy does not facilitate cancer growth or decrease patients' life expectancy. Median survival of the cohort from the beginning of cannabinoid administration was 24 weeks, and two patients survived for approximately one year. Survival for GBM patients following diagnosis is typically six to twelve months. Researchers speculated that newly diagnosed glioma patients may respond more favorably to cannabinoid-based therapies. Investigators also reported that THC demonstrated significant anti-proliferative activity on human GBM cells in culture. "The fair safety profile of THC, together with its possible anti-proliferative action on tumor cells reported here and in other studies, may set the basis for future trials aimed at evaluating the potential antitumoral activity of cannabinoids," investigators concluded. In 2005, investigators at the California Pacific Medical Center Research Institute in San Francisco reported that THC selectively decreases the proliferation of malignant cells and induces cell death in human GBM cell lines. Healthy cells in the study were unaffected by THC administration. Separate preclinical studies indicate that cannabinoids and endocannabinoids can stave off tumor progression and trigger cell death in other cancer cell lines, including breast carcinoma, prostate carcinoma, colectoral carcinoma, skin carcinoma, and pancreatic adenocarcinoma. For more information, please contact Paul Armentano, NORML Senior Policy Analyst, at (202) 483-5500. Full text of the study, "A pilot clinical study of delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol in patients with recurrent glioblastoma multiforme," appears in the July issue of the British Journal of Cancer. Abstracts of the study are available online at: http://www.nature.com/bjc/journal/v95/n2/abs/6603236a.html Additional information on cannabinoids' anti-cancer properties is available in NORML's report, "Cannabinoids as Cancer Hope," online at: DL: http://norml.org/index.cfm?Group_ID=6947 Alaska: Judge Rejects Pot Recriminalization Measure July 13, 2006 - Juneau, AK, USA Juneau, AK: An Alaska Superior Court judge this week struck down provisions of a new state law seeking to criminalize the possession of small amounts of cannabis in the privacy of one's home. The law, enacted in June, redefined minor marijuana possession as a criminal offense punishable by jail time, and defined the possession of more than four ounces of cannabis as a felony offense. The Alaska ACLU filed suit last month to block enforcement of the law, arguing that it violates the privacy clause of the state constitution, which provides that "the right of the people to privacy is recognized and shall not be infringed." In a 1975 Alaska state Supreme Court ruling (Ravin v State), justices determined that this constitutional provision encompassed the possession and use of small amounts of cannabis in the home. Superior Court judge Patricia Collins ruled Monday that the Alaska legislature lacks the authority to override the Supreme Court's 1975 decision. "The Alaska Supreme Court has repeatedly and consistently characterized the Ravin decision as announcing a constitutional limitation of the government's authority to enact legislation prohibiting the possession of marijuana in the privacy of onešs home," she determined. "That decision is the law until and unless the Supreme Court takes contrary action." Collin's ruling strikes down sections of the new law criminalizing the possession of one ounce or less of cannabis, but leaves in place measures prohibiting the possession of greater amounts. Under the 2006 law, possession of one to four ounces of marijuana is a misdemeanor punishable by up to a year in jail. "The Alaska Court of Appeals has held that the legislature has the power to set reasonable limits on the amount of marijuana that people can possess for personal use in their homes and that such regulation does not conflict with Ravin," Collins determined. Lawyers for the Alaska attorney general's office are expected to appeal Collin's ruling. In 2004, the Alaska Supreme Court rejected a petition by the attorney general's office to reconsider a September 2003 Court of Appeals decision that the possession of marijuana by adults within the home is constitutionally protected activity. Governor Frank Murkowksi (R), who strongly advocated for the new law, has argued that Ravin should no longer apply in Alaska because cannabis may pose greater health and safety risks today than it did in 1975. For more information, please contact Keith Stroup, NORML Legal Counsel, at (202) 483-5500. Full text of the Superior Court ruling, ACLU et al. v State of Alaska, are online at: http://www.aclu.org/drugpolicy/decrim/261121g120060711.html Additional information, including an interview with the ACLU's Allen Hopper, is available on the July 12 NORML Audiostash at: http://normlaudiostash.com/id120.htm DL: http://norml.org/index.cfm?Group_ID=6948 Source: NORML Foundation (DC) CannabisNews NORML Archives Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help |
Comment #9 posted by John Tyler on July 13, 2006 at 19:39:11 PT |
Thank goodness for the Alaskan courts. They seem to be the last line of defense in personal freedom. When will the anti cancer properties of cannabis make it in the general media? This is big news. Positive cannabis stories should be all over the media You can bet if big pharma had anything like cannabis it would be touted far and wide. A bit of cannabis a day keeps the doctor away. [ Post Comment ] |
Comment #8 posted by afterburner on July 13, 2006 at 18:29:42 PT |
"Governor Frank Murkowksi (R), who strongly advocated for the new law, has argued that Ravin should no longer apply in Alaska because cannabis may pose greater health and safety risks today than it did in 1975." Yes, Frank, "health and safety risks," like cancer prevention. Thank you, Paul Armentano, for all the good work that you do. [ Post Comment ] |
Comment #7 posted by mayan on July 13, 2006 at 17:21:32 PT |
Separate preclinical studies indicate that cannabinoids and endocannabinoids can stave off tumor progression and trigger cell death in other cancer cell lines, including breast carcinoma, prostate carcinoma, colectoral carcinoma, skin carcinoma, and pancreatic adenocarcinoma. And now brain tumors! As the many miracles of the cannabis plant and the horrific 9/11 inside job are beginning to be known by the masses, the ptb are trying to get us into WWIII. What is happening in the middle east has been planned for a long time. 9/11 and everything since has been. If we remain silent now we will remain silent forever. Dubya Dubya Three: http://www.whatreallyhappened.com/dubyadubyathree.php THE WAY OUT IS THE WAY IN... Bob Bowman on Hanity & Colmes (video): http://infowars.com/articles/sept11/bob_bowman_hanity_and_colmes.htm 9/11 Scholars for Truth Professor Kevin Barrett on Hanity & Colmes (video): http://infowars.com/articles/sept11/kevin_barrett_st911_hanity_colmes.htm State Assembly Refuses To Consider Resolution To Fire UW-Madison Instructor: http://prisonplanet.com/articles/july2006/130706Fire.htm Vanity Fair: Click Here For Conspiracy: http://infowars.com/articles/sept11/vanity_fair_loose_change_click_for_conspiracy.htm FAKE TERROR - THE ROAD TO WAR AND DICTATORSHIP: http://www.whatreallyhappened.com/ARTICLE5/ 9/11 WAS AN INSIDE JOB - OUR NATION IS IN PERIL: http://www.911sharethetruth.com/ [ Post Comment ] |
Comment #6 posted by Had Enough on July 13, 2006 at 17:00:33 PT |
Gandhi Theory Theyre not laughing at us now, are they? [ Post Comment ] |
Comment #5 posted by freewillks on July 13, 2006 at 16:06:23 PT |
Indirect evidence overwelmingly shows that cannabis and its chemical compounds may prevent cancer(i.e. smoking study). I bet if we study a group of women we would find non-tobaco using pot smokers would have fewer cases of breast cancer. would also bet that they suffer fewer cancers all togather.
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Comment #4 posted by global_warming on July 13, 2006 at 15:48:25 PT |
the powerful insurance interests, imagine some simple ditch weed can compete with 2 and 3 thousand dollars of pharma treatments, well there goes the bottom line.. [ Post Comment ] |
Comment #3 posted by kaptinemo on July 13, 2006 at 15:39:47 PT:
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Because the first human trials have been concluded...and the results were as most of us figured they would be. As more studies are conducted, more attention will be given to this in academic circles. From there, the news will spread to out to finally reaching the ears of those who need to know about this the most, namely, cancer patients, themselves. Now imagine the reaction those cancer patients will have when the likes of Karen Tandy tell them the usual lies. No amount of news censoring (see Project Censored http://www.projectcensored.org/) will be able to hold this back. No amount of obfuscation, foot dragging and lying will be able to stop the word from getting out. Cannabis prohibition is like a vampire that is surrounded by hordes of people who have forgotten they are carrying around crucifxes, garlic, wooden stakes and mallets. Let a few of them remember, and have good reason to apply those tools, and cannabis prohibition is finished. And if anyone has a reason to do so now, it's cancer patients. [ Post Comment ] |
Comment #2 posted by global_warming on July 13, 2006 at 15:11:16 PT |
article, it sounds like all good news, guess them old nasty prohibitionists would prefer to live with their brain tumors, this might even explain there irrational behavior. [ Post Comment ] |
Comment #1 posted by lombar on July 13, 2006 at 13:55:41 PT |
The latest study is being called 'proof of the gateway' effect. Reuters Today it occurred to me to wonder what the results would be if the rats were preconditioned with something other than THC? Alcohol, tobacco, or perhaps chocolate? Oh yeah, that's right, smokers, drinkers, and chocolate eaters are not the targets of the modern witch-hunt. There's no police, pharmacuetical, or media lobbying for a coninuing war on chocolate. There are no prisons full of non-violent chocolate eaters siphoning taxpayers money into a black hole, a never ending maw of grief and misery that is self-reinforcing cycles of violence that need not exist. So THC has anti-tumor properties as well... could it be the 'tree of life' itself? Why do some people hate cannabis so? [ Post Comment ] |
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