|
|
| Smoking Marijuana Can Cause Cancer, Study Finds |
|
Posted by FoM on December 17, 1999 at 07:54:25 PT Source: Reuters 
Smoking marijuana can cause cancer, California researchers said Friday, and aging baby boomers who have been indulging since the swinging 60s may just be starting to feel its ravages.
The report, by Dr. Zuo-Feng Zhang of the Jonsson Cancer Center at the University of California Los Angeles, adds to evidence that smoking cannabis can have cancer-causing effects similar to those linked to cigarette smoking. "Many people may think marijuana is harmless, but it's not," Zhang said in a statement. "The carcinogens in marijuana are much stronger than those in tobacco. The big message here is that marijuana, like tobacco, can cause cancer." Writing in the journal Cancer Epidemiology Biomarker and Prevention, Zhang said he studied 173 patients diagnosed with head and neck cancer, and compared them to 176 cancer-free control patients. Those who said they habitually smoked marijuana were more likely to be in the group with head and neck cancers. And the more they smoked, the bigger the risk. "If you smoke a little, your risk increases a little," Zhang said. "If you smoke a lot, your risk increases a lot." He said pot-smoking baby boomers should be on the lookout for symptoms of head and neck cancer, also very common in cigarette smokers and heavy drinkers. "In the '60s, we had very high numbers of people in their 20s smoking marijuana," Zhang said. "These people are just now getting to the ages at which they will get head and neck cancers." Earlier this year, the Institute of Medicine at the National Academy of Sciences reported that marijuana could have some medical uses, notably to treat pain for some terminally ill patients. But the committee said pills using the active ingredients in marijuana were a safer alternative because smoking marijuana can cause cancer, lung damage and babies with low birth weights in pregnant women. December 17, 1999 Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help |
 |
| Comment #36 posted by tes on June 13, 2002 at 10:19:06 PT |
| I am 18yr old f, and only began smoking pot this year. In highschool i had many friends that were regualr pot users, and i have never witnessed any negative effects. and since i began smoking, i have not experienced any negative effects either. but i have seem many of my family members suffer with cancer, and yes, they smoked cigarettes. we all know that smoking cigarttes is far more harmful, so why are cigs leagal and not weed? the reason for this is that the u.s economy if afforded billions a year off selling cigarettes, and possible thouands a year from busting ppl who use weed. so until the US government can revamp is methods of income, all us pot users will just have to deal with it. and in the mean time, all you cig smokers can puff away and kill youselves, afterall it's legal! [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #35 posted by Patrick on August 13, 2001 at 10:34:11 PT |
| I hope I again explain why it is worth it. Here goes. You tried it and to the best of your knowledge it didn't hurt you right? "it didnt hurt me that i know of it burnt my throat but thats it but i did get high and i mean it was cool and all" To be honest at your age (15) your lungs are not developed fully to an adult. Technically, even campfire smoke is not good to breathe. So, you shouldn't use it. However, it shouldn't be a crime if you do. However, I think it should be a crime for someone to sell it to anyone under 18 just like cigarettes. You mentioned that you like to dance, sing, and twirl. How would you feel if the law said twirling batons were a controlled item and you will go to jail if caught with one? You love to twirl and see no harm but the law says it is illegal, and may cause carpal tunnel syndrome. You twirl in the basement hide it from family and friends because you love doing it! You haven't developed the syndrome in all your hours of twirling yet it remains illegal and it continues to give you pleasure, so you keep at it. That is why it is worth it. It is your right to have control over your own mind, body, and spirit. This applies even if you do not believe in a higher power. What you ingest "ought" to be your choice not the governments. I want my government to publish the FACTS about what drugs can do etc. but not tell me which ones I can have and which ones I cannot. I hope this makes it a little clearer for you. Be prepared to VOTE when you turn 18. [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #34 posted by inlovewithapothead on August 13, 2001 at 09:42:59 PT |
| im 15 years old i have an 18 year old bf he smokes marijuana just like the rest of my town but ive never seen him do it cuz he only smokes it at parties and stuff, i wanted to know what the big deal about it all is im a dancer a twirler i model i sing and act and never really got into drugs at all i do drink a lil and i never even tried a cigarette i decided to try marijuana it didnt hurt me that i know of it burnt my throat but thats it but i did get high and i mean it was cool and all but i dont understand y its worth getting caught and y its worth the money and all that i mean everyone on here says not to say its not worth it if u havent tried it well i did try it and i still dont understand y its worth it [ Post Comment ] |
|
Comment #33 posted by always7_ on August 11, 2001 at 15:55:41 PT:
|
| Im not an advocate of drug use but, come on, your comment is kinda harsh. Dont you think? Let he you has NO sin cast the first stone. [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #32 posted by none_ya on August 11, 2001 at 15:09:25 PT |
| whoever smokes is going to hell where they belong [ Post Comment ] |
|
Comment #31 posted by cumface on June 27, 2001 at 02:34:47 PT:
|
| cock and ballz [ Post Comment ] |
|
Comment #30 posted by Asher Miller on May 25, 2001 at 12:01:30 PT:
|
| How does this prove anything regarding marijuanna. it is possible and even probable that the people in this study also smoked tobacco and used alcohol in addition to marijuanna. [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #29 posted by observer on May 14, 2001 at 22:40:28 PT |
| UK: Cannabis May Make You A Safer Driver (2000) http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n1161/a02.html University Of Toronto Study Shows Marijuana Not A Factor In Driving Accidents (1999) Australia: Cannabis Crash Risk Less: Study (1998) Australia: Study Goes to Pot (1998) [ Post Comment ] |
|
Comment #27 posted by sam libby on May 14, 2001 at 16:04:05 PT:
|
| I don't know why there isn't more emphasis on driving "high" by orgs. such as MADD. I personally have been envolved in 6 almost fatal car crashes 1, where I was driving high, and 5 where I was a passenger. I have also been in near crashes while in a drunks car. I think a lot of potheads think driving stoned is ok but for my 35 years of personal experience it is at least as dangerous as driving drunk. On the job ,stoned ,accidents I have witnessed by stoned coworkers border on the edge of unbelieveability to many to mention here, but an example would be when a coworker with a machette in his hand stuck it in a log and slid his hand down it all the way to the log never releasing his grip. $65,000 to reconnect every ligament in his hand. the extreemely empaired reaction time in stoned people makes this activity definately a stay @ home venture. [ Post Comment ] |
|
Comment #25 posted by Spencer on May 02, 2001 at 22:18:08 PT:
|
| Now maybe thirty years ago when people had to smoke a lot more o the joint to get high pot was bad for you, but now a few tokes and your outa here. I say Cigs and alcohol are legal, SO DOPE SHOULD BE TOOOOOO! As for the brain dammage thing, alcohol kills brain cells probably a lot more that DOPE!!!! POT SMOKERS ROCK ON!!!!!!!!!! [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #24 posted by Brett on May 02, 2001 at 18:52:39 PT |
| I hate to tell you buddy, but Bob Marly died from a bacterial infection. He stubbed his toe playin soccer barefoot and the wound became gangrenous. [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #23 posted by dab on April 29, 2001 at 14:12:36 PT |
| This article is like the many others that try to make marijuana look worse than it really is. Every statement in the article is true, a joint is four times worse than a cigarette, and that does mean that marijuana can cause cancer. So the writer uses these facts to make it look real bad, but lets look at what really happens. If you smoke cigarette's you get addicted and you end up smoking a pack a day, a marijuana smoker has to smoke fife bowls a day to equil one pack of cigarette's and the majority of pot smokers don't smoke this much. The article states that people WILL be getting cancer, this has been stated for decades and decades. Why don't you look up and see how many people who smoked marijuana, and marijuana alone actually have got cancer. I won't tell you because I want you to see for yourself. [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #22 posted by pyt on April 25, 2001 at 09:45:29 PT |
| this is a messsage to hat...you're the junk monkey here, this guy isnt even aginst pot you dumbass- read the fucking article and lay off the drugs bitch! [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #21 posted by hat on April 24, 2001 at 23:09:54 PT |
| fuck you....you are a faggot...if u dont smoke it then mind your own business and let other peopple do what they want...it isnt harming you is it...bitch [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #20 posted by Alex on April 11, 2001 at 22:10:54 PT |
| Now now, lets take a look at this, HONESTLY!! I smoked a lot of weed in a few years. I now sometimes cannot remember what I did yesterday, or what I was supposed to do today, or what I was thinking about doing tomorrow. My friends and I all smoked together, and we all agree that marijuanna, in some way, kills brain cells or something vital to the thinking process. Shouldn't that be enough right there to stop? Do you have to continue to ride this "pot is ok, it never killed anyone" bandwagon. If you are totally honest with yourself, you should know that there is something bad going on somewhere in your body which causes that great high. I am no scientist, and I don't want to hear all this "it has never been proven" crap. Marijuanna is illegal for good reason. So whether or not you " legalize it" people continue to smoke up is your choice, but please stop denying the fact that you're screwing up your brain, or dare I say, your entire body. Could it be that some of you truly know that something is wrong, but your too scared/proud to admit it? Please be honest with yourself while reading this and forget all the science crap. That is if you've been able to read this entire message without losing your concentration. [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #19 posted by FrequentPotSmoker on March 22, 2001 at 14:58:32 PT |
| how often do you hear someone dying of marijuanna use? NEVER! how often do you hear about people dying of ciggarettes? EVERY SINGLE DAY! why is marijuanna illegal...gimmme one good mother f****** reason...how about them apples? [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #18 posted by ggalore on February 23, 2001 at 04:08:52 PT |
| marijuana is illegal. [ Post Comment ] |
|
Comment #17 posted by Jeremy on February 15, 2001 at 12:29:52 PT:
|
| What do you mean cancer? I would like a follow up on this new research. [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #16 posted by observer on February 02, 2001 at 15:25:48 PT |
| ...if marrijuana is dangerous in the least it should be illegal ... That's pretty silly. Gravity and water kill many people every year. Cars kill many more. Nothing, not even air, is completely harmless. (Injecting air can kill you, for example.) No, instead of a bunch of little emperors deciding what is not allowed -- for other people -- we need to get back to, to return to the basic, traditional freedoms that all Americans once enjoyed, freedoms that have been stolen from us by people who assure us that adults need to be jailed for using cannabis, because it is "protecting the children". People are begininning to wake up and smell the hogwash. [ Post Comment ] |
|
Comment #15 posted by blazinaswespeak on February 02, 2001 at 14:46:56 PT:
|
| I don't know if smoking bud causes or in any way helps the growth of cancer or tumors of any kind, and i understand that smoking tobacco is bad and that it being legal is a contradiction when you think about how much more harmful it is, but that is nowhere near an acceptable excuse for smoking weed if it does help or cause cancer and such.People are always looking for ways to justify stupidity, if marrijuana is dangerous in the least it should be illegal, that doesn't mean it's right to have tobbaco legal by any means, but stop saying that you should be able to smoke dangerous drugs, because a more dangerous one is legal. ...again i don't know if it is destructive physically in any way but if it is you should know better than to smoke it.....could someone tell me if it's dangerous too? everyone says yes then someone says no it's hard to find out. [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #14 posted by observer on January 19, 2001 at 14:33:56 PT |
| (see Richard Cowan's analysis of this 1999 report, here: http://marijuananews.com/marijuana_can_cause_cancer.htm ) I have to say that my boyfriend just found out that he had a cancer in his throat. He smokes frequently and for the past 5 years has been a frequent pot user in addition to drinking daily. So, if you haven't had a loved one go through this, you have no idea what you are talking about. You only get one life so why not make it last and get high on life itself, which definitely makes more sense. Are some of you too selfish to leave those who love you out??? How ignorant! Jen, we're worry that your friend who smokes cigarettes and drinks alcohol, and who also smokes pot, got cancer. But there's really no way to say that the pot caused the cancer, and not the cigarettes and drinking. The fact that it is a "loved one" going through something, doesn't mean that others are "ignorant", no matter how much you might want such to be so. for example, see: Study Finds No Link Between Marijuana Use and Head, Neck,or Lung Cancer (May, 2000)
See: Marijuana Ingredient Kills Rat Brain Tumors (Feb 2000) Marijuana Ingredient May Fight Brain Cancer (Feb 2000) Study Indicates THC May Eradicate Brain Tumors (Mar 2000) etc. [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #13 posted by Dan Hillman on January 19, 2001 at 14:20:09 PT |
| Want to avoid cancer of the throat that can be caused by pot smoke (or any other kind of smoke, for that matter)? Then buy and use a vaporizer, which will allow inhalation of thc-laden cannabis vapor without burning the plant material. http://www.vriptech.com/index2.html http://www.legalcannabis.com/scart/SS-VETE-EterraVapor.html [ Post Comment ] |
|
Comment #12 posted by Jen on January 19, 2001 at 13:52:08 PT:
|
| I have to say that my boyfriend just found out that he had a cancer in his throat. He smokes frequently and for the past 5 years has been a frequent pot user in addition to drinking daily. So, if you haven't had a loved one go through this, you have no idea what you are talking about. You only get one life so why not make it last and get high on life itself, which definitely makes more sense. Are some of you too selfish to leave those who love you out??? How ignorant! [ Post Comment ] |
|
Comment #11 posted by Red on January 08, 2001 at 13:00:14 PT:
|
| I have a ton of friends (ages 15-18) who honestly believe that there is no harm in smoking marijuanna. When I informed them that smoking it may cause cancer, the reply I recieved was "yeah but how many things DON'T cause cancer nowadays?" They proceeded to tell me that junk food, caffeine, and other food that is bad for you is just as risky as smoking pot. I feel that this is a poor justification for their bad habit, and I would like some more information on other effects of marijuanna. If you could help me out, please email me. Thank you. [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #10 posted by Scott :Ohio Unv Alum on November 23, 2000 at 07:43:03 PT |
|
Comment #9 posted by Smoke on November 03, 2000 at 06:08:41 PT:
|
| Comment #8 posted by AussieChick! on October 19, 2000 at 01:54:19 PT |
But, instead of attacking, we should be compasstionate, like we are with heroin and etc users..... becasue at the end of the day.... IT IS A DRUG, A CHEMICAL CHANGING ADDICTIVE DRUG AND ANY DRUG IS NOT GOOD FOR THE BODY LET ALONE THE SOUL!
Those who are addicted to Marijuana are not living in reality, they are in a world of thier own..... and as peaceful as it is, u are only fooling urself!..... meanwhile loosing loved ones letalong loosing yourself!
You will one day wake up and look in the mirror and not know who the hell your looking at, and although every single human has this happen at some stage in their life, you wont be able to cope because u are dependant on this fake world!
Please have a reality check..... see what it is ur doing, and how not worth it , it is!! Because it really is NOT worth it!!!
| Comment #7 posted by FoM on December 18, 1999 at 12:05:40 PT |
http://aacr.edoc.com/cep/v8n12/ce001071.html
Copyright © 1999
By the American Association for Cancer Research
| Comment #6 posted by military officer guy on December 17, 1999 at 15:15:34 PT |
|
Comment #5 posted by Demian on December 17, 1999 at 12:08:16 PT:
|
| Comment #4 posted by FoM on December 17, 1999 at 10:45:22 PT |
|
Comment #3 posted by sean on December 17, 1999 at 10:00:26 PT:
|
| Comment #2 posted by FoM on December 17, 1999 at 09:08:33 PT |
| Comment #1 posted by legalizeit on December 17, 1999 at 08:41:57 PT |
Of course, ABC and other media outlets conveniently ignore any news story that might sound "pro-pot." What happened to all the other studies which show that pot is much less harmful than Reefer Madness told us? You have to go here or to marijuananews.com to see them.
173 patients compared to 176 controls is nowhere near sufficient to make a conclusive judgement on the link between cannabis and cancer. Did the doctor check other facets of the patients' backgrounds than pot use? He even admitted that the cancers he is talking about also appear in tobacco and alcohol users. Therefore, if the pot smokers also heavily used the other two, the study has no merit.
How did he determine that the carcinogens in pot are "much
stronger" than tobacco? The report says nothing of that.
Even if this study turns out to be substantiated in any way by larger and more accurate studies, we return to the question: Why is possession of a substance only anecdotally linked to cancer a jailable offence, yet a substance which is a proven killer and causes more cancer and heart-disease related deaths than any other, is perfectly legal?
Something is VERY wrong here....
| Post Comment |  |
|  |