QuestionF10

**F. Should the use of medical marijuana be allowed?**
===I believe that the use of medical marijuana should be allowed, but there is some controversy on this issue because there are many people who are prescribed with medical marijuana who don't particurlarly need it. I think it should be prescribed to patients only who have a serious illness and not just to relieve pain from a minor injury. Patients who have cancer can benefit from the use of marijuana because it can help relieve pain during chemotherapy. However, there are some people who go to a state where purchasing marijuana is legal if you have a medical card and buy it for the wrong reasons. This isn't so dangerous because there has never been a death occur strictly from the use of marijuana, but is just not right to do this. The use of medical marijuana should be allowed if it is given out carefully so it isn't abused by drug users. It is beneficial for aneroxia patients to help them eat, and beneficial to those with cancer so they can get some sleep. If doctors could distribute this drug without it getting out of hand then I think it should be legal. It is still a widely debated issue and I think they need to come up with more restrictions before making it legal everywhere. (KE)=== ===**The use of medical marijuana is nationally debated and requires deep analysis of the consequences. I personally believe that medical marijuana should be allowed, the patient should be analyzed to see if they have a history of drug use and medical vulnerability. It is still unsure if marijuana is addictive or not, so therefore we have to be extra precautious with the prescription of medical marijuana. Patients with high blood pressure should not be prescribed marijuana because it could increase their risk of a stroke or heart disease. Patients with a past of drug abuse should not be prescribed medical marijuana because their intentions may not be fore medical purposes. Therefore I believe that medical marijuana should be allowed, but an intensive analysis of the patient should be made, and enforce moderation of the drug. If more tests are done and it proves that marijuana is addictive the distribution of medical marijuana should be stopped immediately. (KC)**=== ====If legalizing the use of marijuana for medicinal purposes, that would probably raise public safety concerns. There are public health and safety reasons for Congress to not legalize the use of marijuana for medicinal purposes. There are no generally accepted studies supporting that smoking marijuana is beneficial to one's health. Studies do indicate that THC can be useful for the treatment of some medical problems. Studies conclude that smoking marijuana is not recommended for any medical use due to numerous adverse medical effects. Even though marijuana can be use in medical purposes, but I feel like it is not a good idea for marijuana to be legalize. It could increases the risk of diversion of marijuana into illegal channels. WL====

====I believe that medical marijuana should be allowed for relief of pain such as symptoms of chemo therapy. Doctors should be able to offer it as an option for patients' to decide if they want to take it or not. In California, it has been used for years by cancer patients to relieve the side effects of chemo therapy. Medical marijuana use is only legal in California, once a person goes outside the state border it is no longer legally allowed to be used by the cancer patient. Marijuana lessens the side effects of chemo therapy, marijuana prevents the nausea, it keeps people hungry, and helps people sleep better; which is exactly what would help a person who has cancer. SS====

I believe that there will always be many disputes over medical marijuana, but after looking at the social, emotional, and physical aspects of addiction throughout America, or the world, I think society would struggle handling a legal drug. But, I do support the usage of medical marijuana for people sick with cancer, anorexia, or MS. Medical marijuana can be compared to the use of methadone in rehab clinics for heroine addicts. The use of the drug can only help the patient who's in pain. There has never been proved to be an over-dose of marijuana, or extreme adverse social, emotional, ad physical side effects. Although, whether it's smoking marijuana or tobacco, the risk of lung cancer and other health complications are at risk. So, if medical marijuana can help reduce the pain of nausea for a cancer patient in pill form filled with pure THC, why not help the sick. The government should make a tight hold on how easily the medical marijuana is distributed. In the state of California you can go to a local pot store and buy a gram if you have a medical card. I believe this is the wrong way of going about things because it is creating yet another black market of illegal smuggling. (EG)

Anyone who can actually benefit from marijuana in order to relieve his or her pain due to their illness should be allowed to use it as prescribed. My mom lost her best friend to breast cancer after years of chemotherapy, even as her condition looked as if it were getting better. She was treated at the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in Manhattan, a facility that is well-known for its exceptional care of its patients and one that has a good reputation in the medical world. Even Sloan Kettering couldn't save her, and she died two weeks after her 40th birthday. My point in mentioning this is to make a case for more widespread use of the drug as treatment; Sloan Kettering does not use marijuana as part of its treating their patients according to their website's info on their forms of treatment. But a 2007 study conducted by the California Pacific Medical Center and the information released in early 2010 (see source at the end of this entry) about these findings suggests that marijuana can help stop the spread of cancer to other areas of the body; THC and cannabidiol, two compounds found in marijuana, were found to be effective as combination therapy. Columbia University also published evidence of marijuana's medicinal effects in 2008, with clinical trial data that saw HIV/AIDS patients being able to eat with less discomfort but showing "no impairment of cognitive performance." I agree with Emily in terms of regulating the substance. Many can go to California and get medical marijuana cards for headaches or other trivial symptoms, problems that most likely wouldn't need marijuana in order to relieve or work to cure them. It is this that we should be worried about with medical marijuana and not about what it does to the brain. Cognitive health is crucial to our functioning, but with Columbia's clinical trial it showed no switch in cognitive ability in the patients studied. If it can help someone through an illness where they would otherwise struggle, I fully support its use. (JO) ([]) ([]) ([])