The National Multiple Sclerosis Society recommendations are firmly rooted in the basic and clinical information available from studies to date and in their limitations. Although it is clear that cannabinoids have potential both for the management of MS symptoms such as pain and spasticity, as well as for neuroprotection, the Society cannot at this time recommend that medical marijuana be made widely available to people with MS for symptom management. This decision was not only based on existing legal barriers to its use but, even more importantly, because studies to date do not demonstrate a clear benefit compared to existing symptomatic therapies and because issues of side effects, systemic effects, and long-term effects are not yet clear. This situation might change, should better data become available that clearly demonstrate benefit.Key recommendations for research priorities include:

• Better study outcome measures need to be developed.
• A consensus is needed on standards for trial design to test the efficacy of cannabinoids for symptomatic management.
• Because inhaled smoked cannabis has more favorable pharmacokinetics than administration via oral or other routes, research should focus on the development of an inhaled mode of administration that gives results as close to smoked cannabis as possible.
• Longer-term side effect data need to be obtained.
• There are sufficient data available to suggest that cannabinoids may have neuroprotective effects that studies in this area should be aggressively pursued.

(Emphasis mine)

I think it is important to see the positives in this paper.  The MS Society seems to be saying that medical marijuana is promising, but because it is illegal and there aren’t definitive studies, they can’t come out and recommend it.  They are clearly calling for more research and it is good to see them recognizing the efficacy of inhaled cannabis vs. pills or sprays (can you say “vaporizer”, boys and girls?)

Can Cannabis Compounds Slow The Progression Of Multiple Sclerosis?
The CUPID (Cannabinoid Use in Progressive Inflammatory brain Disease) study at the Peninsula Medical School in Plymouth has reached an important milestone with the news that the full cohort of 493 people with multiple sclerosis (MS) has been recruited to the study.

CUPID is a clinical trial which will evaluate whether tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), one of many compounds found in the in the cannabis plant (and the main active ingredient) is able to slow the progression of MS.

This is an important study for people with MS because current treatments either target the immune system in the early stages of MS, or are aimed at easing specific symptoms such as muscle spasms or bladder problems. At present there is no treatment which slows progression of the disease.

The CUPID trial follows an earlier study — Cannabinoids and Multiple Sclerosis (CAMS) — which suggested a link between THC and the slowing of MS. The CAMS trial saw participants take THC for a year — the CUPID trial will last for longer and aims to assess the effect of THC on progressive MS.

It has taken two years to recruit the 493 participants who will each take part in the trial for three years, and in some cases three and a half years. After data cleaning and analysis the results should be available by spring/early summer 2012.

The anecdotal data are out there - I have personal experience with one MS patient who claims her cannabis regimen has halted the progression of her disease and allowed her to continue with her career as a graphic designer.   This is the kind of study our government needs to be funding, instead of the constant attention to pseudo-science designed to show marijuana’s alleged harms.

Multiple sclerosis patients who smoke marijuana in search of symptom relief are more likely to suffer cognitive shortfalls and mood disorders, new Canadian research suggests.

A slowing down in the ability to process and remember information is one significant side effect, as is a rise in the rate of depression and anxiety.

“This is a small study, so our findings are preliminary, but the bottom line is that multiple sclerosis patients who smoke cannabis appear to be at an increased risk for cognitive issues, particularly with respect to the speed of their thinking,” said study author Dr. Anthony Feinstein, a professor of psychiatry with the Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre’s department of psychiatry at the University of Toronto.

Feinstein’s observations are published in the Feb. 13 online edition of Neurology and are focused exclusively on the impact of smoking marijuana illegally obtained by patients themselves. Medically prescribed marijuana was not studied.

The researchers therefore assessed the experience of 140 Toronto-based MS outpatients, 10 of whom had smoked the drug at least once in the previous month and were considered regular marijuana users.

MS patients who used marijuana were found to perform 50 percent slower on tests tracking information-processing speed and were more likely than nonusers to have a mental disability of some kind. Marijuana use was also associated with a greater risk for being depressed or experiencing anxiety.

That’s funny… the MS patient I know who uses the herb multiple times per day is one of the most gifted Flash animators and graphic artists I know. Smart, funny, happy… maybe it’s because she’s not Canadian, could that be it?

Download the Wednesday Stash and you’ll hear Dr. Mitch Earleywine dissect this latest Reefer Madness.