Pubdate: Mon, 29 Jun 2015
Source: Denver Post (CO)
Copyright: 2015 The Denver Post Corp
Contact:  http://www.denverpost.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/122

MOMENT OF TRUTH FOR MEDICAL POT

With so little scientific evidence that medical marijuana does what 
it is purported to do, it may be time to retire the medical model - 
at least in states like Colorado where marijuana can be legally 
purchased by any adult.

A recently released comprehensive review of dozens of clinical trials 
on medical marijuana found scant reliable evidence to support the 
drug's use for all but a handful of maladies.

Medical marijuana proponents argue the results don't tell the whole 
story because of federal barriers to legitimate research. That may be 
true. Both the state and feds should support and encourage more 
research so decisions around medical pot can be guided by 
high-quality evidence.

Nor do we discount the sincerity of the many personal testimonials 
regarding medical pot across a range of conditions.

Nonetheless, an editorial by Yale University physicians that 
accompanied the study in the Journal of the American Medical 
Association pointed out that states have generally approved medical 
marijuana use by relying on "low-quality scientific evidence, 
anecdotal reports, individual testimonials, legislative initiatives 
and public opinion."

Imagine if other drugs were approved this way, said the editorial, 
observing that medical marijuana fails to meet the standards of the 
U.S. Food and Drug Administration for most conditions.

Critics have long suspected that medical claims were mostly a ruse to 
legalize weed. If that is not the case, then medical pot should be 
able to prove its efficacy through the same research methods as every 
other medicine.

This JAMA review of 79 trials involving nearly 6,500 patients 
concluded medical pot helped with specific pain syndromes and 
spasticity from multiple sclerosis. But there was poor evidence it is 
good for other conditions that make up most medical marijuana 
programs. And meanwhile, patients suffered side effects with 
disturbing frequency.

Colorado is spending money on its own research. And the Obama 
administration has lifted some barriers to federal studies. However, 
if research continues to find pot is useless for many of the maladies 
for which it is used, states will want to revisit the extent of their 
support for it.

Colorado's Amendment 20, which legalized medical marijuana in 2000, 
lists several "debilitating medical conditions" - such as glaucoma - 
for which there is still apparently little or no good evidence of a 
true benefit. And while it would be extremely difficult to change the 
measure, that doesn't mean the possibility shouldn't be discussed.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom