Medicinal cannabis benefits cancer patients – 09/27/2023 – Balance and Health

Doctors who trivialize the prescription of medicinal Cannabis put the health of patients at risk, says doctor Paula Dall’Stella, founder and CEO of Sativa Global Education, a training company in endocannabinoid medicine.

According to her, plant derivatives can contribute to the treatment of many diseases, but must be taken seriously due to their adverse effects.

The speech took place this Wednesday (27), during the 10th Congress of the All Together Against Cancer Movement. Mediated by Bruno Magliari, founder of Lev Cannabis, experts met to discuss scientific evidence about the substances obtained from marijuana.

Dall’Stella explains that cannabinoids are not indicated for all cases. Known for its ability to act on the endocannabinoid system —responsible for regulating a series of processes in the body—, medicinal Cannabis can interact with other medications used by the patient, causing adverse effects and even leading to death.

“Today, it is estimated that around 1% to 2% of doctors in Brazil have education on the subject. The first barrier for those who need it is finding a professional who really understands the subject”, he says. “The doctor’s role is not to advocate for a plant, it is to value patient safety.”

Endocannabinology is the field responsible for studying the interaction between cannabinoids and the human body. In recent decades, it has increasingly gained the attention of scientists, doctors and patients around the world, due to evidence that suggests a great therapeutic potential for substances obtained from the plant.

In oncology, oils and other products derived from the species are capable of alleviating the side effects of aggressive cancer treatments, controlling nausea, vomiting, pain, mood changes and contributing to the maintenance of sleep. According to experts, it is common to see patients who, when using cannabinoids, are able to remove several medications from their daily lives.

This is the case of Ana Márcia, 25, whose testimony was presented in a video. Diagnosed with leukemia, she sought Cannabis oil from the beginning of chemotherapy. She was unable to access the SUS and sought out patient associations and private doctors to start treatment.

When he started using the product, he stopped using allopathic medicines, such as Quetiapine and Vonau. “Medicine alone doesn’t work a miracle. It’s important to take care of your diet and physical and mental health,” she says.

For Ivo Bucaresky, former director of Anvisa (National Health Security Agency), the country is following a movement that is global. The expert explains that the war on drugs delayed the discussion of access to Cannabis around the world and says that the first time that the medicinal use of marijuana reached the agency’s radar was in 2013.

Since then, the agency has worked to facilitate access to these medicines. Even though the debate was difficult at first, due to a lack of consensus among the medical community, Anvisa managed to gradually bypass the most resistant sectors of society, presenting the results of research and patient reports.

“There was a lot of prejudice, many said it was a way of bringing illicit drugs into legality,” he says.

Today, patients with a medical prescription in Brazil can import medicines, find them in pharmacies or buy directly from associations. The difference, according to Dall’Stella, is security.

“Pharmaceutical products have a very rigorous production and manufacturing process. Imported and artisanal products do not give us clarity about their composition”, he states.

She advocates for greater equal access to these substances, mainly through the SUS. It also states that there is a need to better prepare and raise awareness among health professionals so that they are able to provide guidance.

Malu Orsini, one of the panel’s guests, is in remission from Hodgkin’s lymphoma, which she treated through chemotherapy associated with the use of medicinal Cannabis. She was diagnosed at age 20, four months after noticing a lump on her neck. “When we are young, it is taboo to talk about cancer,” she says, justifying the delay in seeking a specialist.

Daughter of parents who are activists for cannabidiol treatment, she says that the search for marijuana treatment was natural. Still, the first doctor she saw didn’t look favorably on this option. Through the patient association, she gained access to an oncologist and a family doctor qualified to prescribe the substance.

Orsini says that, after biweekly therapy sessions, he spent four days without eating due to lack of appetite and one of the benefits of cannabinoids was precisely to bring back hunger.

Furthermore, she noticed relief from the pain she felt in her bones and sleep regulation. “My life changed because of this medicine,” she says.

The 10th All Together Against Cancer Congress takes place until this Thursday (28), in São Paulo, in online and in-person formats. There will be, in total, around 200 speakers, including teachers, patients and authorities.