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Coburn Wants Research? We'll Give Him Research!

Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK) recently introduced an amendment in Congress aimed at obstructing state medical cannabis laws, despite widespread and growing support for medical cannabis. Fortunately, we helped kill the amendment – so its down but not out!

During committee debate, Sen. Coburn challenged us to produce even a single research article to demonstrate that smoked cannabis may be effective treatment for any condition.

So let’s take him up on his offer! Since 2007, the Center for Medical Cannabis Research (CMCR) has sponsored four double-blind, placebo-controlled, FDA-approved Phase 1 and 2 clinical trials which demonstrate that smoking cannabis (marijuana), even in low doses, effectively alleviates the neuropathy pain associated with HIV/AIDS. Send an email to Senator Coburn with links to each of the following four studies so he can read them for himself!

In February 2007, Neurology published the results of a Phase I clinical trial which concluded smoked cannabis was well tolerated and effectively relieved chronic neurpathic pain from HIV-associated sensory neuropathy. The findings are comparable to oral drugs used for chronic neuropathic pain. You can read the study here: http://www.cmcr.ucsd.edu/geninfo/abrams_2007.pdf
In November 2007, Anesthesiology published results of a clinical trial conducted by researchers at UCSD Center for Pain Medicine which concluded that normal volunteers subjected to chemically induced pain which mimics neuropathy also responded to medium doses of smoked cannabis. You can read the study here: http://www.cmcr.ucsd.edu/geninfo/Ellis_2008.pdf
In June 2008, the Journal of Pain, published the results of a clinical trial conducted by researchers at UC Davis which also concluded that even low doses of smoked cannabis can be effective in managing hard-to-treat neuropathic pain. In fact, investigators found that low- and high-dose cannabis produced similar levels of pain relief, reducing the intensity of the severe nerve pain. The researchers specifically noted that cannabis not only fights pain itself but also interacts with opiate-based painkillers to increase their effectiveness, particularly in neuropathic pain. They also note that using isolated synthetic cannabinoids such as THC (dronabinol) did not provide the same degree of efficacy as a whole-plant preparation of cannabis. You can read the study here: http://www.cmcr.ucsd.edu/geninfo/Wilsey_2008.pdf
In August 2008, Neuropsychopharmacology, published the results of a Phase II clinical trial conducted by researchers at UCSD School of Medicine which concluded, once again, that smoked cannabis was generally well tolerated and effective when added to concomitant analgesic therapy in patients with HIV-related neuropathy pain not adequately controlled by other pain-relievers. You can read the study here: http://www.cmcr.ucsd.edu/geninfo/Wallace_2007.pdf

Or better yet - spend 10 minutes and $2 to print out the studies and send them directly to his office at: The Honorable Senator Tom Coburn, 172 Russell Senate Office Bldg. Washington, DC 20510

February 09, 2010

Subject:

Dear Honorable Senator Coburn

I understand that, during a recent committee debate on medical marijuana, you challenged anyone to present just one single study that shows smoked cannabis to be an effective treatment for any condition. I've decided to take you up on that challenge. Since 2007, the Center for Medical Cannabis Research (CMCR) at the University of California has sponsored four double-blind, placebo-controlled, FDA-approved Phase 1 and 2 clinical trials which demonstrate that smoking cannabis (marijuana), even in low doses, effectively alleviates the neuropathy pain associated with HIV/AIDS. The results of these clinical trials have been reviewed and published by reputable medical journals. · In February 2007, the journal "Neurology" published the results of a Phase I clinical trial which concluded smoked cannabis was well tolerated and effectively relieved chronic neuropathic pain from HIV-associated sensory neuropathy. The findings are comparable to oral drugs used for chronic neuropathic pain. You can read the study here: http://www.cmcr.ucsd.edu/geninfo/abrams_2007.pdf · In November 2007, the journal "Anesthesiology" published results of a clinical trial conducted by researchers at UCSD Center for Pain Medicine which concluded that normal volunteers subjected to chemically induced pain which mimics neuropathy responded favorably to medium doses of smoked cannabis. You can read the study here: http://www.cmcr.ucsd.edu/geninfo/Ellis_2008.pdf · In June 2008, the Journal of Pain, published the results of a clinical trial conducted by researchers at UC Davis which concluded that even low doses of smoked cannabis can be effective in managing hard-to-treat neuropathic pain. In fact, investigators found that low- and high-dose cannabis produced similar levels of pain relief, reducing the intensity of the severe nerve pain. The researchers specifically noted that cannabis not only fights pain itself but also interacts with opiate-based painkillers to increase their effectiveness, particularly in neuropathic pain. They also note that using isolated synthetic cannabinoids such as THC (dronabinol/Marinol) did not provide the same degree of efficacy as a whole-plant preparation of cannabis. You can read the study here: http://www.cmcr.ucsd.edu/geninfo/Wilsey_2008.pdf · In August 2008, the journal "Neuropsychopharmacology" published the results of a Phase II clinical trial conducted by researchers at UCSD School of Medicine which concluded, once again, that smoked cannabis was generally well tolerated and effective when added to concomitant analgesic therapy in patients with HIV-related neuropathy pain not adequately controlled by other pain-relievers. You can read the study here: http://www.cmcr.ucsd.edu/geninfo/Wallace_2007.pdf These four double blind, placebo controlled studies are the first of their kind in the United States. However, many other studies have demonstrated the positive therapeutic benefits of cannabis and its constituents for a wide range of conditions. I hope these four studies satisfy your challenge and prompt you to look further into the medical research and potential of cannabis. Sincerely,
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