|
Medical
Marijuana:
FDA
Rejecting
Marijuana
as
Medicine
Draws
Scientific
Criticism
4/21/06
https://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle-old/432/fda.shtml
In a statement
Thursday, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) rejected the use of smoked
marijuana as a medicine, saying "no sound scientific studies" supported
its use. The FDA's "inter-agency advisory" directly contradicts the
findings of the highly-regarded 1999 National Academy of Science Institute
of Medicine's review of the subject, "Marijuana
and Medicine."
FDA spokeswoman Susan Bro
told the New York Times Thursday the agency issued the statement in response
to inquiries from Capitol Hill. Congressional arch-drug warrior Rep.
Mark Souder (R-IN) two years ago filed a bill that would have forced the
FDA to issue an opinion.
Souder is a fervent opponent
of medical marijuana. A Souder spokesman, Martin Green, told the
Times Souder believes medical marijuana is a front to get marijuana legalized.
John Walters, director of
the Office
of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP), is also a medical marijuana
opponent. His spokesman, Tom Riley, said the drug czar hoped the
FDA position statement would put an end to "the bizarre public discussion"
that has led 11 states to legalize and regulate its use.
But "bizarre" might be more
aptly applied to the FDA finding, if the scientists involved with the Institute
of Medicine report are right. It found marijuana "moderately well
suited for particular conditions, such as chemotherapy-induced nausea and
vomiting and AIDS wasting" and potential for more applications.
The Times talked to Dr. John
Benson, who co-chaired the IOM committee that studied medical marijuana.
He said bluntly that the FDA was wrong. The federal government "loves
to ignore our report," said Benson. "They would rather it never happened."
Other scientists were equally
skeptical. "Unfortunately, this is yet another example of the FDA
making pronouncements that seem to be driven more by ideology than by science,"
said Dr. Jerry Avorn, a medical professor at Harvard Medical School.
-- END --
|
Issue #432
-- 4/21/06
Feature:
In
Colombia,
The
More
They
Spray,
The
More
They
Grow
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Feature:
If
It's
4/20,
It
Must
Be
NORML:
Annual
Conference
Gets
Underway
In
San
Francisco
|
Feature:
Million
Marijuana
Marches
Loom,
As
Do
Perennial
Questions
About
Their
Utility
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Offer:
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Feedback:
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Law
Enforcement:
This
Week's
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Stories
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Marijuana:
Alaska
House
Rejects
Recriminalization
Bill
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Marijuana:
University
of
Maryland
Students
Vote
to
Equalize
Marijuana,
Alcohol
Penalties
|
Medical
Marijuana:
FDA
Rejecting
Marijuana
as
Medicine
Draws
Scientific
Criticism
|
Psychedelics:
Leading
Medical
Journal
Calls
for
More
LSD
in
Research
Labs
|
Africa:
Mozambique
Official
Rejects
Calls
to
Destroy
Farmers'
Marijuana
Crops
|
Caribbean:
Bermuda
Drug
Chief
Leans
Toward
Downgrading
Marijuana
Offenses
|
Errata:
Drugged
Driving
|
Drugged
Driving:
The
State
of
the
Research
|
Weekly:
The
Reformer's
Calendar
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