The Science of Medical Cannabis: A Conversation with Donald Abrams, M.D.

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Donald Abrams, M.D. is chief of Hematology and Oncology at San Francisco General Hospital and the co-author—with Andrew Weil—of Integrative Oncology (Oxford University Press). Abrams has extensive experience working with cancer and HIV/AIDS patients and is a pioneer in the field of medical cannabis research.

The U.S. government classifies cannabis—along with heroin and LSD—as a Schedule I drug, the most tightly restricted category of drugs in the United States. According to the federal government, Schedule I drugs are unsafe and have “no currently accepted medical use in treatment in the United States.”

However, as medical cannabis proponents have pointed out since the Controlled Substances Act was passed by Congress in 1970, cannabis has been used medicinally for thousands of years, and there has never been a reported case of a marijuana overdose. Moreover, in recent years clinical researchers around the world have demonstrated the medicinal value of cannabis.

Reason.tv’s Paul Feine sat down with Dr. Abrams to learn more about the science of medical cannabis.

Approximately 10 minutes. Produced by Paul Feine and Alex Manning.

Go to http://reason.tv for HD, iPod and audio versions of this video and subscribe to Reason.tv’s YouTube channel to receive automatic notification when new material goes live.

Comments

Crowd Author says:

So, this will be a really good test of a new concept I have cultivated called "crowd-authoring."
Cognition and intelligence are ‘socially distributed’; instead of dwelling inside the single mind of an individual or a few marijuana advocates they are spread throughout the different minds of all people of earth. Book authorship by sole individuals and partners for profit is out-dated. If the goal of a good book is complete knowledge, we must develop mechanisms that systematically bring together these fragmented pieces of cognition and intelligence from all over the globe.

Drum roll please……..

I started a book called The Cannabis Bible which I am open sourcing in a collaborative effort to bring all cannabis knowledge under one master book title, written by the people of earth. Please contribute!

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1e4gtDtY5GU2rGh-nG6uXGZNSdLFk8a9uLzBt2oZ3V_8/edit

Lee Johnson says:

Smoking or ingesting Marijuana makes life much better for seniors.  Seniors have aches and Pains. Marijuana helps relieve the Aches and Pains that old people have.

MA CY says:

ok this guys doesn't know shit, cannabis oil has been curing people of "terminal cancers" and all other horrible disease… for a very long time… sorry you guys didn't get the memo Look up Rick Simpson oil, look up US Patent 6630507 when u digest extremely potent decarboxylated cannabinoids they interact with your endocannabinoid system and regulates bodily function thus allowing to return to normal healthy state i know all sorts of people fully cured when their doctor gave them no hope and suggested chemo and radiation- socialtally accepted genocide- oh no biggie.

MooseBeef says:

i have some information that you may find useful, so PM me if you are interested!

Marie Jose says:

Would it really work I hve colon and anal cancer and it looks bad pple gave me cannabisoil hope it might save me no other options

philip stettler says:

his ending statement blew it away! but he should have talk about the benefits of rick simpson,s oil, the worl needs to get out!

SusanNoonan says:

If you can ingest enough, it'll most likely cure cancer.
Look up Dr. Abrams friend, Dr. William Courtney as well as Dr. Melamede. One discusses ingesting raw cannabis, the other talks about RSO. Rick Simpson Oil.

Ricy Mardona says:

Excellent post.

Christopher Sawtell says:

I read that they have licensed Sativex from GW Pharm. under that patent.

Jetpilotjoe007 says:

United States government patent 6630507 – Cannabinoids as antioxidants and neuro-protectants

trichometrist1 says:

Oct 16 2012, Can science prevail in rescheduling cannabis?
Americans For Safe Access has a court date today .
If Doctors like Dr Abrams and hundreds of others in the medical field did not push against the "machine" We would not have learned much about the miraculous qualities of Cannabis.
Makes me wonder how many other Plants have been demonized by Pharma Co and government bureaucrats. Life saving holistic medicines held back from society so a few chemicals Co can reap billions in profits!

Debra McPherson says:

Awesome interview!!! Thanks to those who arranged it and to Dr. Abrams. He speaks the truth and should be commended for this interview.

Matilda Rose Lumley says:

Marijuana kicks anxiety and depressions ass :p
I love it

greenman1331 says:

Cannabis can save untold suffering and thier lies deny the sick, and crippled safe affordable medicine.

Joel Ostrow says:

my brother in-law has colon cancer, medical marijuana has helped him tremendously with his appetite, nousea and pain. I hope it becomes legal in every state, ill people can benefic greatly from this wonderful herb.

matty mul says:

this should be written in my schools data bases im trying to write a research paper about medical marijuana and all the sources are just a bunch a crap a bout politics why is marajuana the one substance that we can't do tests on

Diz Darlin says:

And God said, "Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit. You shall have them for food. And to every beast of the earth and to every bird of the heavens and to everything that creeps on the earth, everything that has the breath of life, I have given every green plant for food." And it was so. ~ Genesis 1:29-30

Zaper692 says:

This man is truly awesome! A well educate old white man talking about the greatness of marijuana…
The world is so amusing!

CMPerceptions says:

The miracle plant

MIB205 says:

3 people are dam robo politicians

cainedbutabel says:

Oh my God its MR ROGERS! I always knew there was a reason he was so nice!

maria3626352 says:

the powers that b will only legalize it wen they have their dirty little paws on the worlds drug supply!

rh001YT says:

@Blunted206 Come now, MJ has "hundreds" of known medical uses. Surely you must be high. At best, MJ has about 3 medical uses of significance, but has side effects, like most meds, and is no miracle drug at all. Because you are a pothead, you will make nonsensical statements like "hundreds' of medical uses. Not only does weed cause stupifaction, but generally is only smoked to any degree by the already stupid. If you go sober for 3 months, and deal with your anxieties, you will likely quit.

rh001YT says:

@Jedwardkakin Sorry if it seems I'm picking on you, but I do think for some reason you have become a bit scatterbrained. No on except a pot head would think it particularly clever to use god-created as a justification for taking a drug that puts you under the control of the plant and the pusher. If a notion of god has anything to do with freedom, then you have to be free of the plant and the pusher. Few really objects to the few who might actually get pain relief – you make a Straw Man.

rh001YT says:

@Jedwardkakin Hmmm… how far have you taken your schooling? There is something wrong with how you think. More people have benefitted from synthetic drugs (which are often plant derived) than have ever benefitted from weed. Why turn the issue upside down? Do you understand that your brain did that, and then you believed it and then typed it? What is controlling you? What system do you use to test the validity of a thought, question why you are having it, and then choose to make it public?

rh001YT says:

@Jedwardkakin Some art/music is created by stoners, but I don't think there is a way to know what that percentage is. No historians think Beethoven,Bach,Vivaldi,etc were puffing out. But you don't quite get the point: "intelligence" and "using drugs, even weed" are mutually exclusive. Intelligence can't be defined just any way at all, else it would be meaningless. An intelligenct person would say "the weed makes me like it due to chemical trickery, thus I will not fall for that trick".

rh001YT says:

@Jedwardkakin There are persons in India, known as fakirs (fakers) who dress as Hindu priests and stay high pretty much all day. Most/all educated Indians understand they are stoners & pests and don't take them seriously. The fakirs rarely have a congregation. More serious Hindu priests/teachers can have congregations in the hundreds of thousands, and they do not advocate weed use, except in Bhang, or for sex ala Kama Sutra. However Kama Sutra is only for the Brahmins who tend not to puff out.

Jake Eakin says:

@rh001YT , but I'd rather have anyone who chooses to do so smoke a joint than pop a pill.

Jake Eakin says:

@rh001YT Marijuana is still smoked in India as a religious sacrament. I do not use myself, but I know plenty of motivated, intelligent people who do. Look at art created by people under the influence. See the hundreds of people who get pain relief from something God created, and not man made drugs. Take note of the fact that more people die from synthetic drugs the medical industry has provided than will ever be directly attributed to the use of cannabis. You'll always have those who abuse drugs

rh001YT says:

In India, the native soil of marijuana (ganga, after the Ganges river valley) marijuana is only smoked by a subset of the criminal class and street kids (6 million of them). With a long history of ganga availability the Hindus figured out that the drug causes stupidity and laziness and largely avoided it even before it was criminalized. However a blended drink known as bhang which contains some ganga is legal during the wedding ceremony. Obviously use in India is tied to anxiety alleviation.

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