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Witnesses to Pot's Medicinal Value
LA Times | 05/01/2005

Re "Pot Laws Pain Some Elders," Column One, April 28: As a three-time cancer survivor living on sheer determination, I wouldn't wish cancer on my worst enemy. Drug czar John Walters wants to compare pot with cocaine and thinks they are similar in a burst of euphoria?

In my 20s, I tried cocaine and did not like its effect on me, so I quit immediately. I have smoked marijuana at times through my 20 years of battling cancer, and found it to be comforting and mostly helpful against nausea and other ill effects from chemotherapy.

It's time this administration gets a clue on certain aspects of suffering, and legalize marijuana for the people who need it medically. As pointed out in your article, adults stricken with disease should be able to make decisions that alleviate suffering.

Spencer Shiffman

Calabasas



In my own medical marijuana consultant practice, I see many older folks who benefit from marijuana's varied physiological effects — pain reliever, sleep promoter and appetite stimulant, as well as anti-anxiety, anti-nausea and anti-spasmodic relief, just to start at the top of the list.

The article quotes Walters as saying "the standard of simply feeling different or feeling better" is not proof of being safe and effective. The article then says, "Walters argues that there is not a whiff of clinical proof qualifying smoked pot as medicine." This is simply not factual. True, there are no double-blind studies because such studies have been blocked by federal law. However, there are countless published case reports proving the medical value of cannabis.

The federal government is willfully avoiding the truth that cannabis is safe and effective. Cannabis does not cause death or organ damage. It is one of the safest drugs in that way, safer than aspirin, which kills thousands every year.

It is time for the people to demand that their government get in line with the truth, and allow the use of cannabis for medical purposes.

William S. Eidelman MD

Los Angeles



In 1982, my grandfather was diagnosed with throat cancer. In less than a year, he weighed less than 100 pounds from being well over 190 and fit. He couldn't keep anything in his stomach. Not food, not his medicines. My grandmother was of Native American ancestry and knew that a person needed to eat to heal. Finally a doctor told her to try marijuana.

I can still hear the desperation in my grandmother's voice the day she called me looking for some marijuana. I was 25 and quite shocked. After the shock wore off and she had explained the reason, I understood. The next phone call from my grandmother is just as memorable. This time it was the excitement in her voice that I remember. She said, "Get some more! Grandpa has eaten five times and not thrown up once!" — her exact words. Thank you for printing this story. It brought back some very special memories.

Meril Draper

Brinnon, Wash.

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