For more than 4,000 years, it was used medicinally. Then, in 1942, medical marijuana was banned in the United States. But that’s not the end of the story. Today, patients with illnesses like cancer, AIDS and multiple sclerosis say it relieves pain and reduces nausea from their meds - and is the only thing that gets them through.

Brian Klein takes three pills twice a day for HIV. He’s also recovering from hepatitis C.

“It was pretty devastating getting both at the same time,” Brian says.

Hepatitis C meds are known for their severe side effects like nausea. Brian tried lots of treatments to relieve it, but only one worked - marijuana.

“Within a few minutes I could go eat. Whereas, before using it, I couldn’t even keep down water. So it was an amazing, dramatic difference,” Brian says.

A study on hepatitis C patients showed smoking marijuana made them three-times more likely to get rid of the virus because it got them through treatment.

“If there’s a patient for whom that medicine doesn’t work, and they do get benefit from marijuana, then that could really be the difference between life and death,” says Donald Abrams, M.D., an oncologist and HIV researcher from the University of California, San Francisco. “When we talk about the side effects, if you will, of marijuana compared to many, many prescription drugs that doctors prescribe on a daily basis, it’s really quite safe.”

Although medical marijuana is allowed in 12 states, the federal government has declared it “is not medicine” and “not safe.” Opponents say much more research is needed and that it’s linked to a higher risk of cancer, heart attack and brain damage.

For Brian, it was a short-term fix. He’s free of the hepatitis-C virus and has the energy to do simple things like read and exercise.

“This was relieving my nausea, and it worked. And I didn’t need it for anything more or less,” he says.

Dr. Abrams says patients with heart conditions or those who become paranoid, hyper or anxious from marijuana may want to steer clear.

This article was reported by Ivanhoe.com, which offers Medical Alerts by e-mail every day of the week.

UCSF School of Medicine
Osher Center for Integrative Medicine
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