What a change in DEA's pot rules might mean for medical research

Most doctors approach medical marijuana with a great deal of uncertainty, because drug laws have hindered researchers' ability to figure out what pot can and can't do for sick patients.
That could soon change. The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) is weighing whether to loosen its classification of marijuana, which would remove many restrictions on its use in medical research.
If that occurs, doctors could start getting answers to the questions they regularly receive from patients regarding marijuana's clinical benefits.
"I am asked as a practicing doctor even in a rural area about medical marijuana use, and I want to make sure I can give patients advice that's evidence-based," said Dr. Robert Wergin, board chair of the American Academy of Family Physicians. "We need those kinds of studies to help us give informed advice to our patients who ask about it now," he explained.
The DEA has said it will decide this summer whether marijuana should be lowered from a Schedule I drug to a Schedule II drug, according to an April memo from the agency to Congress. Schedule I drugs are considered drugs "with no currently accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse," the DEA says on its website. Heroin, LSD and ecstasy stand alongside marijuana on the DEA's Schedule I list. On the other hand, Schedule II drugs have a high potential for abuse, but "there is the recognition that they have some medical value as well," said Dr. J. Michael Bostwick, a professor of psychiatry at the Mayo Clinic, in Rochester, Minn.
"This could be an important softening of regulations that make it difficult to do marijuana or cannabis research in this country," Bostwick said.
Morphine, methamphetamine, cocaine and oxycodone are all Schedule II drugs, "because they have medical applications," Bostwick said. "So, it's not as if we don't have precedent for substances that are dangerous from an addictive point of view being useful in certain medical situations." Studies have shown that marijuana might help decrease chronic pain and nausea, ease seizures, improve the appetite or be useful in psychiatric treatment, Wergin and Bostwick said. But none of those studies has been large-scale and a definitive clinical trial. The reason: because marijuana's DEA drug status prevents scientists from using large quantities of the plant in medical research, Wergin and Bostwick said.
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What a change in DEAs pot rules might mean for medical research

Most doctors approach medical marijuana with a great deal of uncertainty, because drug laws have hindered researchers ability to figure out what pot can and cant do for sick patients. That could soon change. The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) is weighing whether to loosen its classification of marijuana, which would remove many restrictions on its use in medical research. If that occurs, doctors could start getting answers to the questions they regularly receive from patients regarding marijuanas clinical benefits. I am asked as a practicing doctor even in a rural area about medical marijuana use, and I want to make sure I can give patients advice thats evidence-based, said Dr. Robert Wergin, board chair of the American Academy of Family Physicians. We need those kinds of studies to help us give informed advice to our patients who ask about it now, he explained. The DEA has said it will decide this summer whether marijuana should be lowered from a Schedule I drug to a Schedule II drug, according to an April memo from the agency to Congress. Schedule I drugs are considered drugs with no currently accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse, the DEA says on its website. Heroin, LSD and ecstasy stand alongside marijuana on the DEAs Schedule I list. On the other hand, Schedule II drugs have a high potential for abuse, but there is the recognition that they have some medical value as well, said Dr. J. Michael Bostwick, a professor of psychiatry at the Mayo Clinic, in Rochester, Minn. This could be an important softening of regulations that make it difficult to do marijuana or cannabis research in this country, Bostwick said. Morphine, methamphetamine, cocaine and oxycodone are all Schedule II drugs, because they have medical applications, Bostwick said. So, its not as if we dont have precedent for substances that are dangerous from an addictive point of view being useful in certain medical situations. Studies have shown that marijuana might help decrease chronic pain and nausea, ease seizures, improve the appetite or be useful in psychiatric treatment, Wergin and Bostwick said. But none of those studies has been large-scale and a definitive clinical trial. The reason: because marijuanas DEA drug status prevents scientists from using large quantities of the plant in medical research, Wergin and Bostwick said. HealthDay