Posted on 12/28/2007 8:47:30 AM PST by Sir Gawain
Dec. 26, 2007 -- THC and another marijuana-derived compound slow the spread of cervical and lung cancers, test-tube studies suggest.
The new findings add to the fast-growing number of animal and cell-culture studies showing different anticancer effects for cannabinoids, chemical compounds derived from marijuana.
Cannabinoids, and sometimes marijuana itself, are currently used to lessen the nausea and pain experienced by many cancer patients. The new findings -- yet to be proven in human studies -- suggest that cannabinoids may have a direct anticancer effect.
"Cannabinoids' ... potential therapeutic benefit in the treatment of highly invasive cancers should be addressed in clinical trials," conclude Robert Ramer, PhD, and Burkhard Hinz, PhD, of the University of Rostock, Germany.
Might cannabinoids keep dangerous tumors from spreading throughout the body? Ramer and Hinz set up an experiment in which invasive cervical and lung cancer cells had make their way through a tissue-like gel. Even at very low concentrations, the marijuana compounds THC and methanandamide (MA) significantly slowed the invading cancer cells.
Doses of THC that reduce pain in cancer patients yield blood concentrations much higher than the concentrations needed to inhibit cancer invasion.
"Thus the effects of THC on cell invasion occurred at therapeutically relevant concentrations," Ramer and Hinz note.
The researchers are quick to point out that much more study is needed to find out whether these test-tube results apply to tumor growth in animals and in humans.
Ramer and Hinz report the findings in the Jan. 2, 2008 issue of the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.
“That’s directly from your statements, either implicitly or explicitly.”
Nonsense. Back it up if you still want to claim otherwise.
You say 90% will "compusively degenerate", and you agree with the assesment that only 1% of former users are users that "compulsively degenerate". Of the user who quit only 1% came from that 90%. All the rest of them must still be using.
Who created Al Capone? The alcoholics or the government?
It doesn’t mean that as gracesdad thought that 90% never stop. (I told her that former potheads were not what I was discussing, and that I had no argument with her claim that 99% eventually quit.)
It doesn’t mean that as you suggested that “90% of the people who use it will degenerate into heavy, chronic use” .
It doesn’t mean an infinite number of things, just what I said, that 90% of potheads (habitual users) are f~ked by it. I’ve never known a regular user who I thought their life was enriched by it or even one where habitual smoking had a benign effect on their life. But I decided to be conservative with 90% because there’s probably a few exceptions and because my definition of “degenerate” may not overlap that of a few others.
There’s no conspiracy in the use of the term “potheads” to connect with the “drug war fans”, but no desire to show respect for potheads by calling them “regular user” either. They can all do much better, well… at least 90% of them anyway ;^)
Uh and pay through the nose for it.......I don't think so.
Good one
There will not be any smoke that will be proven healthy for you. (Or any other aerosolized particulates). Cannabinoids absorbed in other ways may yet prove helpful—though I don't know why it's taken 60 years.
My longtime neighbor—younger than me by ten years—is a regular user, and can't breathe without occasional applications of the oxygen mask.
Neither may your definition of "habitual". Who are the "habitual" users? The burnouts, + 10%. There. All nice and pretty, and subjective as hell.
I told her that former potheads were not what I was discussing, and that I had no argument with her claim that 99% eventually quit.)
The claim wasn't that 99% quit. The comment was that only 1% of the potheads he ever knew "compulsively degenerated".
Let me be more specific for you: The medical essence that can be proven to help medically can be made legal and controlled...the stuff that people abuse to get high should remain illegal with high penalties for use and sales.
Oh well then grow it in your nose.
And there are any number of people who say — these are really ill people, not just old hippies wanting to get high — who say that the synthetic version doesn’t do the same thing for them. And some can’t even get their doctors to prescribe it.
“with high penalties for use...”
A silly idea.
AND let me go back once more to the poriginal post...
“Hey man...when a major portion of my medical insurance goes to pay for potheads and the misery they inflict.”
What were you talking about here? How does “a major portion” of your medical insurance pay for potheads. I think it’s a very safe bet that much of your insurance costs go for cancer, heart problems, diabetes, problems related to being overweight, and problems caused by smoking tobacco and excessive use of alcohol. Any problems caused by pot are miniscule in comparison.
And exactly what miseries do they inflict? The major misery they inflict would seem to be on themselves through their own loss of ambition and productivity.
“First I boil some water on the stove, and lower the test-tube into the boiling water for about 20 minutes. “
Yeah, but does boiling water get ya high?
90% of the people who use statistics in a discussion, are making it up.
They're one in the same. At least I took it that way when he said “Virtually all of the former potheads I know lead productive family-oriented lives. I say “former” because most of those folks grew tired of pot or realized it killed ambition and so they quit.” That's when I realised we were talking about two very different definitions and sets of people and decided not to argue. If I'm wrong, maybe he can correct me now. (Otherwise, you need to read us both more carefully.)
I doubt 90% of people recoginze pot smoking as a motivation suprpressing endeavor that leades many to excess and ruin.
But you can label just about any drug that way. Alcohol has far worse addictive effects than pot does. But for some reason not every user goes on and because a violent addict who becomes irresponsible.
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