37 U.S. States Currently Approve Medical Marijuana Use For Conditions Such As Cancer – Will South Carolina Become the 38th?

Medical marijuana use is currently approved in 37 U.S. states. Will South Carolina by the 38th?

Mississippi Governor Tate Reeves signed a bill last week to start a medical marijuana program in the state, and on Wednesday the South Carolina senate voted to approve the use of medical marijuana.

But Senator Davis can’t rest easy yet—the bill still faces significant obstacles before it will become law. The vote on the proposal did not break evenly down party lines. It received support from members of both parties, and opposition from members of both parties. There will be one additional routine vote before the proposal can be passed to the House. The South Carolina House has never debated the issue of medical marijuana.

If approved, the proposal will allow medical marijuana in the treatment of cancer, multiple sclerosis, glaucoma, sickle cell anemia, and autism. There are meaningful limitations, though. It would only be legal to purchase marijuana through certain pharmacies, and it would still be illegal to smoke the drug—only oils, salves, patches, or vaporizers are permitted. Additionally, doctors will closely supervise the use of the drug—they are required to meet patients in person, and patients can only purchase two-weeks-worth of marijuana at a time.

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Senator Davis has been a strong supporter of medical marijuana since 2014, and in 2016, he took the Senate floor daily to tell the story of someone who was living in pain because they did not have access to medical marijuana. “When people come up to you and people talk about problems in their lives and ways you can address it to make them better, I think we have a moral obligation as well as a legal one to listen to that and make it happen,” the senator told the Associated Press.

Next, the bill will move to the House. If the House doesn’t approve the proposal by the end of the General Assembly session in May, it will die. South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster has not indicated what move he will make if the bill is approved by the House. “Premature to say,” he said. “I’d have to see what is in the bill.”

How Can Medical Marijuana Help People with Cancer?

Marijuana can be a helpful option for pain relief during cancer treatment, but SurvivorNet experts encourage patients to consult their doctors before using it. The drug can cause complications with some traditional treatments. Our doctors warn that marijuana is never a substitute for traditional cancer treatment, but may be used as part of an “integrative therapy,” meaning coupled with traditional treatment with approval from the patient’s oncologist.

“I have no problem with patients getting marijuana from a reputable, licensed source as long as patients are open with their physician about what they’re taking, and making sure it doesn’t interact with any clinical trial drug that they’re taking or any standard therapy,” says Dr. Elizabeth Comen, a medical oncologist at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. While open to her patients using marijuana, edibles are probably the preferred method, since Dr. Comen does have concerns about possible damage to the lungs from smoking marijuana.

Medical marijuana can help alleviate pain and decrease inflammation for people with cancer, but how?

Dr. Junella Chin, an integrative cannabis physician at MedLeafRX, describes her practice as a way to help with the pain and discomfort that can result from certain parts of cancer treatment. For example, sometimes she treats patients who are experiencing pain due to chemotherapy. “A chemotherapy patient usually comes to see me if they have nausea, if they have decreased appetite, if they have pain, if they have insomnia, and if they’re depressed,” she tells SurvivorNet.

“Medical cannabis if you think about it, it’s the only botanical medicine, it’s the only plant-based medicine that can help nausea, increase appetite, decrease pain, and elevate mood,” Dr. Chin continues. “So I could in essence write four or five different prescription medications which a lot of physicians do, a lot of oncologists do, or we can try having the patient take one plant-based medicine first.”

When we’re talking about using cannabis for relief during cancer treatment, it’s important to acknowledge that each patient is different based on their age, size, medical history, and the other treatments they are undergoing. Some alternative therapies can even get in the way of ongoing conventional treatments, causing them not to work or to work less effectively. That’s why it’s so important to talk to your oncologist before looking for any integrative therapies, including cannabis.

At Dr. Chin’s office, assessing each patient as an individual is the first step. “When a patient comes sees me through a referral through their oncologist or from a friend, word of mouth, the first step is to look at their medical records, do a full history and physical exam. You’re still assessing the patient as a regular physician’s visit,” says Dr. Chin.

“Then we talk about different medications that they’re on that might’ve worked, different medications that they’re on that might not have worked. Their lifestyle. Whether they’re still working, or whether they’re at home,” Dr. Chin continues. “We look at the patient’s medication list. We look at the patient’s lifestyle, and we decide and recommend a medical cannabis formulation that will work well for them.”

Researchers have been able to get some impressively specific data on marijuana substances and best practices for using the plant. “In a state like New York where it’s very highly regulated, we are measuring patient results and patient data through the milligrams of cannabis that they’re taking, and we know exactly what the composition of the medical cannabis plant has in these New York dispensaries,” said Dr. Chin. “We know percentages of cannabinoids, percentages of terpenes, and how each patient might react differently.”