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Compassion for the ill, along with research support for safety and efficacy, should be guiding principles in the assessment and approval process of cannabis-derived agents’ medical efficacy. |
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The American Psychiatric Association endorses, with one exception, the position adopted by the American Medical Association in 2001 (Medical Marijuana, Report A01). Our position paper applies only to adults. |
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The APA urges the AMA to amend 3.c of the AMA position to indicate that since the therapeutic value of cannabinoid research is less likely to be in the area of drug abuse or other psychiatric disorders, the appropriate NIH institutes, other than the National Institute on Drug Abuse or the National Institute on Mental Health, should sponsor such research. |
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The APA endorses the recommendation made by the Institute of Medicine (IOM) in its 1999 report, Marijuana and Medicine: Assessing the Science Base, which states: clinical trials of marijuana use for medical purposes should be conducted under the following limited circumstances: trials should involve only short-term marijuana use (less than six months), should be conducted in patients with conditions for which there is reasonable expectation of efficacy, should be approved by institutional review boards, and should collect data about efficacy. |
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For those chronic conditions that show efficacy at six (6) months, longer studies may be indicated. If so, APA urges simultaneous study of adverse effects, including, but not limited to, the likelihood of addiction. Such study of adverse effects, of course, should be carried out for shorter term studies as well. |
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Given the problems inherent in using the plant material in smoked form, every effort should be made to use non-smoked routes in treatment. The Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) should cooperate in encouraging pharmaceutical companies to develop oral, transdermal, or aerosol routes, including generics, which are not cost prohibitive to the patient. |