Could marijuana replace opiates for treating pain?
Multiple studies have shown that pro-medical marijuana states have reported fewer opiate deaths and there are no deaths related to marijuana overdose on record.
But marijuana-derived drugs could take longer than usual to hit the market as the federal government considers marijuana a “schedule 1” substance – a dangerous drug with no medicinal value – making added approvals necessary. Any drug typically takes at least a decade from discovery to approval.
It could be worth the wait.
An FDA-approved marijuana-based painkiller would ensure consistent dosing and potency, and availability across the country, analysts and experts said.
“Doctors like to be able to write a prescription and know that whatever they wrote is pure and from a blinded, placebo-controlled trial,” California-based Nemus’s CEO Brian Murphy told Reuters.
Get the whole story at www.reuters.com
