Treat epilepsy with Cannabis?

Currently, there are very few doctors and hospitals directly offering cannabis treatments worldwide - despite increasing understanding, knowledge and awareness of the remarkable healing properties of this plant. Fortunately, studies on this miraculous plant are becoming more widely undertaken.

Here, we take a look at just two of the illnesses that cannabis is already being proven to be very effective at treating.

This material is collated from those countries that are rapidly reassessing the efficacy of this medicine in the treatment of a wide variety of illnesses - and acting upon the undeniable evidence supporting the use of cannabis plant.

What is Epilepsy?

Epilepsy is a serious and potentially fatal illness that is engendered by a large number of neurological disorders of varied type and strength which result in ongoing and utterly debilitating seizures in the patient.

Figures suggest that over 65 million people across the world are currently living with epilepsy. The underlying cause of epilepsy in most cases (75%) is unknown- though some are known to be exacerbated by certain disorders within a number of the body’s systems, including genetics, brain structure, metabolism or trauma.

Can you treat Epilepsy?

According to some studies up to 30% of people afflicted with epilepsy have proven almost impossible to effectively treat using the traditional pharmaceutical method. Despite ancient use in treating seizures it was as recently as 2013 that cannabis showed its efficacy. A young patient with Dravet’s syndrome (a severe form of epilepsy) stunned the world with her reaction to CBD rich cannabis oil, that more eyes have turned to cannabis to treat patients with epilepsy.

One study concluded that:

“These are exciting times for research in cannabinoids. After almost four millennia of their documented medical use in the treatment of seizure disorders, we are very close to obtaining conclusive evidence of their efficacy in some severe epilepsy syndromes. The era of evidence-based prescription of a cannabis product is within our sight.”

Once Charlotte starts taking CBD oil the effects were startling. Her fits were enormously reduced in number and Charlotte’s parents actually met their daughter properly for the first time as her cognitive abilities and speech were transformed.

A heart wrenching CNN documentary shows a young Charlotte Figi, suffering from hundreds of severe epileptic fits every week.

Some do grow out of epilepsy, though that is not always the case and conditions such as Dravet’s syndrome have traditionally been considered almost impossible to treat. The news that CBD can effectively reduce epileptic seizures- without any negative side effects whatsoever- is an important development for many patients and carers around the world.

Pharmaceutical Industry involvement

GW Pharmaceuticals, a UK based company who are licensed to grow cannabis in the UK have developed their own CBD-based product, Epidiolex, for the treatment of epilepsy and other such conditions. This drug has been created using CBD alone and does not offer some the benefits of a whole plant extraction, such as other therapeutic cannabinoids. It’s also more expensive than creating your own CBD rich cannabis oil but has nevertheless been getting positive results in studies.

Other research has been able to show that THC and CBD together are more effective than CBD alone when looking to combat seizures, something known as the entourage effect. Many relatively minor cannabinoids can offer vast pharmacological value. This recent two year study by the University of Sydney found that:

“The main psychoactive ingredient in cannabis, tetrahydrocannabidiol (THC), and the closely related compound THCA, were present in most extracts, although the quantity was generally not enough to produce intoxicating effects. Just over half the extracts were associated with a seizure reduction of 75-100 percent, which reinforces observations from animal studies and case reports of anticonvulsant effects of THC and THCA. As well, 65 percent were associated with other beneficial effects like improved cognition (35 percent) and language skills (24 percent).”

Evolving legal framework

The issue of treating children suffering from severe epilepsy with cannabis derived products recently reached a fever pitch in the UK when a mother openly imported CBD rich cannabis oil for her son from Canada to the UK. The oil was confiscated by customs officers at Heathrow Airport and then later returned following public backlash.

This has resulted in minor changes to UK law being implemented to allow for medical cannabis treatments in extreme circumstances only - changes that may not, for example, include MS patients.  One must apply to a 'specialist panel' to be considered for cannabis medicines.

In June 2018 Epidiolex was approved by the FDA in the US for the treatment of seizures in children 2 years of age and older and has actually been downgraded to Schedule V.

With the recent evidence that has been accrued demonstrating the wonderful medicinal effects of marijuana not only on sufferers of epilepsy, but a wide variety of physical and mental illnesses. Many who have chosen to medicate with marijuana to relieve their symptoms have experienced a profound effect on their symptoms, and their voices are joining the rising tide of cannabis advocates showing that medicinal cannabis does, in fact, work.