Lymphoma Treatment Using Medical Cannabis
Cancer attacks the lymph system, which is part of the body’s immune system, causing lymphoma. Lymphoma comes in two flavors: Hodgkin’s and non- Hodgkin’s. Hodgkin lymphoma affects nearly 4,690 males and 3,790 females of all ages as of Jan 2020, according to cancer.net. According to MedlinePlus, the medical periodical for the US Library of Medicine, treatment for cancer includes blood-forming bone marrow transplants, stem cell transplants, and heavy medications.
As Lymphoma News Today points out in its article, the National Cancer Institute has found that rats provided delta (9)-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) had very few cases of cancer in the mammary gland, pituitary gland, testis, and pancreas when compared to rats that received a placebo.
From 2010 to 2016, researchers at Tel-Aviv Medical Center found that medical marijuana use by Hodgkin lymphoma patients improved their quality of life and reduced their risk of developing cancer-related side effects. In this HL cohort, medical cannabis use is common and it seems to be effective in alleviating chemotherapy-related adverse events, according to the study.
Lymphoma Symptoms, Causes, and Treatments
Lymphoma, both Hodgkin’s and non- Hodgkin’s, can have a variety of causes and symptoms, as the Mayo Clinic explains. Lymphoma’s origins remain a mystery, with doctors admitting they don’t know where the disease came from. As far as scientists can tell, it “begins with a genetic mutation in a disorder white blood cell called a lymphocyte,” which leads to “quite so many cancerous and unproductive lymphocytes in your lymph glands and creates the lymphatic system, spleen, and liver to expand.”
Male cancer patients are more likely than female cancer patients to develop the genetic disorder that causes fatal inflammatory response and chronic pain. Other risk factors include age, a weakened immune system, and infections. Rapid weight loss, Unbearable fatigue, itchy skin, flu, and shortness of breath, are all symptoms that can be associated with lymphoma. Both Hodgkin’s and non-cancer Hodgkin’s treatments are brutal, requiring chemotherapy, radiation, bone marrow transplantation, and immunotherapy medications, as previously mentioned.
How Do Patients Use Cannabinoids to Treat Lymphoma?
Since a number of states have legalized medical marijuana for medicinal purposes, Texas is prepared to legalize the plant because of its chemo and radiation side effect properties. Compassionate Cultivations, a manufacturer of CBD and THC, was featured in D Magazine for its role in healing.
To the knowledge of D. Magazine, it was the first Texas dispensary in which a patient was treated for non-lymphoma Hodgkin’s with medical cannabis provided under newly expanded conditions.
Medical marijuana was prescribed by Dallas physician Dr. Mary Caire after traditional medications failed to help a patient. According to D Magazine, “THC improved the patient’s appetite, reduced the patient’s pain, and the proper nutrition permitted the chemotherapy to have a greater impact.