Sativex to be approved this year in the United States

[guest86120975]

It doesn't seem like this is publicly advertised yet, but I've received on good word from an old friend I went to high school with who works loosely in the pharmaceutical industry that Sativex will most likely be hitting Walgreen's and all other pharmacy shelves sometime by the end of the year, or perhaps early next year.

With California set to vote again in 2012 and probably a few other states as well, I wonder how this monkey wrench shall effect the debate---should be round about the time the 3 networks start their daily legalization debates.

 

[sso]

this is probably why its still illegal.

so pharma can get its share.

lemme guess, it will never get legal at the federal level, only in pills (or too easy for people to just grow their own)

cause thats what the almighty buck says.

probably soon all dispensiaries in cal will be closed and only sativex and other similar pills will be available to the public (Well, the morons that actually listen to the laws (if they dont have too )

 

[sso]

there is only one logical response to government.

down with government!

 

[guest86120975]

this is probably why its still illegal.

so pharma can get its share.

Right on the money. In Canada, Sativex costs about $15 per day for the patient, or about $25 for the maximum dose. And we all know how much more expensive drugs are in the US.

Could easily be looking at a $3,000 per month prescription...and of course, insurance companies love to deny, deny, deny using any excuse they can come up with.

 

[daheadies]

https://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=210417
https://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=213714

 

[budlover123]

this is probably why its still illegal...

you are right, but I think these bastards are playing with fire, we have to either admit that America is a bullshit plutocracy or at least reclassify marijuana under the controlled substances act to schedule 2, at the very least (schedule 1 classification definition in my signature)

 

[Bobo Bolinsky]

I know or have heard nothing about how effective it is, but Sativex availability WILL be used as a political club to attempt to snuff out real MMJ, no doubt. I don't think it will work to any degree, but the prohibitionists will still push it.

 

[Midnight]

It doesn't seem like this is publicly advertised yet, but I've received on good word from an old friend I went to high school with who works loosely in the pharmaceutical industry that Sativex will most likely be hitting Walgreen's and all other pharmacy shelves sometime by the end of the year, or perhaps early next year.

With California set to vote again in 2012 and probably a few other states as well, I wonder how this monkey wrench shall effect the debate---should be round about the time the 3 networks start their daily legalization debates.

My uncles brothers mother aunts cousin on my sisters dads side...I would not go getting your panties all in a wad over this post.

 

[303hydro]

Got a buddy who bought stock in that company like 8 years ago. He has already done well, but who is gonna pay that price over buying a bag?!

 

[budlover123]

...who is gonna pay that price over buying a bag?!

people who need marijuana but have been force fed lies their entire life.

 

[guest86120975]

It will be very important that when Sativex is made available that we do everything we can to make sure that as few people as possible fill the prescriptions.

I can foresee on the horizon an epic war being waged between "us" and "them" regarding pharmaceutical cannabis and natural cannabis. Shit's going to get ugly, I can feel it...will make the last 15 years look petty.

 

[pearlemae]

It's all about the money for the big pharma companies.

 

[Frank n Beans]

I have a script for Sativex and it is alright. It does not work near as well as the real deal but much better than cessamet, I have yet to try marinol. One thing that's nice about it is it's easy to take with you and easy to consume in any situation.

One downside is it makes your breath stink a bit and my wife complains when she kisses me shortly after I've taken a dose.

 

[ijim]

The question is when is the Administration going to reclassify cannabis. Or do they think a cultivation, distribution or possession charge will stand with cannabis classified as a schedule 1 substance. Saying cannabis has no medical uses. While the DEA licenses and the government taxes every pill for medical use. You can expect a carrot to be fed to users before the 2012 elections as the president feeds crumbs to the people in his bid for reelection. Be wary of wolves in sheep's clothing.

 

[guest86120975]

It certainly does look like GW Pharma is beefing up their website: http://www.gwpharm.com/therapeutic-areas.aspx

Psychiatric Disorders

The burgeoning prevalence of mental health disorders poses an enormous global challenge. Almost one in two US citizens will receive a DSM-IV diagnosis during their lifetime, and a mood disorder is second only to hypertension in frequency as the presenting condition to British GPs. According to W.H.O., five of the ten leading causes of chronic disability world-wide are psychiatric disorders (major depression, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, alcohol abuse, obsessive/compulsive neurosis). In the UK, 80 million working days are lost each year as a result of mental illness. There is considerable unmet clinical need as a result of the limited efficacy and potential toxicity of standard medicines.

The therapeutic (and risk) potential of cannabis-based medicines for psychiatric patients remains uncertain for the following reasons: questionable validity of animal models for psychiatric disorders; conflicting results from laboratory studies; questionable reliability and validity of clinical diagnoses; limited availability of controlled human data. Observations deriving from smoked cannabis or recreational users are unreliable for many reasons, including selection bias, inappropriate pharmacokinetics, reliance on self-report, and uncontrollable confounding factors.

On the basis of laboratory evidence, anxiety and depression are promising targets for cannabinoid medicines and there are some preliminary human data in support of thisi. Emerging evidence suggests that the cannabinoid, cannabidiol (CBD), possibly in combination with other cannabinoids, may have potential utility in schizophrenia not only as an anti-psychotic, but also in the alleviation of the metabolic and inflammatory abnormalities associated with the diseaseii. CB1 antagonists may have a role in relapse-prevention in the treatment of addictioniii. Other possible targets for the future based on human anecdote or limited laboratory research include bipolar affective disorder, post-traumatic stress syndrome, eating disorders, and insomnia. For the future, manipulation of the endocannabinoid system through inhibition of FAAHiv or the anandamide transporterv offers exciting therapeutic possibilities for many of these conditions.

GW is currently investigating with potential of cannabinoids as treatments for psychiatric disorders in collaboration with Otsuka.

 

[budlover123]

wow, those doctors are smart, who would've though weed was good for depression and metabolic issues.

 

[budlover123]

How does Sativex work?


Cannabinoids react with cannabinoid receptors that occur naturally throughout our bodies, including in our brains. A receptor is a site on a brain cell where certain substances can stick or “bind” for a while...

What is Sativex?

Sativex is the world’s first prescription medicine derived from the cannabis plant... Sativex® contains active ingredients called ‘cannabinoids’, which are extracted from cannabis plants grown and processed under strictly controlled conditions...

Ok, I'm no lawyer, but does this not make the federal law banning marijuana completely obsolete?


It's interesting that that website mentions Otsuka, but says "if" Sativex is licensed in the US, not that it is.


If this is licensed in the US than there is clearly an accepted medical use of this plant, we can't let big pharma sell us weed as medicine while simultaneously arresting people for growing the plant that is banned because "it's not medicine" just because they want to call it a 1:1 ratio of CDB's and THC, we all know it's weed.


If Americans want people to believe in that land of the free crap they got to start acting like the land of the free. Surely cultivation is a god given right and necessary to our survival, but I can't grow a plant that pharmaceutical companies grow to make a drug? A plant that unlike may other plants I can legally grow, won't kill me or harm me at all for that matter.

 

[DoobieDuck]

Surely cultivation is a god given right and necessary to our survival, but I can't grow a plant that pharmaceutical companies grow to make a drug?

Yep they'll try and convince the people that growing pot is different than growing tobacco. DD

 

[budlover123]

I've been quoting that website maybe4sure posted,I don't know how I missed this part...

Does approval of Sativex by a national medicines regulatory authority
mean that herbal cannabis will also be legal in that country?

No. Regulatory approvals from medicines regulatory authorities are specific to
Sativex® - there is no change in the law relating to cannabis. Any changes in
regulations to permit Sativex to be prescribed would apply only to such an
approved product and would have no direct consequence for the legal status of
herbal cannabis for recreational and medical use. This is true for all countries
around the world, including the United States.

so, how exactly does that work?

is this basically an admission that big business gets what it wants?

The US law banning marijuana clearly states "no medicinal value", so something is not right here.

 

[guest86120975]

I've been quoting that website maybe4sure posted,I don't know how I missed this part...

so, how exactly does that work?

is this basically an admission that big business gets what it wants?

The US law banning marijuana clearly states "no medicinal value", so something is not right here.

You are exactly right. Corporation has permission to grow thousands of plants in their lab in order to create a tincture spray, where as if you grow the plants, you must be locked up in prison because it is a menace to society (ie--does not contribute big $ to someone).

Having said that, though, I don't think having a spray with balanced levels of cannabinoids is a bad idea at all. I think Sativex is a wonderful idea. I just think we should be given the option of herbal medicine as all.