How Can Medical Cannabis Help Cancer Patients?
The battle against cancer is an ever-evolving struggle to provide patients with effective treatments for a wide array of cancer types and symptoms. More recently, medical marijuana has taken center stage as one of the most hotly debated, yet promising, treatments available to a large number of patients suffering from a variety of different illnesses. Arguments aside, one can deduce that medical cannabis has certainly provided an ample supply of evidence as to the nature of its therapeutic benefits for treating certain disorders. Perhaps the disease it is most famously used in treatment for, is cancer. Historically, the benefits of medical marijuana for cancer patients have shown to be wide-ranging: both therapeutic and curative. Not only can medical cannabis help to alleviate symptoms of cancer, but actually fight the disease at the cellular level as well. With the passing of Amendment 2 (Florida Medical Marijuana Legalization Initiative), in 2016, the benefits of medical marijuana are now legally available to patients in Florida for a number of different symptoms and diseases, cancer included.
What is cancer?
To understand how medical cannabis can help patients suffering from cancer, we must first ask, “What is cancer?” According to Cancer.gov, “Cancer is the name given to a collection of related diseases. In all types of cancer, some of the body’s cells begin to divide without stopping and spread into surrounding tissues.” A cancerous tumor can start nearly anywhere in the human body. All it takes is for one cell (out of trillions located in the body) to become cancerous in order for a tumor to develop. Normally, your body’s cells live and die at relatively set intervals in a normal, healthy cellular lifecycle. When cancer occurs, this cycle becomes interrupted. Old or damaged cells begin to survive past their normal expiration, which is when they should be destroyed and discarded by the body. These cells are unhealthy, and can divide and reproduce rapidly into growths. This growth leads to cancerous tumors, which can cause a number of different complications (often very serious) with your body’s organs and tissues. When determining what is cancer (at the cellular level) there is one very distinct difference between healthy and cancerous cells. Cancer cells do not have a specialized role that contributes to normal human bodily function. Healthy cells normally mature into distinct cell types and eventually die off to make room for a new generation of cells. Cancer cells, however, merely continue to divide and reproduce without stopping. Thankfully, medical marijuana cancer treatment has shown evidence of inhibiting carcinogenesis (the formation of cancerous cells) while alleviating a number of symptoms for patients as well.
Medical Marijuana for Cancer
As we mentioned earlier, the benefits of medical marijuana for cancer are remarkably widespread. They can range from cancer cell growth inhibition to symptom alleviation. Here are some of the ways studies have shown that medical marijuana cancer treatments have helped patients: reduced nausea and vomiting (especially as a result of chemotherapy), reduced pain and reduced need for pain meds, improved food intake, reduced skin irritation, reduced digestive distress, improved mood, improved sleep and sleep cycle, and cancer cell growth inhibition and/or termination. Also, the benefits of medical marijuana for cancer come with very little downside as far as negative side effects, especially when treating patients with serious illnesses such as cancer.
Medical Marijuana Treatment in Tampa and Hudson, FL
We provide medical cannabis for patients suffering from cancer in Tampa and Hudson, FL. For more information about how you can apply for a medical marijuana card by clicking here. You can make an appointment with our Tampa or Hudson, FL clinic by clicking here or call us on 727-202-4325.
