GoldChico
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Alison Myrden is excited yet somewhat apprehensive about becoming one of the first people in the world to try a new prescription drug designed to alleviate the intense pain experienced by some multiple sclerosis patients.
The 41-year-old local resident, who says she has suffered intense facial nerve pain related to MS on a constant basis for about 10 years, has begun using a new medication that is derived from the cannabis plant.
Long an advocate and also one of a small group of legal users of prescribed medicinal marijuana in cigarette form -- to help ease her daily discomfort -- Myrden hopes that Sativex is not only a more potent analgesic than traditional pot, but will become more socially acceptable too.
Sativex is a medication delivered via a small spray bottle. It is administered under the tongue or in the cheek. It was approved by Health Canada is April and has been available here by prescription since June. It is currently only available in Canada and only for neuropathic pain associated with MS.
GW Pharmaceuticals of Great Britain, the developer of Sativex, says on its Web site that the drug's principal active ingredients are the cannabis-derived components delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol ( THC ) and cannabidiol ( CBD ).
Myrden said she tried the new drug for the first time on Sunday morning. In the few days before that first use she extended the time between taking her usual daily cocktail of medications -- marijuana in pill and cigarette form plus morphine -- to see what level of effect Sativex would have.
She said the initial results are not encouraging but acknowledged it is far too early to know if she will be able to switch to Sativex exclusively at some point.
"I have a bad pain in my face all the time but I had a particularly bad flare-up Sunday morning. I hadn't had anything at all since 5 a.m. I went a little longer ( without medication ) than I normally would, a couple of hours more," taking Sativex for the first time around 9 a.m., she said.
"I used three doses the first time, waited about 30 minutes and there was no relief at all. Then I took five more sprays and nothing. I waited 15 more minutes then lit a marijuana cigarette and got relief within five minutes."
Myrden said she understands, and is patient enough, that it could be a long time before she knows if Sativex will help ease her condition.
"I've been told it could take three months to slowly come off my medication and the marijuana cigarettes, if I stay on the Sativex.
"I want it to work desperately because I want relief, and I'm ( using ) it exactly as they tell me."
Even if Sativex proves not to be an improvement on her pot cigarettes in terms of pain relief, she's excited about the prospect of it possibly helping others. She also hopes the spray format gains widespread acceptance and erases the social stigma of having to smoking dope.
"Also, it might not be as difficult going to the United States, maybe I can travel easier some day ( with Sativex )," she said, referring to crossing the border.
Myrden has attended American conferences on medicinal marijuana and taken her marijuana pills, which she says are accepted by U.S. authorities. She is planning to speak at the Law Enforcement Against Prohibition ( LEAP ) gathering in California in November.
Myrden has been living for years with a severe form of MS. She had neurosurgery on her face about 10 years ago but got no relief. She had even tried heroin and cocaine. When the facial pain became unbearable she turned to smoking marijuana, which she said helped immensely.
MS is a disease of the central nervous system. The MS Society of Canada estimates that 50 per cent of people with MS suffer from chronic neuropathic pain. Approximately 50,000 Canadians, the majority women, have the disease.
Lori Ann Horrigan, communications manager with Bayer Canada -- the exclusive marketer in Canada of Sativex for the UK's GW Pharmaceuticals -- said Sativex helps with neuropathic pain.
However, she noted it is only currently approved for use by MS sufferers, not those with similar pain associated with arthritis, anorexia, AIDS, depression, epilepsy or Hepatitis C.
Myrden's pharmacist, David Pinkus, of the Roseland Shoppers Drug Mart, said a drug like Sativex has "definitely been a long time coming."
"It's going to reduce the side effects and, hopefully, the amount of analgesic medication Alison needs to take," said Pinkus.
For Myrden, and likely many others in her situation, the effectiveness of Sativex is only one consideration, the other being its exorbitant cost.
A bottle costs $124.95 and contains 51 spray doses. Myrden figures she'll use eight bottles per month. She says it is not covered by the Ontario Health Insurance Plan ( OHIP ), meaning she will need to pay about $1,000 per month out of her own pocket.
The new drug will compound her financial straits, she said, noting she already pays about $200 of her own money for a three-day supply of marijuana, which she smokes.
The 180 marijuana pills Myrden says she uses every month cost about $4,800; she also takes morphine tablets at a cost of more than $300 monthly.
Myrden said about two-thirds of her medication costs are covered by public health insurance, but that still leaves her with about $2,000 in direct costs every month.
She doesn't work anymore. The former corrections liaison officer and medical secretary has trouble walking due to the MS. She lives on her own and often uses an electric scooter in public.
She said she receives about $1,200 monthly in Canada pension and Ontario Disability Support payments, far short of covering just her medical expenses.
"I couldn't do it without my boyfriend and my mother," whom she said help buy her food and pay her other bills.
Source: Burlington Post (CN ON)
Copyright: 2005 Burlington Post
Contact: jdavis@haltonsearch.com
Website: https://www.haltonsearch.com/hr/bp/
The 41-year-old local resident, who says she has suffered intense facial nerve pain related to MS on a constant basis for about 10 years, has begun using a new medication that is derived from the cannabis plant.
Long an advocate and also one of a small group of legal users of prescribed medicinal marijuana in cigarette form -- to help ease her daily discomfort -- Myrden hopes that Sativex is not only a more potent analgesic than traditional pot, but will become more socially acceptable too.
Sativex is a medication delivered via a small spray bottle. It is administered under the tongue or in the cheek. It was approved by Health Canada is April and has been available here by prescription since June. It is currently only available in Canada and only for neuropathic pain associated with MS.
GW Pharmaceuticals of Great Britain, the developer of Sativex, says on its Web site that the drug's principal active ingredients are the cannabis-derived components delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol ( THC ) and cannabidiol ( CBD ).
Myrden said she tried the new drug for the first time on Sunday morning. In the few days before that first use she extended the time between taking her usual daily cocktail of medications -- marijuana in pill and cigarette form plus morphine -- to see what level of effect Sativex would have.
She said the initial results are not encouraging but acknowledged it is far too early to know if she will be able to switch to Sativex exclusively at some point.
"I have a bad pain in my face all the time but I had a particularly bad flare-up Sunday morning. I hadn't had anything at all since 5 a.m. I went a little longer ( without medication ) than I normally would, a couple of hours more," taking Sativex for the first time around 9 a.m., she said.
"I used three doses the first time, waited about 30 minutes and there was no relief at all. Then I took five more sprays and nothing. I waited 15 more minutes then lit a marijuana cigarette and got relief within five minutes."
Myrden said she understands, and is patient enough, that it could be a long time before she knows if Sativex will help ease her condition.
"I've been told it could take three months to slowly come off my medication and the marijuana cigarettes, if I stay on the Sativex.
"I want it to work desperately because I want relief, and I'm ( using ) it exactly as they tell me."
Even if Sativex proves not to be an improvement on her pot cigarettes in terms of pain relief, she's excited about the prospect of it possibly helping others. She also hopes the spray format gains widespread acceptance and erases the social stigma of having to smoking dope.
"Also, it might not be as difficult going to the United States, maybe I can travel easier some day ( with Sativex )," she said, referring to crossing the border.
Myrden has attended American conferences on medicinal marijuana and taken her marijuana pills, which she says are accepted by U.S. authorities. She is planning to speak at the Law Enforcement Against Prohibition ( LEAP ) gathering in California in November.
Myrden has been living for years with a severe form of MS. She had neurosurgery on her face about 10 years ago but got no relief. She had even tried heroin and cocaine. When the facial pain became unbearable she turned to smoking marijuana, which she said helped immensely.
MS is a disease of the central nervous system. The MS Society of Canada estimates that 50 per cent of people with MS suffer from chronic neuropathic pain. Approximately 50,000 Canadians, the majority women, have the disease.
Lori Ann Horrigan, communications manager with Bayer Canada -- the exclusive marketer in Canada of Sativex for the UK's GW Pharmaceuticals -- said Sativex helps with neuropathic pain.
However, she noted it is only currently approved for use by MS sufferers, not those with similar pain associated with arthritis, anorexia, AIDS, depression, epilepsy or Hepatitis C.
Myrden's pharmacist, David Pinkus, of the Roseland Shoppers Drug Mart, said a drug like Sativex has "definitely been a long time coming."
"It's going to reduce the side effects and, hopefully, the amount of analgesic medication Alison needs to take," said Pinkus.
For Myrden, and likely many others in her situation, the effectiveness of Sativex is only one consideration, the other being its exorbitant cost.
A bottle costs $124.95 and contains 51 spray doses. Myrden figures she'll use eight bottles per month. She says it is not covered by the Ontario Health Insurance Plan ( OHIP ), meaning she will need to pay about $1,000 per month out of her own pocket.
The new drug will compound her financial straits, she said, noting she already pays about $200 of her own money for a three-day supply of marijuana, which she smokes.
The 180 marijuana pills Myrden says she uses every month cost about $4,800; she also takes morphine tablets at a cost of more than $300 monthly.
Myrden said about two-thirds of her medication costs are covered by public health insurance, but that still leaves her with about $2,000 in direct costs every month.
She doesn't work anymore. The former corrections liaison officer and medical secretary has trouble walking due to the MS. She lives on her own and often uses an electric scooter in public.
She said she receives about $1,200 monthly in Canada pension and Ontario Disability Support payments, far short of covering just her medical expenses.
"I couldn't do it without my boyfriend and my mother," whom she said help buy her food and pay her other bills.
Source: Burlington Post (CN ON)
Copyright: 2005 Burlington Post
Contact: jdavis@haltonsearch.com
Website: https://www.haltonsearch.com/hr/bp/
