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UK: Cannabis 'no better than codeine' for headaches Michael Durham The Independent Friday 06 Jul 2001 Cannabis shoud not be legalised for most pain relief because it is no more effective than codeine painkillers and could lead to severe side-effects, doctors report today. But the doctors, from Britain and Switzerland, call for more research on using cannabis for chronic pain. They say, in the British Medical Journal, that cannabinoids - the active substance - have no benefit for people suffering headaches and post-operative pain. Dr Fiona Campbell, a consultant in pain management at Queen's Medical Centre, Nottingham, said: "This doesn't mean we don't support research into cannabis. We should not be concerned with the general market of headaches. But for chronic and intractable pain there is not much else that works." The study will inflame controversy over proposals to legalise the use of cannabis by patients with illnesses such as multiple sclerosis, nerve damage, spina bifida, spinal injuries and muscle spasms. Researchers at the pain relief unit at Queen's Medical Centre studied nine clinical trials involving more than 200 patients given cannabinoids in tablet form or by injection. Dr Campbell said cannabinoids were no more effective than codeine in eight of nine trials. Although cannabis may be effective for chronic pain, side-effects were common and sometimes severe. However, in a second study the Swiss team found evidence that cannabis helped patients overcome the side-effects of cancer treatment by quelling the nausea often caused by chemotherapy. In all cases the cannabinoids were taken in tablet form or by injection. Patients preferred the cannabinoids to conventional anti-nausea drugs. But there were also potentially serious side effects, including dizziness, depression and hallucinations. In a British trial, GW Pharmaceuticals is administering cannabis extract by spraying it under patients' tongues. Because of the low dose, patients do not experience the "high" associated with smoking or eating the drug. Participants in the trial suffer from multiple sclerosis, cancer, rheumatoid arthritis, spinal injuries and other sources of chronic pain. A GW Pharmaceuticals spokesman said they "are clearly gaining benefit" from the drug.
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