Medical Cannabis Miracle for One UK Girl
Mother Calls Medical Cannabis a Miracle Treating Her Daughter for Epilepsy – LPC
A version of this story first appeared at www.bbc.com
The mother of a UK girl calls it a medical cannabis miracle. Sienna Richardson suffers from Landau Kleffner syndrome, a rare and severe form of epilepsy. After starting a campaign to raise £15,000 ($26,000) for cannabis treatment, Lucy Richardson said they saw improvements in her daughter within weeks.
“Since taking it she is able to understand and speak normally,” Lucy said. “She is living a normal life, she is still in mainstream school, playing with friends. She is doing really, really well.”
Now, she wants the National Health Service (NHS) – the country’s health system – to fund this medical cannabis miracle for other children.
“It is a massive stress. We worry about how we will fund it, but there is no choice. We have to do it so Sienna can live a normal life,” Lucy said. “If we got it on the NHS, that would be amazing.”
UK teenager Lucy Stafford tells a similar story. Although British medical cannabis is legal, it is expensive, and it’s hard to get a prescription. Last year, tne NHS denied cannabis epilepsy treatment for Alfie Dingley because doctors said they need more proof it works. Even in Canada, the Canadian Medical Association Journal (CMAJ) questioned the medical cannabis risks and benefits.
Medical Cannabis Miracle or No, More Research Needed
It’s a catch-22 situation. Nobody can fault doctors for not wanting to prescribe a drug that isn’t fully understood. In particular, it’s unknown how cannabis could affect children in the long term.
On the other hand, the risks of untreated Landau Kleffner syndrome are better known. If a medical cannabis miracle is shown to help that one patient, shouldn’t health systems make it more available on a case-by-case basis?
Click here to view full story at www.bbc.com
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