Houston Chronicle by Mike Thompson Nov. 20, 2020
Opinion: Texas should allow medical marijuana for all cancer patients
If we needed 2020 to remind us of anything, it is that taking care of our health and well-being should always be a top priority.
COVID-19 has shown us that there can be a magnitude of alternative reactions to the same disease: some infected with the coronavirus remain asymptomatic, others suffer severe reactions, and tragically, 250,000 Americans have died from the virus. We don’t all react the same to COVID-19, and treatments may produce different effects for different patients.
This concept applies to patients living with cancer and in survivorship. After diagnosis, the effects of the disease and related treatments can be immediate and severe. Doctors amend their treatment protocols based on each patient’s unique reaction. Treatment is not just condition-based, but symptom-based.
As a four-time cancer survivor, I know first-hand that pain is a nearly inevitable symptom during treatment. The goal of any oncologist and cancer patient relationship is to reach remission as quickly and with as little pain as possible. Providing relief through acute administration of pain, anti-nausea and comfort-inducing medications is wholly necessary. However, when a patient is fortunate enough to enter remission, the goal should be to manage discomfort in a healthy and sustainable manner.
Despite chronic pain in my jaw and persistent anxiety of relapse, Texas prohibits doctors from prescribing patients like me a safe, effective, research-proven pain management remedy: medical cannabis. Essentially, our legislature has nominated itself as the governing medical expert and decision maker regarding the health of millions of Texans. This needs to change.
More:
https://www.houstonchronicle.com/opinion/outlook/article/Opinion-Texas-should-allow-medical-marijuana-for-15740033.php
