Posted on 10/19/2009 10:48:08 AM PDT by TornadoAlley3
A new study finds that the development of bullous lung disease occurs in marijuana smokers approximately 20 years earlier than tobacco smokers.
A condition often caused by exposure to toxic chemicals or long-term exposure to tobacco smoke, bullous lung disease (also known as bullae) is a condition where air trapped in the lungs causes obstruction to breathing and eventual destruction of the lungs.
(Excerpt) Read more at sciencedaily.com ...
A government induced problem. If it were cheaper, you could make tea or brownies without worrying about efficiency.
Patients who smoke marijuana inhale more and hold their breath four times longer than cigarette smokers. It is the breathing manoeuvres of marijuana smokers that serve to increase the concentration and pulmonary deposition of inhaled particulate matter – resulting in greater and more rapid lung destruction.
This paper is published in the January 2008 issue of Respirology.
If it kills people faster, then there will be less people to insure....
This can’t be true. All the FReeper potheads have told be that pot is good for you.
If it was legalized cheaper, users would not be so apt to "hold it in" in order to get more bang for your buck.
Good thing Barry isn`t going to enforce drug laws anymore/sarc off
http://s399.photobucket.com/albums/pp77/coiledspring/?action=view¤t=obama_youth_04.jpg
I got the muchies now.....and cotton mouth, WTF?
So it’s intrusive to tax fast food because too many folks are fat but it is OK to condemn folks for using MJ because it destroys their lungs?
Yes, and if it were cheaper and legal I bet less people would us it!
Dope smoke, unlike cigarettes, is generally not filtered.
It might explain the shortage of older people at the Libertarian Party conventions.
It also has to do with growing up.
I see lawsuits....Where the gov made it legal without informing folks of the risk....
The most popular word amongst potheads is....
‘ere
A government study to be sure. The last thing I read concerning pot and cancer was from a medical journal that stated there were no confirmed cases of cancer caused by pot alone in the U.S. That was about 2 years ago. Pot smokers who also smoke tobacco are another story though.
The assumptions that the smoke is held in the lungs up to 4 times longer is from data in the 60’s and 70’s when pot was much less stong than it is today. Most pot smokers don’t hold it in their lungs that long anymore since pot is a lot stronger, no need to hold it in that long.
Yes, I know quite a bit about it, a dear friend who has M.S. smokes it all the time, and I did enough of it in my heyday.
Posted on 04/18/2007 4:20:10 PM EDT by Teflonic
The active ingredient in marijuana cuts tumor growth in common lung cancer in half and significantly reduces the ability of the cancer to spread, say researchers at Harvard University who tested the chemical in both lab and mouse studies.
They say this is the first set of experiments to show that the compound, Delta-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), inhibits EGF-induced growth and migration in epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) expressing non-small cell lung cancer cell lines. Lung cancers that over-express EGFR are usually highly aggressive and resistant to chemotherapy.
THC that targets cannabinoid receptors CB1 and CB2 is similar in function to endocannabinoids, which are cannabinoids that are naturally produced in the body and activate these receptors. The researchers suggest that THC or other designer agents that activate these receptors might be used in a targeted fashion to treat lung cancer.
"The beauty of this study is that we are showing that a substance of abuse, if used prudently, may offer a new road to therapy against lung cancer," said Anju Preet, Ph.D., a researcher in the Division of Experimental Medicine.
Acting through cannabinoid receptors CB1 and CB2, endocannabinoids (as well as THC) are thought to play a role in variety of biological functions, including pain and anxiety control, and inflammation. Although a medical derivative of THC, known as Marinol, has been approved for use as an appetite stimulant for cancer patients, and a small number of U.S. states allow use of medical marijuana to treat the same side effect, few studies have shown that THC might have anti-tumor activity, Preet says. The only clinical trial testing THC as a treatment against cancer growth was a recently completed British pilot study in human glioblastoma.
In the present study, the researchers first demonstrated that two different lung cancer cell lines as well as patient lung tumor samples express CB1 and CB2, and that non-toxic doses of THC inhibited growth and spread in the cell lines. "When the cells are pretreated with THC, they have less EGFR stimulated invasion as measured by various in-vitro assays," Preet said.
Then, for three weeks, researchers injected standard doses of THC into mice that had been implanted with human lung cancer cells, and found that tumors were reduced in size and weight by about 50 percent in treated animals compared to a control group. There was also about a 60 percent reduction in cancer lesions on the lungs in these mice as well as a significant reduction in protein markers associated with cancer progression, Preet says.
Although the researchers do not know why THC inhibits tumor growth, they say the substance could be activating molecules that arrest the cell cycle. They speculate that THC may also interfere with angiogenesis and vascularization, which promotes cancer growth.
Preet says much work is needed to clarify the pathway by which THC functions, and cautions that some animal studies have shown that THC can stimulate some cancers. "THC offers some promise, but we have a long way to go before we know what its potential is," she said.
Note: This story has been adapted from a news release issued by American Association for Cancer Research.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.
