Hepatitis C and Medical Marijuana
"Common side effects of Hepatitis C treatment (occurring in more than 10 percent of patients) include: nausea and vomiting, depression, irritability, weight loss, fatigue, muscle aches, headaches, and low-grade fever. Marijuana can mitigate the majority of these side effects as well as offering effective help to those patients where alpha-interferon treatment is not indicated.
There is compelling evidence that cannabis is an effective antiemetic, anti-inflammatory, immune modulating, analgesic and anti spasmodic agent. These properties are indicated for patients suffering from Hepatitis C. Side effects from the use of medical marijuana are much milder than the side effects of the traditional drugs used to treat Hepatitis C. Many patients who use cannabis report they are able to continue the use of their prescription medications only when the side effect can be mitigated with cannabis. Marijuana also has recognized anti-anxiety, anti-depressant and stress reducing qualities which ease psychological symptoms and side effects as well as helping to prevent substance abuse relapse. Cannabis has the ability to stimulate appetite, which many Hepatitis C patients find beneficial. Patients without prescription insurance find the ability to grow their own medicine at little or no cost to be an additional benefit."
--Click here for full letter to physicians treating Hepatitis C from the Lifevine Foundation (a non-profit public education and legal assistance provider for medical marijuana patients and their physicians)
Published Research Articles:
Cannabis use improves retention and virological outcomes in patients treated for hepatitis C. Sylvestrea et al, 2006.
Objectives: Despite the widespread use of polypharmacy, the management of hepatitis C virus (HCV) treatment-related side-effects is often incomplete, and many patients turn to cannabis for symptom relief. Unfortunately, there are few data about cannabis use on treatment outcomes, leaving clinicians without the data needed to inform recommendations.
Methods: To define the impact of cannabis use during HCV treatment, we conducted a prospective observational study of standard interferon and ribavirin treatment in 71 recovering substance users, of whom 22 (31%) used cannabis and 49 (69%) did not.
Conclusions: Our results suggest that modest cannabis use may offer symptomatic and virological benefit to some patients undergoing HCV treatment by helping them maintain adherence to the challenging medication regimen.