TRENDING TOPIC
Up in
Medicinal marijuana options
available in other states
include:
• Edibles: brownies, gummy
bears, lollipops, etc.
• Oil, administered in drop
form under the tongue
• Teas, juices and smoothies
made with the raw plant
• Transdermal patches
• Suppositories
• Lotions and ointments for
localized pain relief
SMOKE
Medical community discusses pros and cons
of legalizing medical marijuana
WRITTEN BY JOYCE VENEZIA SUSS
M
edicinal marijuana has pro-
vided relief to New Jersey
residents suffering from
debilitating conditions —
and its use will likely grow
since Gov. Phil Murphy
expanded access to even more patients. But the
debate over its effectiveness continues among
local physicians.
“It’s a safe alternative to manage pain,” says
Dr. Robert Silverman, director of pain management
at The Valley Hospital in Ridgewood. “More than
60,000 people died last year from opioid overdos-
es, and pain management is at the center of it.
There’s no overdosing with marijuana.”
Silverman notes that patients don’t develop
a tolerance with medicinal marijuana, but with
opioids, “patients continue to need more to get
the same effect.” Marijuana, he says, “is a great
option. I always preface to my patients that it’s
not going to help everyone, but there is no harm
in registering [with a state medicinal marijuana
dispensary] and trying it.”
Various compounds found in marijuana —
specifically cannabidiol (CBD) and tetrahydro-
cannabinol (THC) — help with differing condi-
tions, Silverman says, including pain, poor
appetite, sleep and mood. Counselors at alter-
native treatment centers that dispense
medicinal marijuana help
patients find the best
strains to try. THC is the
compound that makes
people feel “high” and
under New Jersey law,
medicinal strains cannot
have more than 10 percent THC.
About 60 percent of
Silverman’s patients who
are registered for medicinal
marijuana “get a good benefit…and the majority
have eliminated narcotics entirely,” he says,
including a teacher suffering “horrible facial pain”
from trigeminal neuralgia who is “off narcotics
and feeling fantastic.”
Similarly, Dr. Gian Varbaro, chief medical officer
at New Bridge Medical Center in Paramus,
described a young woman suffering from arthritis
of the spine, “and the condition was chronic with
debilitating pain,” he says. “Her quality of life,
including her ability to interact with her children,
was significantly impacted.”
The woman was being treated with opioid pain
management, but it provided “minimal relief and
required increasingly high levels of opioid usage
to mitigate the discomfort,” he says. “She began
utilizing medicinal marijuana, working with a
physician who is licensed to dispense it. She is
now off the opioid medication, has resumed most
of her normal daily activities, and enjoys a much
better quality of life.”
Growing interest
New Jersey state law was amended in 2010 to
allow the authorized medical use of marijuana,
under the New Jersey Compassionate Use Medical
Marijuana Act. Under Gov. Chris Christie, the law
remained restrictive; only about 15,000 of New
Jersey’s 9 million residents are part of the state’s
medical marijuana program.
That number may increase since Murphy
ordered a review of the medical marijuana
program upon taking office earlier this year. His
executive order noted that “it is beyond dispute
that patients suffering from debilitating medical
conditions deserve to live in dignity with as little
suffering as possible,” and that “medical decisions
must be based on science and health, not ideology
or social policy.”
“Having a resource such as medicinal marijuana
ALTERNATIVES TO
SMOKING MARIJUANA
Currently, medical
marijuana is mostly available
in inhalation form (smoking
or vaping), with one
dispensary offering lozenges.
“The need for additional
forms of medical marijuana,
such as edibles, oils and
drops, is pressing, especially
for elderly patients who
cannot inhale or smoke,” says
Dr. Kenneth Park, a pain
management specialist at
Englewood Hospital and
Medical Center Park.
On the flip side, Dr.
Robert Silverman, director of
pain management at The
Valley Hospital in Ridgewood,
notes that cancer patients
suffering from profound
nausea and vomiting caused
by chemotherapy have found
quick relief from smoking
“because it works
immediately.”