AUSTRALIAN Medical Association Sunshine Coast representative Dr Wayne Herdy has reservations about medicinal use of cannabis.
Dr Herdy said that while there was some scientific evidence that cannabis had some medicinal benefits, there were other medicines that had already been proven to do the same thing.
“There is a lot of discussion in medical circles about whether it’s appropriate to continue researching because there are a lot of other products that do what marijuana claims to do.”
Dr Herdy said he was concerned that some people supporting the push for legalised medicinal use of marijuana simply wanted to “legitimise” the drug or make it morally acceptable.
He said some further research was warranted on the clinical use of cannabis, particularly its potential benefits for people with epilepsy, but he questioned the validity of continued medical research.
Cannabis treatments can be administered orally, by injection, patches, or vapour.
Cannabidiol (CBD) and tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) are two of 85 chemical compounds called cannabinoids that can be isolated from cannabis and are used for clinical purposes in various parts of the world.