The recent decision by the National Institute on Drug Abuse to expand the national marijuana cultivation program has opened the door for new treatment studies to get underway. One of the most significant studies that has been on hold is designed to help military veterans combat the symptoms of post-traumatic stress syndrome. NIDA will supply the researchers with new strains of federally-grown cannabis. The goal of the new NIDA growth program is to keep pace with the diversity of cannabis options being offered by the medical marijuana industry.
Brad Burge, spokesman for the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies, explained that the research project is, “the first whole-plant marijuana study,” meaning the marijuana will not be given in a manufactured delivery system like a pill or a drink. The PTSD study will allow the veterans to utilize the marijuana as a medicine by smoking it. It has been a year since the federal government approved the study, but it has been on hold, awaiting approval by NIDA to gain access to the drug supply needed.
A challenge facing the study is that NIDA so far has only produced three of the four kinds of marijuana needed for the research, including a “placebo” strain. Burge illuminated the difficulties still being faced. “We have approval to purchase it from NIDA, but they won’t give us a time estimate on when they’ll be able to deliver it,” he said.
Seventy-six veterans will take part in the study that will measure the effects of different potencies of smoked marijuana in treating their PTSD symptoms. The Veterans Affairs Department estimates that between 11% and 20% of Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans respectively suffer from PTSD. Given the military-induced severity of post-traumatic stress disorder, it is hoped the marijuana will provide relief to thousands of veterans that fought so bravely for their country.