Rick Simpson is a household name in every marijuana dispensary across the county. The man claimed to be the creator of Rick Simpson Oil, as it is dubbed by legendary marijuana advocate Jack Herer, The Emperor of Hemp. I was not sure what to expect of Rick. My experience has taught me that people with wild ideas regardless of if they are positive or negative or real/fiction these people have something unique and special about them that tends to make them quirky. I wasn’t sure what to expect with Rick. I was once a skeptic of any alternative medicine. Today, I advocate an alternative medicine as one of the most prominent medical marijuana Doctors in Florida and across the country advocating the field of “Allopathic & Osteopathic Marijuana Medicine” (can we just lump the two together into allopathic, my osteopathic colleagues?). There have been things that I’ve seen in my patients that I would have considered to be miracles in my past career. Mr. Simpson said the word a lot during our conversation. Unlike when other alternative medicine proponents claim a cure for cancer, this time around… I think there may be some truth to this. Researchers have known for decades that cannabis inhibits cancer growth. Like this article, in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute all the way back in nineteen seventy-five. Mice with tumors treated with THC and CBN had decreased tumor growth and increased mortality. These studies were done using isolated cannabinoids. Now imagine if the “Entourage Effect” were in play – the theory that combinations of cannabinoids working in unison have a greater effect than the sum of their individual cannabinoids. Isn’t it interesting that medical marijuana does not cause head and neck cancer or decreased lung function or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, even though it contains similar carcinogens and three times the tar when smoked? This may very well be due to the anti-cancer properties of cannabinoids that are present with marijuana smoke! In regards to cancer, CBD has little effect. While Rick believes that Cannabis Indica strains are preferred for their therapeutic effect, it seems that the reason for that is their higher THC concentration. We both agreed that CBD is not as important for antineoplastic (anticancer) activity. In fact, it can pretty much be left out says a few marijuana doctors near me. Now, there is some in RSO and in most cannabis. It may actually have a beneficial effect against the cancer, too, but compared to THC it is really negligible. I knew from prior reading and discussion with patients that RSO is essentially highly-concentrated THC marijuana extract. I also knew from reading the scientific literature that THC appears to have the majority of anti-tumor effects. CBD, on the other hand, has properties that contribute to marijuana’s efficacy, but mostly for other conditions like pain, nausea, and the short-term adverse effects of THC. CBD causes THC to work on pain so there may be a component of it working on cancer. Rick did confirm to me the need to titrate doses as high as possible in patients with cancer (unlike pain). Rick Simpson is a genuine and honest man that is transparent about his views. I’ve developed a deep appreciation for Rick Simpson. He holds a lot of skepticism when viewing the medical cannabis community’s trends in belief. I always respect someone with that kind of outlook on life. It’s the only thing keeping us from being swept away by fanciful hopes and dreams cemented into our brains as truth through repeated confirmation bias. Eventually, the cognitive dissonance becomes irreversible.
