Legendary cannabis advocate Eddy Lepp proves that marijuana doesn’t cure cancer

There are no two options. This article is likely to come across as a bit harsh. The words and points made here may even be inappropriate for some, far too early to discuss so explicitly. Let me humbly apologize in advance.

It is not my intention to take advantage of the pain and suffering of strangers for journalism. However, it is my moral responsibility to break the myths of the cannabis advocate community when I can. That doubles when it means that maybe I can save someone fighting cancer.

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Cancer is perhaps the most brutal disease in the United States. Around 1.8 million new cases are diagnosed every year. Unfortunately, more than 600,000 of these people will never recover.

Of course, since modern medicine is the powerhouse, there are a number of cancer treatment options, most of which are not at all pleasant to take. Anyone who has had chemotherapy on a family member can confirm this firsthand. But it’s the best we have. There is no known cure for cancer. In any situation, a cancer patient can only hope that doctors will spot them early enough to make a treatment program more effective. If not, the patient has to walk a very fine line the hard way of keeping faith and lost hope.

This week cancer claimed the life of legendary cannabis advocate Eddy Lepp. He was one of the most respected members of the medical marijuana community. according to High Timesafter serving eight years in federal prison for growing inexpensive, and sometimes even free, weed for thousands of patients in need under California’s 1996 Medical Marijuana Act. Among his advocacy efforts, the canna veteran also believed that marijuana helps with cancer.

Help yeah Healing, no.

Marijuana proponents have argued for decades that the federal government has a cure for cancer and that cure is the cannabis plant. Some of them firmly believe that Uncle Sam is keeping this secret from the world, presumably alongside the blueprint for a water-powered engine and an envelope with the name of Kennedy’s real assassin.

And while it was once conceivable that the evils of a borderline utopian government could keep something like this out of the population in order to boost the profits of big healthcare and big pharma, that argument now somehow falls flat. Millions of people smoke marijuana today, legally and otherwise, yet cancer deaths continue to rise. How can that be if the cannabis plant is really a cure?

RELATED: Cancer and Medical Marijuana: A Patient’s Perspective

As I wrote in a 2018 items For Forbes, science tells us that marijuana doesn’t cure cancer, just like real life. Although anecdotal evidence emerges from time to time suggesting that cannabis can kill certain cancer cells, oncologists say the results are not strong enough to be excited.

“In cell cultures and animal models, cannabinoids derived from cannabis, especially THC and cannabidiol, can be effective against some types of cancer (but paradoxically also accelerate the growth of others)” said Eugene Ahn, a Chicago-based medical oncologist. “But none of these studies provide evidence that cannabis can cure cancer. It is irresponsible and harmful to say that cannabis cures all types of cancer. “

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In the Forbes article, I wrote about how I was asked by Highest times to talk to Hollywood stuntman Mark Chavarria – known for productions like “Iron Man” and “Sons of Anarchy” – about how he cured his stage 4 colon cancer with cannabis oil. “What I think is happening to the oil is that it works like shellac on the tumors and it doesn’t grow, it doesn’t breathe, it doesn’t let you eat,” he said. “I think it was slow but sure to peel off the tumors like an onion.”

RELATED: Chemo and CBD Combo May Be Magic Ball for Pancreatic Cancer

I’ll admit, Mark’s story convinced me that cannabis really is a cancer cure. By the time his story was published, I must have spoken to hundreds of patients, their friends, and family members who wanted to learn the secret of cancer-freedom. I was happy to share the information and Mark was great at sharing his story with anyone who wanted to hear it. But just like Lepp, Mark eventually died of stage 4 cancer in 2017, which proves to me that smoking weed, swallowing cannabis oil, or some other clever ingestion method for consuming cannabis does not cure cancer.

But don’t take my word for it. Science also denies the claim. A thorough review by the National Academy of Science examined over 10,000 studies and found “Zero Evidence” that cannabis cures or even affects cancer. The academy admitted that cannabis could be effective for nausea as a result of chemotherapy. But relieving nausea is far from being a cure.