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 18. Viewed in this ways it is clear, as Sallan first
 pointed out in his 1975 article, that there are advantages to
 the use of marijuana for the alleviation of nausea and
 vomiting° That these advantages may be of critical importance
 to a patient in the grasp of chemotherapeutically-induced
 ,meals cannot be dismissed lightly.
 19. There is another aspect to marijuana's use in
 therapy which does not gain as much attention as its use as
 anti-emetic but which I feel is of equivalent importance,
 namely, the phenomenon which is socially referred to as _the
 munchies, n Patients who smoke marijuana not only gain the
 benefit of suppressed nausea_ but are actually induced to
 eat. They become hungry, and as a result, patients who use
 o
 marijuana often have stable weight or actually gain weight
 during a chemotherapeutic reglmen_
 20. Another all too often dismissed attribute of
 ...... marijuana is its mood enhancement p=opertieso The quality of
 life which a cancer patient experiences during chemotherapy can
 be greatly eroded by the treatment itself_ By eliminating
 severe vomiting and nausea_ and by promoting an active appetite
 and thus avoiding the chronic anorexic conditions experienced
 by many cancer patlents_ makes patients feel better about
 themselves. They are able to lead more normal lives and, in
 doing so_ are more able to cope both with their cancer and with
 the treatment_
 21. In my view, based on a careful review of the
 literature and on my own experiences as a practicing physician




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