vol2 - Page 274

 _. the question. The issue is_ should mari_juana be available to
 patients for use under appropriate medical supervision.
 46. Marijuana, like any other drug, affects each
 person in a slightly different way. In my professional judg-
 ment_ and based on my own experience as a researcher and
 physicians marijuana is certainly no more dan@erous and may
 actually be far less dangerous than many of the drugs currently
 accepted as _safe _ for use in the treatment of glaucoma.
 47. From a strictly medical perspective, marijuana
 is "safe _ for use under medical supervision°
 48. Is marijuana medically _effective _ in the treat-
 ment of glaucoma? Yes.
 i_ 49. All of the government's ophthalmic affiants
 state that glaucoma is a mysterious, poorly understood
 disease. As Dro Spaeth suggestst despite decades of research
 we still do not know what causes glaucomas how to prevent it or
 how to cure it. To suggest that our knowledge of this disease
 is limited would be an understatement.
 50. If we know so little about glaucomas how do we
 determine if a glaucoma control drug is effective? What is the
 • accepted criteria against which effectiveness is measured?
 51o On this point all of the ophthalmic witnesses
 are in agreement. As Dr. Spaeth states_ "Lowering [intraocu-
 lar] pressure is the most important aspect of treatment now.
 Xn factF it is the ONLY validated method by which we know we
 can help glaucoma®_