Brazilian Justice Approves Marijuana Cultivation for Medical Use

By Xiu Ying, Contributing Reporter

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – In recent months, two more patients have obtained preventive Habeas Corpus for the cultivation of marijuana for medicinal purposes in the courts in Rio de Janeiro, without the risk of being arrested by the police or suffering any kind of legal harassment, says G1 in its latest report.

They both have herniated discs and claim the pain only diminished when they tried cannabis oil, after unsuccessful attempts with conventional treatments.

According to experts monitoring similar legal issues, there are about 10 cases of authorization in the state and about 40 across the country.

One of those benefiting from this court decision is Douglas, who started planting his cannabis organically and producing the oil at home, which he says has improved his quality of life by “more than 200 percent”.

“I could no longer walk, normal pain medicine no longer worked for me. I’m a 32-year-old man who was bed-ridden on morphine, practically a cripple. When I could produce my own medicine, I could walk again. It improved my quality of life by 200 percent,” Douglas said.

He says his type of hernia is incurable and that it holds him hostage to painkillers. “I took three tablets of morphine a day and it was no longer working. What is stronger than morphine? Nothing. It was then that the doctor suggested this cannabis oil alternative,” he recalls.

“The peak was one day when I no longer felt anything from the waist down, I had the feeling that I was crippled, I woke up as if my legs had been pulled from me, I panicked, I screamed, I cried.”

Douglas says that three hours after taking the cannabis oil he could feel his legs. “From the second week of continuous use of the oil, there was no more pain, no more locking. There was also an increase in appetite and a decrease in my anxiety. Today I can do martial arts and hiking. Before I could not walk on uneven ground because I would fall, today I am a normal person.”

The patient consumes three to four bottles of 30 ml of oil per month and to start planting, he spent about R$20 thousand with greenhouses, lights, and tubes.

Despite the fact that home cultivation requires knowledge for planting and financial investment, Douglas says that if he were to import oil from abroad, then cost could reach R$10 thousand monthly, much higher than what he currently spends: “For me, this is unfeasible. Then came the idea to reduce this cost with home planting.”

Luciano Noia, Douglas’ attorney, explains that it is crucial that one files a court request before beginning home cultivation.

“In Brazil, it is a crime to grow marijuana. So the patients who need to use cannabis for medicinal purposes face the problem of cost if buying the medicine abroad,” explains the lawyer.

The lawyer also explains that because of the patients’ needs, the judiciary and the Public Ministry are attentive to the demands of society.

“The powers are also noticing the scientific advancement. Cannabis has been a good solution for certain pathologies”, Noia adds. The lawyer advises those interested in cannabis treatment to seek information from Anvisa (National Health Surveillance Agency) and talk to experts.

Ricardo Ferreira, a specialist in pain and spinal surgery, explains that he prescribes the treatment for patients in pain and who have tried all methods and continue to suffer, and points out that Anvisa has regulated the compassionate use of cannabis for medicinal purposes since 2015.

However, for permission to be granted for home-grown crops, a court order is required.

(Source: Brazilian Media Outlet G1)