1st CLINICAL POT TRIAL TO USE U.S. STASH

OTTAWA: Canada’s first clinical study on the use of medicinal marijuana will use cannabis grown in the United States while a large canadian-grown stash of the drug sits on ice.

The United States National Institute on Drug Abuse has agreed to supply the drug for a Toronto-based trial, even though that country’s drug czar disapproves of the program.

Meanwhile, about 200 kilograms of cannabis grown with Ottawa’s sanction in an abandoned Manitoba mine sits in storage and will not be used on patients, Health Canada says. “It’s ridiculous,” said Alan Young, a Toronto lawyer who is fighting the federal government in court, arguing that regulations controlling the use of medical marijuana violate constitutional rights.

The trials, expected to start within two weeks, will include 32 patients with HIV infection. It is intended to look at whether the drug can stimulate appetite and weight gain in the patients, and will take place over a six-month period.

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