Sarina Auriel discovered the lump more than five years ago, the small knot in her left breast a sign of drastic life changes to follow. Diagnosed with stage-three breast cancer, the Vancouver health and education consultant underwent debilitating chemotherapy treatments that left her with chills, shakes and severe nausea.
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The link between marijuana and metastasis
In August, 2012, a doctor at the B.C. Cancer Agency gave Ms. Auriel a report about cannabidiol (CBD), a compound in marijuana that studies suggest may inhibit or prevent metastasis of aggressive breast-cancer cells.
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Licence for medical use
She acquired a licence and, with the help of Vancouver’s Medicinal Cannabis Resource Centre Inc., connected with a grower who provided her with frozen juice cubes containing CBD to consume and resin that she mixes with a homeopathic cream to create a topical treatment.
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The results: more strength and energy
The results, Ms. Auriel said, were drastic: She had more energy and felt stronger by the day. Side effects – which included a little hair loss and some nausea – were mild and manageable.
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The new federal regulations
On Tuesday, new regulations will come into effect restricting medical-marijuana production to select commercial growers. The Federal Court has granted an injunction exempting patients who currently have Health Canada permission to grow their own while a larger constitutional challenge is before the courts.
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What Ms. Auriel needs
Ms. Auriel says her medicine is created with CBD taken from plants right before buds appear – when CBD levels are highest – but if only select growers can produce it, they won’t likely harvest plants before buds form. Her calls to Health Canada have not been returned, she said.
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What Ms. Auriel wants
“What I’m asking for is not a medicine that has any psychoactive properties,” she said.
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