On this month’s episode, we are joined by Steve Ellmore, veteran, filmmaker, and founder of The Unprescribed.

Podcast Ep 18: Plants Over Pills—A Veteran’s Journey to Healing and Helping Others

This blog installment takes a look at autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and how the endocannabinoid system (ECS) plays a key role.

Endocannabinoid System (ECS) Dysregulation May Underlie Autism

Understanding the potential health issues associated with Aspergillus contamination is crucial.

Aspergillus in the Cannabis Industry: Understanding Potential Health Issues and Pain Points

Read coverage from a webinar presented by Americans for Safe Access on their report “Regulating Patient Heath: An Analysis of Disparities in State Cannabis Testing Programs"

How Testing Inconsistencies Affect Medical Cannabis Patients

Madeline Colli is the Associate Editor for Cannabis Patient Care and Cannabis Science and Technology magazines at MJH Life Sciences.

What would you like to see change in the next 5 years in the cannabis industry?

 Rescheduling Schedule I. Allowing the banking industry to take over and access the dispensaries. Let growers have access to the banking industry and federal legalization. And the big thing for me is the federal legalization because on the social justice side of things some opportunistic law enforcement agencies are using this as an opportunity to do civil forfeiture possession of cars that are driving from Oregon or Washington through Idaho. For example, that's a completely illegal state and they just targeted you because you're coming from a different state. Then when they get out there, they created a reason to get the dog out and then that causes them to point at the car and then they take whatever money you've got and the car, seize it, and sell it, and they make you go get a lawyer to get it. Say that there wasn't anything in there in the dark. You have to go through the process of talking about how canines can be triggered to point at something and that they weren't reacting to anything that was in the car, I mean this the unscrupulous corrupt they're using that. This has been documented, it's been

, all these articles on this and they're letting that happen throughout the United States that's why I don't drive through the South and Idaho.

 Federal legalization would be great. I don't think that that's going to happen. Before that though, if they could somehow or another figure out the banking that would be huge. We are an ancillary. We touch cannabis but we don't sell cannabis and we definitely don't collect taxes on it. We still have a very challenging time with banking. We've been rejected by several banks because we are nonprofit. The word cannabis they don't like. The patchwork of laws so you know that people can get Delta-8 all over the place instead of you know, here and there, and there are still places where cannabis is illegal, and people are still going to jail for it. That's got to change. It is a plan so, those are those are my hopes over the next five years.

 I would add to that that all healthcare curriculum includes scams. Jeremy and I have just recently attended an online 2-day symposium by Stockton University. There were presentations on medical cannabis, on legal cannabis, all done in university, community, education, or university settings, classes so there's movement in that. It's happening a lot of on the East Coast. Cornell, some in New Jersey, Stockton's in New Jersey, Robert Mejia, I think his name is, so we're going to get involved with that. We'll be part of doing a talk maybe in the next quarter when they have it but, it was wonderful to see all the people talking you know all these educators talking about what's happening in their area and how they can grow hemp and what the communities response to it is, what the colleges response, and the university and how law schools are teaching about cannabis law.

Stay tuned for further featured moments from this exciting interview!

Articles

Cannabis Patients Pacific Northwest (CPPNW) co-founders, David Benedicktus and Jeremy Robbins, discuss what changes need to be made to the cannabis industry to allow it to thrive. 

What Needs to Change in the Cannabis Industry: Thoughts from CPPNW

Despite the limited data, prior research indicates there are no serious cannabis-related adverse effects in pediatric patients.

In recent years, cannabis products—both synthetic cannabinoids and natural phytocannabinoids—have become more popular with patients with cancer as a method of managing symptoms including pain, anxiety, and weight loss; however, pediatric oncologists are hesitant to allow cannabis use for their pediatric patients due to the limited information on dosing, product selection, and safety monitoring (1).

, investigators assessed 1927 participants across 19 previous studies that reported the use of various cannabis products for symptom management. Cannabinoids were most commonly used to reduce chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting (present in 11 of the 19 [58%] studies). The cannabis products included medical-grade cannabinoids (eg, the prescription drug nabilone [Cesamet; Valeant Pharmaceuticals]), synthetic cannabinoids, and unspecified cannabis herbal extracts (1,2).

Most of the children receiving medical cannabis in the studies were diagnosed with tumors in their central nervous systems or blood-related cancers. Across the controlled studies, somnolence, dizziness, dry mouth, feeling high, increased appetite, altered mood and perception, and withdrawal due to adverse effects (AEs) were commonly associated with the use of cannabinoids. According to the investigators, no serious cannabis-related AEs were reported in the studies. Additionally, CBD usage was associated with long-term AEs including an increase in seizure frequency, weight gain or weight loss, fatigue, anorexia, diarrhea, and somnolence (1).

Study author Lauren Kelly, PhD, associate professor of pharmacology and therapeutics in the Rady Faculty of Health Sciences at the University of Manitoba, had noted that most of the examined studies did not properly describe the types, dosing, frequencies, and routes of cannabis administration, resulting in outcomes being mixed and reported in different ways. She suggests researchers should establish standards for reporting cannabis exposures, cannabis-related effects, and patient outcomes (2).

“It was difficult to measure benefit across studies, given a range of different outcomes and study designs; however, in interventional studies with active control groups, cannabinoids performed better in managing nausea and vomiting. Data are lacking on cannabinoids’ effects on pain, mood, sleep, and health-related quality of life,” said Kelly in a press release (2).

Limitations of the systematic review included the lack of uniformity in studies due to the quality of evidence, the lack of case-control or cohort studies, and the high variability in the reporting of outcome data that contributed to the investigators’ inability to perform a quantitative synthesis. Further, there was a lack of information on the medications that the study participants were taking throughout the duration of the cannabinoid trials, which limited the investigators’ ability to provide accurate advice on safety precautions surrounding drug-drug interactions (1).

Despite the prior evidence supporting the use of cannabis for managing symptoms, the dosing, safety, and efficacy of cannabinoids in pediatric cancer remains insufficiently studied, according to the study investigators. Due to the increasing interest and use of medical cannabis, the investigators urge that additional research be performed on the effects of cannabinoids on pediatric patients with cancer (1).

“Given that some children report benefits and some children experience AEs, it is critical that more rigorous studies evaluating the effects of cannabinoids on children with cancer are conducted and shared with parents, patients, and the health care community,” said Kelly in the press release (2).

Chhabra M, Ben-Eltriki M, Paul A, et al. Cannabinoids for symptom management in children with cancer: A systematic review and meta-analysis. 

University of Manitoba. Are cannabis products safe and effective for reducing symptoms in children with cancer? News release. August 28, 2023. Accessed on August 28, 2023. 

Our sister publication, Pharmacy Times, recently published an article addressing cannabis and pediatric cancer treatments.

Insufficient Data on Cannabis Products’ Reduction of Symptoms in Pediatric Cancer, Further Research Necessary

Americans for Safe Access (ASA) held an hour-long webinar

 on September 6th, 2023 discussing the impacts of the recent recommendation made by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to reschedule cannabis (1), and explained what it could mean for medical cannabis patients.

Sherer first explained the context surrounding the leaked letter from the HHS and what it is purported to say. “The findings from the HHS underscore that it is time for congressional action on medical cannabis, that actually this unlocks the door, but there is still going to have to be action to open that door for the change in scheduling of cannabis to do something for patients,” Sherer stated. “But we’re still a long ways from that happening.”

A slide from Americans for Safe Access' webinar explaining scheduling options for Congress.

Sherer also explained previous rescheduling petitions throughout the past several decades, the roles of the Department of Justice and Congress in drug scheduling, the steps the Drug Enforcement Agency will now likely take in their own review of cannabis, and the influence of international cannabis policy. She also explained how the creation of a Federal Medical Cannabis Program and an Office of Medical Cannabis and Cannabinoid Control under the HHS could work within cannabis rescheduling.

Based on the definition of a Schedule III drug, “we can assume that [the HHS] came to the conclusion that cannabis has accepted medical use in the United States,” Sherer stated, clarifying that it is not equivalent to FDA approval. Regardless of what happens next, she explained, this will have an impact on the attitudes and stigma around cannabis.

Questions from attendees included addressing federal barriers to patient access, the possibility of pharmacies providing medical cannabis, changes in criminal penalties, new research opportunities, and more.

At the beginning of the presentation, Sherer had cautioned attendees that they may not be excited about the lack of clear and direct answers to all questions at the moment, but she ended the presentation with ways attendees could help ASA continue to advocate for pathways for cannabis medicines.

Colli, M.; McEvoy, E. Shifting tides: US department of health and human services recommends cannabis rescheduling from schedule I to schedule III 

https://www.cannabissciencetech.com/view/shifting-tides-us-department-of-health-and-human-services-recommends-cannabis-rescheduling-from-schedule-i-to-schedule-iii

Americans for Safe Access, the nation’s largest member-based medical cannabis advocacy organization, held a webinar discussing the recent recommendation made by the Department of Health and Human Services to reschedule cannabis.

The Knowns and Unknowns: Americans for Safe Access Discusses Cannabis Scheduling and its Potential Impacts on Patients

When it comes to pain, everyone is different. How you experience pain, as well as your pain tolerance level, is shaped by many different factors. In the same way, people respond to medicines differently.

Cannabis is emerging as a different option, proving to be a powerful new tool for managing pain. The cannabinoids in the cannabis plant, especially cannabidiol (CBD) and tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), have been shown to reduce inflammation and pain. Other cannabinoids, such as cannabidiolic acid (CBDA), tetrahydrocannabinolic acid (THCA) and cannabigerol (CBG), plus plant compounds like terpenes may also play a role in reducing pain.

Federal restrictions in the United States continue to limit research on how cannabis impacts pain. However, other countries such as Israel have completed considerable research on cannabis’s therapeutic benefits.

Understanding the different types of pain and their sources can help you find the best cannabis options.

 usually comes about as the result of an injury, overuse, or medical procedure. While the initial pain can be mild or severe, it gets better over time as your body heals. Slamming your finger in a door will result in acute pain. Post-workout soreness, broken bones, and surgery recovery also fit into this category.

, “the pain itself becomes the disease,” explains Dr. Eduardo Fraifeld, MD. Doctors typically categorize pain lasting over 3-6 months as chronic pain. Chronic pain can be associated with arthritis, migraines, diabetes, or multiple sclerosis (MS), among other conditions. It can also be a side effect of chemotherapy or other long-term medical treatments. In addition, when an injury heals yet the pain remains, that fits the description for chronic pain.

Pain can also be broken down into the following categories:

: Pain in soft tissues, tendons, or joints caused by injury, overuse, stress, or illness. Arthritis and other types of inflammatory pain also fit in this category. Nociceptive pain tends to get better over time, except for arthritis. With this type of pain, inflammation triggers nearby nerves, resulting in aching or throbbing pain.

: Neuropathic pain, or nerve pain, originates in the nervous system. This type of pain is chronic in nature. It often feels like pins and needles, an electric shock, or a burning sensation. Some common causes of neuropathic pain are carpal tunnel syndrome, sciatica, diabetes, and chemotherapy.

: Is a relatively new category for pain that doesn’t fit well into the other two categories. Fibromyalgia, non-specific low back pain, and irritable bowel syndrome are a few examples. Also, pain associated with and exacerbated by centralized and peripheral sensitization is an example of nociplastic pain.

THC or CBD? It Depends on the Person and the Type of Pain

Cannabis plant compounds (cannabinoids) work on the CB1 and CB2 receptors in the human body’s 

Everyone’s endocannabinoid system is different, just like everyone has their own pain tolerance levels. Keep this in mind if a cannabis product ends up not working for you, there may be a better product, dose, or route for you. However, there are specific differences you should know that exist between the two most prominent cannabinoids, CBD and THC.

Many people successfully use CBD products to reduce inflammation-based pain. Full spectrum products containing all the plant compounds, including some amount of THC (including CBD hemp that has a small amount of THC), tend to be the most effective. Primarily because minor cannabinoids, terpenes, flavonoids and essential fatty acids work together to create the 

By helping to reduce inflammation, CBD may indirectly help reduce pain. However, it doesn’t bind directly to the receptors that control pain like an opioid does. For that, you need a different cannabinoid, THC.

A lot of people immediately rule out products with THC because of concerns they will become impaired or “high.” It’s important to know that small amounts of THC may have little to no impairing effects. At the same time, THC even in small amounts can be a gamechanger when it comes to pain.

THC can act on the same receptors in your body that opioids do. However, you don’t get some of the problematic side effects that opioids can bring—nausea, constipation, and risk of physical addiction.

Ironically, long-term use of opioids for chronic pain can make you more sensitive to pain—an effect called 

. What’s the recommended protocol in response to opioid-induced hyperalgesia? To wean off opioids (with help from your prescribing physician) and find a safer alternative for managing pain. Interestingly, cannabis has shown promise on this front, based on emerging research.

Cannabis does not cause pain sensitization but in fact can help treat it. As stated earlier, THC and other cannabinoids work through the same receptors that opioids do. However, the way that they reduce pain (their chemical process) is different.

Neuropathic pain is difficult to treat even with conventional pharmaceuticals. Generally, opioid use for chronic neuropathic pain is ineffective. 

 considered the risk and benefits of opioids for the treatment of neuropathies. It stated that “long-term opioid therapy didn’t improve the functional status but rather was associated with a higher risk of subsequent opioid dependency and overdose.”

We wish that we could state definitively that CBD or THC products will completely eliminate all pain. However, that is not the case. If there were a magic one-size-fits-all cure for pain, the pharmaceutical companies would have discovered and patented it!

Instead, the goal is to reduce pain to a manageable level and restore function. When you restore function, you open the possibility of adding on additional supportive activities such as exercise and relaxation that further promote healing.

 is a registered nurse and CEO, executive director, and founder of Leaf411, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in 2019 with a mission to provide education and directional support to the general public about the safe and effective use of cannabis (marijuana and hemp). For more information or to schedule a consultation with a cannabis-certified nurse, call 844-LEAF411 (844-532-3411) or visit leaf411.org.

Can’t wait to get started with cannabis? Our Leaf411 quick question hotline and one-on-one scheduled nurse guidance calls are available now to answer your questions about using cannabis to manage pain. Call us at 844-LEAF411 (844-532-3411).

Whether someone is struggling with acute or chronic pain, cannabis can be a powerful tool as an alternative or adjunct treatment.

How Can Cannabis Be a Path from Pain toward Restored Function?

Causing ripples and waves in the cannabis industry, the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), one of the top government agencies, has taken the leap on recommending cannabis be rescheduled from a Schedule I drug to a Schedule III drug. The easing of cannabis restrictions is being celebrated from bipartisan lawmakers, such as Senator John Fetterman (D-PA) and Representative Dave Joyce (R-OH), who are also claiming partial credit for HHS’s recent action (1,2), which follows a review request from the Biden Administration last year (3).

“Yesterday’s move is a massive win for the Biden administration and a strong step in the right direction on marijuana policy,” Senator Fetterman said (2). “I’m glad to see that the administration agrees with what we have known for a while: marijuana should not be a Schedule I drug.” 

Fetterman added a warning, though, stating (2), “we should also be clear that we have been in this exact spot before, with science on the side of rescheduling, only to have the DEA [Drug Enforcement Administration] and its destructive ‘War on Drugs’ mindset block reform. That must not happen again.”

Approximately 40 states have supported cannabis by legalizing it in their states either recreationally, medically, or both. Not all states have made legislation to legalize the plant and it is still considered illegal at the federal level which has been severely impacting the industry from moving forward and researching its benefits. Being classified as a Schedule I drug, cannabis is grouped with dangerous drugs such as heroin, LSD, and ecstasy (4). A majority of Americans support cannabis being rescheduled or descheduled because cannabis is not harmful like Schedule I drugs (1).

“This is an important first step on a long road to correct the wrongs in the war on cannabis and prevent the rise of an ineffectively regulated and therefore harmful market,” Representative Dave Joyce said (2). He added that the administration should “take the next forward and partner with Congress” regarding legislation he is sponsoring with House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) to equip the government for federal legalization.

HHS’s scheduling recommendation about cannabis was sent over to the DEA due to President Biden’s directive to HHS (1), a spokesperson from the DEA reported.

"As part of this process, HHS conducted a scientific and medical evaluation for consideration by DEA. DEA has the final authority to schedule or reschedule a drug under the Controlled Substances Act. DEA will now initiate its review," a DEA spokesperson said (1).

At the moment, cannabis is labeled as a Schedule I drug under the Controlled Substances Act. This classification is meant for drugs that have a strong potential for abuse and have no accepted medical use (1). The medicinal plant has been shown to produce medical benefits for a variety of health illnesses, such as cancer and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). HHS would like to reschedule cannabis to a lesser label because they believe that the plant has “…a moderate to low potential for dependence and a lower abuse potential,” such as those seen in ketamine and testosterone (1).

“No matter what happens next, the FDA [Food and Drug Administration] has confirmed that cannabis has accepted medical use in the United States,” wrote Steph Sherer, founder of Americans for Safe Access, the nation’s largest member-based organization advocating for medical cannabis and patients (6). “This will no doubt have an impact on attitudes about medical cannabis, reducing the stigma, increasing the acceptance of cannabis for medical professionals, employers, state regulators, and hopefully Congress.”

Sherer also noted that the DEA does not have a set timeframe to issue its own recommendations and it has the authority to hold differing determinations than the HHS (6).

“We believe that rescheduling to Schedule III will mark the most significant federal cannabis reform in modern history,” said Edward Conklin of the US Cannabis Council (5), which is a nonprofit that advocates for the regulated cannabis industry. “President Biden is effectively declaring an end to Nixon’s failed war on cannabis and placing the nation on a trajectory to end prohibition.”

Reclassifying cannabis at the federal level would benefit both the US and foreign companies outside of the country. In the US, major stock exchanges would be able to list corporations that are in the cannabis industry and foreign companies would be able to sell their products as well.

"The administration's process is an independent process led by HHS, led by the Department of Justice and guided by evidence... we will let that process move forward," White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre mentioned (1).

In Canada, cannabis is legal and the country has become a popular location for the cannabis industry for North America. Through this reclassification, companies would be able to expand their businesses to the US once federal legalization is approved. Several companies, such as Canopy Growth, Verano Holdings, Tilray Brands, Sunburn Cannabis, and Cronos Group, have applauded HHS’s recommendation (1).

"For far too long, cannabis prohibition and its outdated status as a schedule I substance have unduly harmed countless individuals affected by the failed War on Drugs," said George Archos, Veranos CEO (1).

Following Wednesday’s announcement of the rescheduling recommendation, shares of several cannabis firms rose (1).

US health officials look to move marijuana to lower-risk drug category 

https://www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/hhs-official-calls-move-marijuana-lower-risk-drug-category-bloomberg-news-2023-08-30/

Jaeger, K. Bipartisan lawmakers claim credit for Biden Administration’s marijuana rescheduling recommendation 

https://www.marijuanamoment.net/bipartisan-lawmakers-claim-credit-for-biden-administrations-marijuana-rescheduling-recommendation/

Roberts, C. States give marijuana data to Biden Administration for Rescheduling Review 

https://mjbizdaily.com/states-give-marijuana-data-to-biden-administration-for-rescheduling-review/

Schedule I, II, III, IV, & V drugs: Drug classifications: Duffy’s rehab 

https://www.duffysrehab.com/resources/articles/schedule-of-drugs/

Ovalle, D.; McGinley, L. Federal Health Agency recommends easing marijuana restrictions 

https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2023/08/30/hhs-recommends-marijuana-reclassified/

Sherer, S. FDA JUST UNLOCKED A DOOR FOR CANNABIS POLICY, WILL CONGRESS PUSH IT OPEN? 

On Wednesday, August 30th, the Department of Health and Human Services made its recommendation to the Drug Enforcement Agency to classify cannabis as a Schedule III drug, paving the way for reform, industry expansion, and research opportunities.

Shifting Tides: US Department of Health and Human Services Recommends Cannabis Rescheduling from Schedule I to Schedule III

Meg is the Group Editorial Director for Cannabis Patient Care and Cannabis Science and Technology magazines at MJH Life Sciences.

Cannabis Science Conference (CSC) Fall will be taking place in Providence, Rhode Island September 20-22nd. CSC Fall features several exciting tracks: analytical science, cultivation, medical cannabis, and psychedelics. With expert speakers coming in from around the country, we thought it was a great opportunity to introduce some of them and get a sneak peek into their presentations. Let’s meet Dr. Travis Poonai, a pharmacist with a specialty in medical cannabis. As a pharmacist for several years in retail pharmacy and current clinical director in Maryland, Dr. Poonai is passionate about serving the community. He collectively uses his skills as a healthcare practitioner and a graduate of the Medical Cannabis Science and Therapeutics program at the University of Maryland to educate and guide the patients he serves, as well as to advocate for health professionals within the cannabis space. Dr. Poonai is participating as a speaker on an exciting panel discussion in the medical track at Cannabis Science Conference Fall titled “Clinical Directors, Navigating Legalization and Beyond” taking place Thursday, September 21st. Here, Dr. Poonai shares his background as a pharmacist and how he got involved with medical cannabis as well as a preview of what to expect from his exciting panel discussion!

Can you tell us about your background and how you got involved with medical cannabis?

Yes. So, I have long since been a proponent for cannabis in general. Initially, we hadn'trealized the potential for cannabis in my early days. Of course, getting into college, a career in natural medicines or alternative therapies was pretty much unheard of. So, what I ended up doing was asking myself how I could bridge this gap. I wanted to learn why cannabis or why even other alternative medicines are not respected or at least taken as seriously as traditional or “Western medicines.” So, I decided to go to pharmacy school and see if there was a way for me to bridge that gap. Of course, life takes its course, and I worked in traditional pharmacy venues, retail pharmacy, in total for about 16 years, but as a pharmacist for about 10 years. I wasn’t really doing much with my passion—it just kind of was on the side and I wondered if there would ever be a day to focus on it. We never thought there would be. Then one of my pharmacy intern students mentioned to me that the University of Maryland was going to offer a Master's degree in medicinal cannabis. This was a calling. This couldn't have been meant for anybody but me, right? So, I went home that very day and I filled out that application. I did pursue the Master's in medical cannabis. So since then, I've left traditional retail, and I currently work as a Clinical Director for a multistate operator (MSO). I primarily represent our stores in the state of Maryland. That’s my journey coming full circle, from wanting to do something, not having an opportunity in the beginning and bridging that gap that I ultimately wanted to do.


What are you most looking forward to at the upcoming Cannabis Science Conference Fall?

As we all know, various states and state programs differ. I've been to the Cannabis Science Conferences that had taken place in Baltimore in the past, and this year it will be in Rhode Island, so it'll be interesting to network and see the perspectives of some of these other state programs and some of the representatives that will be there.

Can you give us a preview of what you'll be sharing on the Clinical Directors Navigating Legalization and Beyond panel discussion?

Yeah, absolutely. First, I should probably qualify or back it up a little bit. The definition of a Clinical Director in the state of Maryland is an official role or title. But essentially, this extrapolates to all health care practitioners within the cannabis space. So, myself, as well as a few of my colleagues (most are from Maryland, but some are from states that have seen either the transition from medical only to medical and adult use or haven't had that transition) will be speaking upon our experiences in what we've seen in the patient trends and the experiences we've had as practitioners.

Stay tuned for more with Dr. Travis Poonai with our live video conference coverage taking place September 21-22, 2023 or join us in person to hear Dr. Poonai and his colleagues’ panel discussion as well as many others at the Cannabis Science Conference Fall in Providence, RI. Register today with code EARLYBIRD to save 30%: 

Let’s meet Cannabis Science Conference Fall speaker Dr. Travis Poonai, a pharmacist with a specialty in medical cannabis. 

Meet the Cannabis Science Conference Fall Speakers: Dr. Travis Poonai on His Pharmacist Journey, Patient Trends, and Practitioner Experiences

Knowledge and Art of Combining Cannabinoids for Treatment Success


Speaker: Steve Ellmore, Filmmaker and veteran,
The Unprescribed

Psychedelics Track: Next Generation of Scientists Examining How to Mitigate Chronic Disease with Psychedelics


Moderator: Dr. Denise Vidot, Universtiy of Miami
Speakers: Brea-Necole Diggs, PhD Student, University of Miami - Miller School of Medicine; Dr. Amrit Baral, PhD Student, University of Miami - Miller School of Medicine; and Owen Berke, Student, University of Miami


Moderator: Cherissa Jackson, RN, WeDecode
Speakers: Steve Ellmore, Filmmaker and veteran, The Unprescribed; Ellen Brown, Founder; Green Path Training; Stephen Mandile, Veteran Advocate and Co-Founder, Cannabis Advancement Series; and Wayne Smith, Former Combat Medic

 Preparation and Analysis of Psychoactive Alkaloids and Their Metabolites in Multiple Matrices


Speaker: Dan DeLurio, Business Development Manager, Restek

 Exploring cannabinoid therapy as a safer alternative for dementia symptom management


Speaker: Blake Pearson, Co-Investigator, Pearson Health and Mikelle Bryson-Campbell, co-investigator

Patient Profiles: Characteristics of a large sample of medical cannabis patients


Speaker: Amanda Reiman, Chief Knowledge
Officer, New Frontier Data

: Barriers to and Learnings from Psychedelics Research


Moderator: Miyabe Shields, Founder, Scientist, Project Chronic
Panelists: Riley Kirk, PhD - Professor URI and Marné Garretson, MPH

Panel Discussion: Clinical Directors - Navigating Legalization and Beyond


Speaker/Moderator: Laura Barrett-Nutting, Executive Director, National Clinical
Director Consortium
Panelists: Dawn-Marie Steenstra, National Clinical Director Consortium, Clinical Director of Dispensaries; Dr. Travis Poonai, Clinical Director, Curaleaf; and Kevin Harbison, Manager of Clinical Services and Regulatory Operations, PharmaCan

 Layered Microdosing of Cannabis for Health and Wellness


Speaker: Monica Werkheiser, Canna Remedies NJ, Operations Research Specialist and Clinical Cannabis Pharmacist

Building a More Effective Medical Cannabis system


Opening Night Reception/Mixer in Exhibit Hall

Cannabis Reconsidered: A Science-Based Look at the True Harms and Benefits


Speaker: Dr. Peter Grinspoon, MD, primary care doctor at Massachusetts General Hospital, Instructor in Medicine at Harvard Medical School

 Panel Discussion: How do we educate our fellow healthcare providers?


Moderator: Brian Essenter, MM Consult CT
Panelists: Janice Newell Bissex, Program Director of Cannabinoid Medical Sciences John Patrick University School of Integrative and Functional Medicine; Uzma Zakir, RPh, founder of bloomHigher consulting; and Dr. Peter Grinspoon, MD

 Cannabinoids for the Treatment of Agitation in Dementia


Speakers: Ryan Buck, MD, Northwestern University - Feinberg School of Medicine and Rebecca Abraham, CEO and Founder,Acute on Chronic

 What if My Client Already Loves Cannabis? Managing Dual Rec & Med Users in Clinical Practice


Speaker: David Aronson, LCSW, Cannabis Educator

 Psychedelic Asia: Integrating Ancient Asian Wisdom and Modern Science in The Mind Medicine


Speaker: Dr. Aimon Kopera, Geneomics Global

Unveiling Cannabinoids' Potential: Cannabis for Managing Sleep Disorders


Speaker: Dr. Jeremy Riggle, Chief Manufacturing Officer, Day Three Labs

 Breakdown of the FDA’s Guidance on Psychedelic Clinical Trials


Speaker: J. Preston Campbell, Vice President of Innovation, Venebio/Consilium Sciences

Impact on clinical outcomes of multidisciplinary medicinal cannabis clinics on anxiety patients


Speaker: Bhumi Bhojak, Clinical Research Lead, Harvest Medicine, MediPharmlabs.com

, including our analytical science and cultivation tracks.

Join us in person at the Cannabis Science Conference Fall in Providence, RI. Register today with code EARLYBIRD to save 30%:

Don't miss these exciting speakers in the medical and psychedelics tracks at Cannabis Science Conference Fall taking place September 21-22, 2023 in Providence, Rhode Island!

Cannabis Science Conference Fall: Medical and Psychedelics Agenda 

Can you tell us about your background and how you got involved with medical cannabis studies?

Absolutely. I'm from the Midwest originally, and then in 2002, I moved to Oakland, California to begin the PhD program at UC Berkeley. I was not very aware of what was happening in the medical cannabis renaissance in the Bay Area. We didn't really hear that much about it outside of California. So, when I moved to Oakland, I was immediately struck by the cannabis dispensaries that were operating in Oakland, Berkeley, and San Francisco. And being someone that also was using medical cannabis for arthritis and other spinal issues, I immediately hooked into that system and started to visit dispensaries. 

From a social welfare perspective, what was interesting was that dispensaries back in that time were really operating as community health service providers. So, it wasn't all about walking in, finding the flashy products, paying, and leaving. It was really about getting your health needs met, your social needs, your physical needs, and your mental health needs. A lot of folks may not know, but the early dispensary movement was really born out of the HIV/AIDS crisis in San Francisco in the 1980s and 1990s and the LGBTQ+ community was responsible for getting this whole thing going. So, if you live in a state where you have access to medical cannabis, that is the community that you have to thank because they were really responsible for the early models of community health care. That was largely because the federal government was not responsive to the needs of this community, so they took it upon themselves to meet their own needs. That included having social spaces where people could come, where they could congregate, where they could have fun together, where they could talk to doctors, they could talk to lawyers, they could talk to peers, and cannabis was available because it helped so many of the symptoms that people were dealing with. So, this was the model that I observed in the early 2000s. And, again, from a social work perspective, we're very used to seeing health care look very different. We're very used to kind of authoritarian, top down, where you go in, you talk to a doctor, you don't talk to anyone else, and then you leave. This was really the antithesis of that, and I saw the benefits that it was bringing to the community. 

I also knew that because we live in a capitalist society and because cannabis legalization was on the horizon even then, that this may be a fleeting model—one that we weren't going to see 10 or 20 years from now. As a researcher, really, the best way to make sure that people know this ever happened is to write about it. So, I decided to do my doctoral dissertation on how medical cannabis dispensaries were operating as health service providers, and that was in 2005. At that time, I had 130 patients that were in my sample. I went to dispensaries. I conducted surveys inside the dispensary. And just to give you a sense of how little we knew back then, 130 was the largest sample of medical cannabis patients on record in 2005. So, we really knew very little about why people were using cannabis as medicine, how they were using it as medicine, and how it was benefiting their lives, including their ability to reduce or eliminate the use of alcohol, other drugs, and prescription drugs. This really was what started my interest in how society was interacting with the law, and therefore, how consumers were interacting with the law, and how they were using cannabis as medicine. Back then, I could count the number of cannabis researchers on one hand, there was no federal money for it. It was not a viable career path, and there were only a few of us that had decided it was important enough to spend our time and effort studying.

What are you most looking forward to at Cannabis Science Conference Fall 2023?

Well, one thing is I've never been to Providence, Rhode Island but I am considering a move to Vermont. So, I figured it would be a good opportunity for me to kind of check out what's going on in that part of the country. But also, I love science, and I'm so thrilled to see how this has grown as a discipline of cannabis science. And like I said, there was a time when it was just a few of us and we'd get together a few times a year at different conferences and talk about how the federal government wouldn't let us do anything, and what a pain in the butt it was. And, yes, that conversation still continues today. But the number of people, especially younger researchers, that have come up in this time when being a cannabis scientist is absolutely a viable research path, and we're starting to see more cannabis research institutes at places including UC Berkeley, my alma mater, that's really exciting to me. So, I love to meet the young researchers, I love to hear what they're working on, and I really love to hear how the science has progressed, from just being able to do some survey studies to actually setting up clinical trials and really getting into the depths of how the plant can benefit people.

Can you tell us a little about your upcoming presentation at CSC Fall titled “Patient Profiles: Characteristics of a Large Sample of Medical Cannabis Patients”?

Absolutely. So, I go back to that 130 original sample that I had back in 2005, and now at New Frontier Data, we have a string of medical cannabis recommendation clinics under CMed Data, which is Canna Care Docs and Relaxed Clarity. I'm just so thrilled to have the opportunity to have data on hundreds of thousands of patients, which is something that I've always wanted, right? I think that, even though the research has really come a long way in terms of cannabinoid science, there's still a lot missing when we're looking at the human side, right? Who are these people? What are their motivations? How is their use of cannabis impacting their use of other things? Who are they in terms of their medical history, in terms of their family medical history? What kind of conditions are they coming into the doctor's office for? I think there's really a need to better understand this population, and not just looking at regional samples or state samples, but looking at a very large, very robust national sample of data that is not retrospectively collected and asking patients about their prior experience, but is really coming from that conversation with the doctor and that intake form when they go into the doctor's office. So, I think it's a great jumping off point for investigating new things. 

My hope is that during this presentation that people who are listening to it get their minds going and thinking about all kinds of different ways they can dive deeper into this data—looking at people with different conditions, different demographics, regional differences, or differences in family history. So, my hope is that I'm laying the groundwork for a whole bunch of other researchers to get inspired and to partner and look deeper into some of these data points.

Stay tuned for more with Dr. Amanda Reiman with our live video conference coverage taking place September 21-22, 2023 or join us in person to hear her talk as well as many others at the Cannabis Science Conference Fall in Providence, RI. Register today with code EARLYBIRD to save 30%: 

Cannabis Science Conference (CSC) Fall will be taking place in Providence, Rhode Island September 20-22nd. CSC Fall features several exciting tracks: analytical science, cultivation, medical cannabis, and psychedelics. With expert speakers coming in from around the country, we thought it was a great opportunity to introduce some of them and get a sneak peek into their presentations. Let’s meet Amanda Reiman, PhD, Chief Knowledge Officer at New Frontier Data, an analytics company serving the legal cannabis industry. Dr. Reiman has been studying the relationship between cannabis, people, and society for more than 20 years. She earned her PhD in social welfare from UC Berkeley, and conducted one of the first studies of medical cannabis patients. Dr. Reiman will be presenting a talk titled “Patient Profiles: Characteristics of a Large Sample of Medical Cannabis Patients” in the medical track on Thursday, September 21st. Here, Dr. Reiman shares her background in medical cannabis, some of her research efforts, and a preview of her upcoming talk. 

Meet the Cannabis Science Conference Fall Speakers: Dr. Amanda Reiman on Medical Cannabis Patient Profiles and Research 

Cannabis Science Conference (CSC) Fall will be taking place in Providence, Rhode Island September 20-22nd. CSC Fall features several exciting tracks: analytical science, cultivation, medical cannabis, and psychedelics. With expert speakers coming in from around the country, we thought it was a great opportunity to introduce some of them and get a sneak peek into their presentations. Let’s meet Dawn-Marie Steenstra, a Clinical Director of Dispensaries in Maryland, and a founder for the National Clinical Director Consortium. Dawn-Marie has been a bedside and community nurse for 26 years. As a passionate advocate and one of the very first cannabis nurses in the country, she is an approved Clinical Director of Dispensaries for Maryland. As CEO of Entourage Consulting Services, she consults with hundreds of patients for multiple dispensaries. She is organizing an exciting panel discussion in the medical track at the Cannabis Science Conference Fall titled “Clinical Directors, Navigating Legalization and Beyond” taking place Thursday, September 21st. Here, Steenstra shares her background as a nurse and how she got involved with medical cannabis as well as a preview of what to expect from her exciting panel discussion!

Can you tell us about your background and how you got involved with medical cannabis and patient advocacy?

I came into cannabis quite by accident. I was actually dating someone at the time and he took me to a Patients Out of Time Conference when we were first dating, and I learned what he did for a living. He was involved in the hemp industry for many, many years, and I had had lots of experience in long term care, hospice, and community health. I had been very discouraged by what I saw with the hospice treatments we had. We have four drugs that we have in our bag that we can use usually for these patients and their distress, and a lot of times they don't quite work. Right before I met my husband-to-be, I actually had a case where I argued with a physician because he had wanted me to give a patient back-to-back injections of morphine, and the patient was actively dying, and I knew that, but I had the distinct impression the patient was trying to wake up to talk to their family. So, any time the patient made a noise, the family would get upset and they would want me to do something for the patient’s pain. It was about a half an hour apart, and I told the doctor that the patient wasn't clearing the morphine, and that I was afraid that if I gave them another injection they were going to die. Even though the patient was actively dying, I didn't want to speed up that process. I didn't feel like it was my place. Long story short, I lost the argument. I went and gave the injection—20 minutes later, the patient has passed.That shook me up quite a bit. I decided that this was not what I wanted to do anymore. So, I had an open mind. I went to this conference with my husband, the Patients Out of Time Conference, and I had just been through breast cancer myself the year before that. So, I'm sitting there and I'm learning about this plant that is naturally occurring that we can all grow if we want to, that has been prohibited from having access to. And I thought to myself, my God, I could be helping my patients with this. This makes sense. I had done cannabis when I was a teenager. I knew the relaxing properties. I knew that it helped pain, and I thought it was incredible. But being a kid, you don't know these things.

Anyway, when I realized that this was prohibited to patients, I kind of became a rabid advocate shortly thereafter, and I joined Americans for Safe Access. I learned how to do legislative work, learned how to write letters to my representatives, and I went about trying to teach people because we were just talking about the cannabis program in Maryland at the time. I began trying to gather people together to learn about cannabis and to teach others about cannabis, teach fellow nurses, doctors—anybody that would listen. So, that's basically how I got into all this.

What are you most looking forward to at the Cannabis Science Conference Fall coming up in September?

I’m looking forward to catching up with the industry and catching up with the science. It's changing all the time, and now that we have psychedelics coming into the mix, it's been very fascinating just following the trajectory of what's happening in the cannabis world. It's kind of like a family reunion at this point. I've been in cannabis world for about 12 years, so I go to the conferences and it's like a big family reunion to see everybody.

Can you share a summary of the panel discussion that you're organizing?

Well, in July 2023, Maryland instituted adult use, and we've been watching from California to Massachusetts to Maryland and other states, what happens to patients once adult use becomes the norm. We've been trying to navigate that as Clinical Directors, trying to help guide our patients in the best way that we can. We've noticed some things happening. They've happened in other states as well because the sales come primarily from the recreational market. We can't deny this. But the reason that we're here is to help teach patients and teach the consumers that cannabis is not only something for relaxation after work or at a party, or a lot of people kind of trade alcohol for cannabis a lot of times, as far as the way their mind works, they don't really look at it as a tool and a toolbox for helping with health conditions. So, I'm hoping that we can teach people that it's just as important to care about the formulas that are available for people with health conditions as well as people in the recreational market.

For anyone that maybe isn't familiar because there are not Clinical Directors in every state, what exactly do you do in Maryland and how is that different from what other states might have in place?

: Well, as Clinical Directors what we do is we sit down with patients individually, case by case, and we go over their case, we go over medication reconciliation to see if any medications or pharmaceuticals that they're on or supplements might interfere with their cannabis use or be contraindicated with cannabis use. There are a few drugs that we have to be careful of. We also sit down and we go over their concerns and what their wishes are as far as prioritizing what they want handled. Most of what we see are people with pain, sleep issues, and anxiety—in that order. So, I'll ask them to give me the top three priorities of what they want handled. And by that measure, we can determine the best terpenes, the best ratio of THC to CBD, or even the best cannabis varietals that might help.

Stay tuned for more with Dawn-Marie Steenstra with our live video conference coverage taking place September 21-22, 2023 or join us in person to hear Dawn-Marie and her colleagues’ panel discussion as well as many others at the Cannabis Science Conference Fall in Providence, RI. Register today with code EARLYBIRD to save 30%: 

Let’s meet Cannabis Science Conference Fall speaker Dawn-Marie Steenstra, a Clinical Director of Dispensaries in Maryland, and a founder for the National Clinical Director Consortium. 

Meet the Cannabis Science Conference Fall Speakers: Dawn-Marie Steenstra on Medical Cannabis Patient Advocacy

Dr. Peter Grinspoon with his latest book, "Seeing Through the Smoke: A Cannabis Specialist Untangles the Truth about Marijuana"

Can you tell us a little bit about yourself and how you became interested in the cannabis industry?

: Well, it goes back a long time and there are several reasons that sparked my interest. The first thing is that my brother Danny, in the early 1970s, was fighting an unsuccessful battle with childhood leukemia. My parents saw him suffering so much from the chemotherapy that they illegally procured him cannabis in the early 1970s, right when Richard Nixon was just embarking on his war on cannabis. It was just amazing to see my brother when he didn't use cannabis, he'd just be lying in his bed with a towel over his head barfing. But when he used cannabis, he was able to eat, hold down food, maintain his weight, strum on his Fender Stratocaster (which he loved to do), and, most importantly to us, play with his little brothers. So, I saw at a very early age how impactful medical cannabis can be and that really stuck with me for my entire medical education and my entire medical career.

The other thing I should mention is that my father, Dr. Lester Grinspoon, was a legendary psychiatrist at Harvard Medical School, and he wrote a pioneering book in 1971 called 

, which was actually reviewed on the front page of 

 in glowing terms. At that time, when only 12% of Americans supported full legalization of cannabis, my dad called for the legalization of cannabis, saying, “Sure, there are some harms associated with it. Teens, pregnancy, certain people shouldn't use it. But the harms of criminalization are much worse than the harms of actually using cannabis.” So, growing up, I had all kinds of cannabis advocates and activists and proponents in my living room, sort of smoking and talking, and these were people that were actually changing the world. I started to associate cannabis not only with like healing because of my brother Danny, but with sort of an intellectual lubricant because all these super motivated people were using it in my home. So, I've been interested in it my entire medical career.

That's amazing. It sounds like you had a lot of role models in the cannabis industry from being around your father.

: Yes, with my dad and his colleagues I had the best role models. And, again, these weren't people that only saw the benefits of cannabis, these were people that didn't want teenagers using it, that didn't necessarily think it was safe in pregnancy or breastfeeding, that were aware that it could destabilize people who have psychotic disorders. So, these were notpro-cannabis people. They were against the drug war and for a very balanced approach to cannabis where you're allowed to talk about the harms as well as the benefits or the benefits as well as the harms. The discussion has been very, very one-sided and the research has been very one sided because of pressure from the US government just to find harms and not to discuss benefits. I actually was exposed to both sides growing up and I feel that gave me a much more nuanced view of why people use cannabis in the first place.

Can you explain the top two biggest misconceptions about cannabis that you encounter frequently?

 Sure. Well, number one, medical marijuana doesn't mean smoking. No doctor recommends smoking. I mean, if you're dying of cancer or you have chemotherapy and you need to take something really quickly so you don't throw up, maybe there's certain exceptions. But I had a friend huffily say to me, “How can burning smoke be medicine?” So, I was explained that you could use a tincture under your tongue, one of these old fashioned medicinal tinctures. You can take a small dose of an edible very carefully. You can actually use a skin patch, an inhaler, a suppository, or a topical. There are many different delivery methods. So, one misconception is that to use medical cannabis is to be smoking cannabis. There are many different delivery options.

Another misconception is that there's no such thing as medical marijuana and people are just trying to get high. In fact, the doses of medical marijuana are often much lower than the doses of adult use or recreational marijuana. Also, using cannabidiol (CBD) and other medicinal cannabinoids besides tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) often people get comfortable with no high effect or a minimum of the high that people associate it with. So, it doesn't mean you're stoned all the time. It just means you're getting effective symptom relief. So those are a couple of misconceptions.

What are some of the key cannabis policies you'd like to see change immediately and what would they improve?

: Well, first of all, I'd love to see federal legalization. That would improve the coherence of every single state legalization program. Cannabis has been criminalized for almost a century, 87 or so years. Now we're trying to re-legalize it. When we re-legalized alcohol, it was only after 13 years, everybody remembered how it worked. Now we're doing it for cannabis, but not federally and instead it’s in a state-by-state patchwork ability. I think that if we had federal legalization, the labeling, the communication, and the product quality (you could do recalls)—I think the whole enterprise would be much safer.

Another policy that we need to change is that cannabis is still stuck in Schedule 1 of the Controlled Substance Act, which means it has no medical benefits, which is patently wrong. Tell the millions of people that are using it with clear medical benefit that it has no medical benefit, let alone there are several US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved medications—one from CBD called Epidiolex and the other from THC called Marinol. If there are approved FDA medications from cannabis, how can they say there's no medical benefit? And then they say it has high abuse liability. Now, in reality, it has low to moderate misuse liability at worst. So, it certainly shouldn't be in the Schedule 1 in the Controlled Substance Act. The Biden Administration says they're going to reschedule it, but they honestly should de-schedule it, given that it's much safer than alcohol or tobacco—and neither of them are on the Controlled Substance Act. You can just buy them. We rely on education and adults being adults to ward off the harms of it. We don't need to put it in the Controlled Substance Act. So, I think de-scheduling cannabis would be ideal, though rescheduling is better than Schedule 1 in the Controlled Substance Act. That is another policy I'd love to see changed yesterday.

Please join us at Cannabis Science Conference Fall in Providence, Rhode Island for Dr. Grinspoon’s keynote lecture on September 22, 2023! 

 for 20% off your registration with code 

Dr. Peter Grinspoon, a primary care doctor at Massachusetts General Hospital, an Instructor in Medicine at Harvard Medical School, and a 25-year cannabis specialist, will be a keynote speaker at the upcoming Cannabis Science Conference Fall taking place September 21-22, 2023 in Providence, Rhode Island. Here, Dr. Grinspoon shares his background and interest in medical cannabis as well some policies he’d like to see changed in the future. 

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