Although Canada now permits the therapeutic use of cannabis, very little is known about the real effects of cannabis and how it works. Université de Montréal professor Pierre Beaulieu thinks that animal studies as well as reports by human users justify putting a serious research program for human beings in place - something practically never down until now.

While teaching at the Imperial College of Science and Medicine in London, Pierre Beaulieu took part in fundamental research intended to verify the existence of an endogenous cannabinoid tonus. This work showed that endocannabinoids produced naturally by our cell membranes are not secreted in a continuous fashion like the endomorphines produced in the case of serious injury, and that they do have a link with the immune system and the lessening of pain. Working in the UdeM anesthesiology and pharmacology department, Beaulieu is continuing his clinical work at the Centre hospitalier de l'Université de Montréal (CHUM) and in his laboratory for basic research on pain. Among other things, he's seeking to determine what effect THC has on pain relief and the secondary effects of breast cancer surgery. "We know that THC can reduce nausea caused by anesthetics and we want to see if this effect can also lessen post-operative pain. The project is intended to characterize this use, that is, determine the dosage limits associated with the various effects of this cannabinoid."

The product used for Beaulieu's research is orally administered synthetic THC. But THC is just one of 60 cannabinoids that natural cannabis contains. Although it is the most active one, the absence of the other cannabinoids is probably one of the reasons why users say that smoking cannabis relieves pain better than synthetic THC. What about toking up in Beaulieu's clinic? Don't even ask. "Marijuana smoke obviously includes all substances in the plant, but the cost is the harmful effects of the smoke," says Pierre Beaulieu, "so that's not the way." Not to mention other consequences like the loss of notions of time and space, memory problems and the rest. Beaulieu would like to be able to use a new product administrated by a puffer, containing all 60 cannabinoids, which can then be isolated or altered. Designed by a firm in Britain, this product should eventually be available in Canada for research purposes.

This detail on the form of THC used in laboratories throws a new light on the scope of the research. "No clinical study has ever been done from cannabis smoke," Beaulieu continues, pointing out that some of his colleagues at McGill University are preparing to study the question. So it is still not known in any precise way just what the consequences of this form of absorption are, which explains why it has never been compared with the many analgesics produced over the past 20 years.

Researcher: Pierre Beaulieu
Phone: (514) 890-8000, extension 1-4570
Funding: CHUM