In episode 60 of Going anti-Viral, Dr Donald Abrams joins host Dr Michael Saag to discuss medical cannabis. Dr Abrams is a professor emeritus at the University of California San Francisco and a specialist in integrative oncology at the Osher Center for Integrative Health. Dr Abrams has studied complementary and alternative therapies, including mind-body treatments, botanical therapies, medical use of cannabis and herbal therapies used in traditional Chinese medicine. He continues to research the health effects of medical cannabis. Dr Abrams was previously at the forefront in HIV/AIDS research and treatment at San Francisco General Hospital and served as chief of the medical oncology service from 2003 to 2017. Dr Saag and Dr Abrams discuss the history of medical cannabis and the challenges Dr Abrams experienced in researching its use for medical therapy. They discuss the medical benefits of cannabis and the recommendations that clinicians may make as well as addressing the differences in products available including THC and CBD. They also discuss research in whether use of cannabis in young adults is related to schizophrenia. Finally, Dr Saag and Dr Abrams discuss the future of medical cannabis and whether physicians should continue to provide a role in its use, whether the scheduling of cannabis as a controlled substance will change, and the type of research that is needed to continue to explore where its use is beneficial. 

0:00 – Introduction

1:20 – Overview of the history of medical cannabis 

4:10 – The fight for medical cannabis research and its use in people with AIDS 

10:59 – Understanding the medical benefits of cannabis particularly for pain, insomnia, nausea, vomiting, anxiety, and depression 

13:15 – How physicians navigate recommendations for the use of cannabis and the differences with the types of cannabis whether inhaled, digested, or tinctures 

18:13 – CBD vs. THC: understanding the differences and other possible cannabinoid therapeutics

23:25 – The role of physicians in the future of medical cannabis, the need for more research, and the overall availability for people who want it 

25:57 – Overview of research if there a relationship between the use of cannabis and schizophrenia in young adults 

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Produced by IAS-USA, Going anti–Viral is a podcast for clinicians involved in research and care in HIV, its complications, and other viral infections. This podcast is intended as a technical source of information for specialists in this field, but anyone listening will enjoy learning more about the state of modern medicine around viral infections.

Going anti-Viral’s host is Dr Michael Saag, a physician, prominent HIV researcher at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, and volunteer IAS–USA board member. In most episodes, Dr Saag interviews an expert in infectious diseases or emerging pandemics about their area of specialty and current developments in the field. Other episodes are drawn from the IAS–USA vast catalogue of panel discussions, Dialogues, and other audio from various meetings and conferences.

Email [email protected] to send feedback, show suggestions, or questions to be answered on a later episode.

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