***Hep C Victim is Denied Transplant Due To Medical Marijuana Use Dies

Timothy Garon was a Seattle-area man suffering from Hepatitis C who had a recommendation for medical marijuana from his physician for pain relief and nausea and also as an appetite stimulant. He was denied a spot on the transplant list at two of his local hospitals, allegedly largely because of his medical marijuana use, Shortly afterward, Tim Garon died.

The Associated Press reported on May 3, 2008 that "Timothy Garon, 56, used marijuana to ease the symptoms of advanced hepatitis C. Dr. Brad Roter, the physician who authorized Garon to smoke pot to alleviate nausea and abdominal pain and to stimulate his appetite -- a use authorized under a Washington state law approved by voters in 1998 -- said he had not known it would be such a hurdle if Garon were to need a transplant.Garon died Thursday, one week after he said he learned from his doctor that a University of Washington Medical Center committee had again denied him a spot on the liver-transplant list. 'He said I'm going to die, with such conviction,' Garon said then. 'I'm not angry, I'm not mad, I'm just confused.' His death at Bailey-Boushay House, an intensive-care nursing center, was confirmed.

According to AP, "Most transplant centers struggle with how to deal with people who have used marijuana, said Dr. Robert Sade, director of the Institute of Human Values in Health Care at the Medical University of South Carolina. 'Marijuana, unlike alcohol, has no direct effect on the liver. It is however a concern ... in that it's a potential indicator of an addictive personality,' Sade said. TheVirginia-based United Network for Organ Sharing, which oversees the nation's transplant system, leaves it to individual hospitals to develop criteria for transplant candidates. At some, people who use 'illicit substances' --including medical marijuana, even in states that allow it -- are automatically rejected. At others, such as the UCLA Medical Center, patients are given a chance to reapply if they stay clean for six months. Marijuana is illegal under federal law."

Does Medical Marijuana help or hurt the Hepatitis sufferer?

According to: http://thehepatitisblog.com/?p=801 Medical marijuana, primarily used to help relieve the harsh side effects of Western medicine’s standard treatments, has been somewhat of a hot topic in the medical community lately, with valid arguments from both sides of the field. In the case of Hepatitis C, it can help alleviate the unbearable side effects for those currently undergoing a round of Interferon therapy.

Genotype 1 is the most common type of HCV in the United States. However, it has the lowest success rate with Interferon therapy, meaning re-treatment may be necessary for some. One possible reason for a low success rate is that many people can’t complete their treatment due to the side effects they experience, such as headaches, fatigue, and severe depression. Although it has no affect on the virus, medical marijuana may be able to reduce the severity of these symptoms, thus helping more people finish treatment.

How do we get Hepatitis?

According to http://thehepatitisblog.com/?p=745, "information on hepatitis should be accessible for everyone so there are several courses on avoiding the incidence of the illness. Health care employees are at danger for getting Hepatitis B since they’re close contact with blood and blood carriers. Patients who received numerous blood transfusions or dialysis are also susceptible. Some high threat populations include IV drug users, homosexual men, people who go through tattooing, and morticians. The main roots of Hepatitis B are clients in acute stage of infection and carriers. Contact with serum of a contaminated person is the main mode of transfer and spread. The virus can even be transmitted via other body discharges and fluids like the saliva and the semen. Hepatitis B virus might stay alive on environmental exterior for about a week. Hepatitis C is transferred pate
ally via blood, perhaps through fecal-oral route, and by personal contact such as sexual intercourse and the like. Similar to hepatitis B, hepatitis C could be dispersed by the carrier. Since hepatitis C can also be transmitted pate
ally, the risks are comparable to those of hepatitis B.

People containing viral hepatitis usually recuperate totally from disease within 3 to 16 weeks. Persons who are otherwise well typically get better from this contagion. Patients having hepatitis B virus tends to experience a lot of complications. Approximately 10% of those infected persons develop chronic dynamic hepatitis as an upshot from hepatitis B, which usually leads to damage of the liver. Cirrhosis might trail a grave case of hepatitis B or persistent active hepatitis. Major hepatic cellular carcinoma is a probable problem of persistent hepatitis. Other apparent complication of hepatitis comprise of chronic, relentless hepatitis, chronic carrier condition, and aplastic anemia.

The forecast on the hepatitis infection would be by eight to ten weeks; almost all patients with acute viral hepatitis reveal average results on liver function testing. Nevertheless, the clinical route, mortality, and morbidity of viral hepatitis may differ significantly. In many cases, patients recuperate in three to sixteen weeks, with irregular outcome on liver function test for a longer period, as more patients recover fully. The mortality rate is below 1%, with the rate apparently being elevated in older people."

In this particular case Garon, AP noted that "Garon believes he got hepatitis by sharing needles with 'speedfreaks' as a teenager. In recent years, he said, pot has been the only drug he's used. In December, he was arrested for growing marijuana. Garon, who has been hospitalized or in hospice care for two months straight, said he turned to the university hospital after Seattle's Harborview Medical Center told him he needed six months of abstinence. The university also denied him but said it would reconsider if he enrolled in a 60-day drug-treatment program. Last week, at the urging of Garon's lawyer, the university's transplant team reconsidered anyway,but it stuck to its decision."