{"id":6090,"date":"2018-01-14T20:13:13","date_gmt":"2018-01-15T01:13:13","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/lcpllutzlivetotell.org\/?p=6090"},"modified":"2019-08-08T12:49:09","modified_gmt":"2019-08-08T16:49:09","slug":"family-doctors-helps-reinvent-medical-marijuana","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lutzlivetotell.org\/?p=6090","title":{"rendered":"Family of doctors helps reinvent medical marijuana"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"asset-masthead \">\n<header class=\"asset-header\">\n<h1 class=\"headline\">Family of doctors helps reinvent medical marijuana<\/h1>\n<div class=\"meta\">\n<ul class=\"list-inline\">\n<li>By Justin Wm. Moyer | The Washington Post<\/li>\n<li><time class=\"asset-date text-muted\" datetime=\"2018-01-14T21:00:00-07:00\">Jan 14, 2018\u00a0<\/time><span class=\"text-muted\">Updated\u00a0<\/span><time class=\"asset-date text-muted\" datetime=\"2018-01-14T21:29:33-07:00\">Jan 14, 2018<\/time><\/li>\n<li class=\"hidden-print\"><a class=\"cm\" href=\"http:\/\/www.santafenewmexican.com\/news\/health_and_science\/family-of-doctors-helps-reinvent-medical-marijuana\/article_452a1a31-7982-5c23-8af3-2c7da37357b1.html#comments\">\u00a0(<span class=\"fb-comments-count fb_comments_count_zero\" data-href=\"http:\/\/www.santafenewmexican.com\/tncms\/asset\/editorial\/452a1a31-7982-5c23-8af3-2c7da37357b1\/\"><span class=\"fb_comments_count\">0<\/span><\/span>)<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<\/header>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"row\">\n<div class=\"main-content col-lg-8 col-md-7\">\n<div class=\"main-content-wrap\">\n<div id=\"tncms-region-article_top\" class=\"tncms-region hidden-print\"><\/div>\n<div id=\"asset-photo\" class=\"card\">\n<figure class=\"photo layout-horizontal hover-expand\" data-toggle=\"modal\" data-target=\".modal-7d89f7e3-0eee-5b8e-bd76-bc0f15876612\">\n<div class=\"image\">\n<div><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"img-responsive full tnt-restrict-img-7d89f7e3-0eee-5b8e-bd76-bc0f15876612\" src=\"https:\/\/bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com\/santafenewmexican.com\/content\/tncms\/assets\/v3\/editorial\/7\/d8\/7d89f7e3-0eee-5b8e-bd76-bc0f15876612\/5a5c279ac2747.image.jpg\" sizes=\"auto, 100vw\" srcset=\"https:\/\/bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com\/santafenewmexican.com\/content\/tncms\/assets\/v3\/editorial\/7\/d8\/7d89f7e3-0eee-5b8e-bd76-bc0f15876612\/5a5c279ac2747.image.jpg?resize=200%2C133 200w, https:\/\/bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com\/santafenewmexican.com\/content\/tncms\/assets\/v3\/editorial\/7\/d8\/7d89f7e3-0eee-5b8e-bd76-bc0f15876612\/5a5c279ac2747.image.jpg?resize=300%2C200 300w, https:\/\/bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com\/santafenewmexican.com\/content\/tncms\/assets\/v3\/editorial\/7\/d8\/7d89f7e3-0eee-5b8e-bd76-bc0f15876612\/5a5c279ac2747.image.jpg?resize=400%2C266 400w, https:\/\/bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com\/santafenewmexican.com\/content\/tncms\/assets\/v3\/editorial\/7\/d8\/7d89f7e3-0eee-5b8e-bd76-bc0f15876612\/5a5c279ac2747.image.jpg?resize=540%2C359 540w, https:\/\/bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com\/santafenewmexican.com\/content\/tncms\/assets\/v3\/editorial\/7\/d8\/7d89f7e3-0eee-5b8e-bd76-bc0f15876612\/5a5c279ac2747.image.jpg?resize=750%2C499 750w, https:\/\/bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com\/santafenewmexican.com\/content\/tncms\/assets\/v3\/editorial\/7\/d8\/7d89f7e3-0eee-5b8e-bd76-bc0f15876612\/5a5c279ac2747.image.jpg 1200w\" alt=\"Family of doctors helps reinvent medical marijuana\" width=\"1000\" height=\"665\" \/><\/div>\n<\/div><figcaption class=\"caption\">From left, physicians David Knox, Rachel Knox, Janice Knox and Jessica Knox are the founders of the American Cannabinoid Clinics. MUST CREDIT: photo for The Washington Post by Amanda Lucier.<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"asset-content\" data-asset-uuid=\"452a1a31-7982-5c23-8af3-2c7da37357b1\">\n<div class=\"row\">\n<div class=\"col-lg-12 col-md-12 col-sm-12\" data-subscription-required-class=\"col-xs-12\">\n<div class=\"asset-body\" data-subscription-required-class=\"asset-body\">\n<div class=\"share-container content-above\" data-subscription-required-remove=\"\">\n<ul class=\"social-share-links hidden-print list-inline icon\">\n<li class=\"social-share-link\"><a class=\"fb\" title=\"Share on Facebook\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer\/sharer.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.santafenewmexican.com%2Fnews%2Fhealth_and_science%2Ffamily-of-doctors-helps-reinvent-medical-marijuana%2Farticle_452a1a31-7982-5c23-8af3-2c7da37357b1.html%3Futm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_source%3Dfacebook%26utm_campaign%3Duser-share\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\" data-toggle=\"new-window\" data-new-window-width=\"500\" data-new-window-height=\"300\" data-track=\"{&quot;network&quot;:&quot;Facebook&quot;,&quot;socialAction&quot;:&quot;post&quot;,&quot;url&quot;:&quot;\/news\/health_and_science\/family-of-doctors-helps-reinvent-medical-marijuana\/article_452a1a31-7982-5c23-8af3-2c7da37357b1.html&quot;}\" data-tncms-track-event=\"{&quot;app&quot;:&quot;editorial&quot;,&quot;metric&quot;:&quot;social_share&quot;,&quot;id&quot;:452a1a31-7982-5c23-8af3-2c7da37357b1}\"><i class=\"fa fa-facebook fa-stack-1x\"><\/i><span class=\"sr-only\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"social-share-link\"><a class=\"tw\" title=\"Tweet\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.santafenewmexican.com%2Fnews%2Fhealth_and_science%2Ffamily-of-doctors-helps-reinvent-medical-marijuana%2Farticle_452a1a31-7982-5c23-8af3-2c7da37357b1.html%3Futm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_source%3Dtwitter%26utm_campaign%3Duser-share&amp;text=Family%20of%20doctors%20helps%20reinvent%20medical%20marijuana&amp;via=thenewmexican\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\" data-toggle=\"new-window\" data-new-window-width=\"500\" data-new-window-height=\"300\" data-track=\"{&quot;network&quot;:&quot;Twitter&quot;,&quot;socialAction&quot;:&quot;tweet&quot;,&quot;url&quot;:&quot;\/news\/health_and_science\/family-of-doctors-helps-reinvent-medical-marijuana\/article_452a1a31-7982-5c23-8af3-2c7da37357b1.html&quot;}\" data-tncms-track-event=\"{&quot;app&quot;:&quot;editorial&quot;,&quot;metric&quot;:&quot;social_share&quot;,&quot;id&quot;:452a1a31-7982-5c23-8af3-2c7da37357b1}\"><i class=\"fa fa-twitter fa-stack-1x\"><\/i><span class=\"sr-only\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"social-share-link\"><a class=\"em email-share-link\" title=\"Email\" href=\"mailto:?subject=%5BThe%20Santa%20Fe%20New%20Mexican%5D%20Family%20of%20doctors%20helps%20reinvent%20medical%20marijuana&amp;body=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.santafenewmexican.com%2Fnews%2Fhealth_and_science%2Ffamily-of-doctors-helps-reinvent-medical-marijuana%2Farticle_452a1a31-7982-5c23-8af3-2c7da37357b1.html%3Futm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_source%3Demail%26utm_campaign%3Duser-share\" rel=\"nofollow\" data-track=\"{&quot;category&quot;:&quot;tnt-email&quot;,&quot;action&quot;:&quot;share&quot;,&quot;label&quot;:&quot;editorial-article&quot;,&quot;value&quot;:&quot;&quot;}\" data-tncms-track-event=\"{&quot;app&quot;:&quot;editorial&quot;,&quot;metric&quot;:&quot;email&quot;,&quot;id&quot;:452a1a31-7982-5c23-8af3-2c7da37357b1}\"><i class=\"fa fa-envelope fa-stack-1x\"><\/i><span class=\"sr-only\">Email<\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"social-share-link\"><a class=\"pr\" title=\"Print\" rel=\"nofollow\" data-track=\"{&quot;network&quot;:&quot;Print&quot;,&quot;socialAction&quot;:&quot;print&quot;,&quot;url&quot;:&quot;\/news\/health_and_science\/family-of-doctors-helps-reinvent-medical-marijuana\/article_452a1a31-7982-5c23-8af3-2c7da37357b1.html&quot;}\" data-tncms-track-event=\"{&quot;app&quot;:&quot;editorial&quot;,&quot;metric&quot;:&quot;social_share&quot;,&quot;id&quot;:452a1a31-7982-5c23-8af3-2c7da37357b1}\"><i class=\"fa fa-print fa-stack-1x\"><\/i><span class=\"sr-only\">Print<\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"social-share-link\"><a class=\"save-list-452a1a31-7982-5c23-8af3-2c7da37357b1-btn save-asset \" title=\"Save to list\" role=\"button\" href=\"http:\/\/www.santafenewmexican.com\/content\/tncms\/live\/#\" rel=\"nofollow\"><i class=\"asset-save-icon fa fa-bookmark-o fa-stack-1x\"><\/i><span class=\"sr-only\">Save<\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<form class=\"save-list-452a1a31-7982-5c23-8af3-2c7da37357b1-form save-asset-to-list\" action=\"http:\/\/www.santafenewmexican.com\/users\/admin\/list\/\" method=\"post\" data-uuid=\"452a1a31-7982-5c23-8af3-2c7da37357b1\"><\/form>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"asset-content  subscriber-premium\">\n<div class=\"subscriber-preview\">\n<p>The Knoxes are a clan of four doctors living in Oregon and California who specialize in medical marijuana. They seem to be doing quite well selling something that\u2019s illegal in many states, working with those they know best.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"subscriber-preview\">\n<p>\u201cWe\u2019re all fighting the same fight,\u201d said Janice Knox, the founding doctor behind American Cannabinoid Clinics in Portland, Ore. \u2014 and the mother of two fellow physicians and the wife of the other. \u201cI think when they do see us they\u2019re surprised at who we are,\u201d she said of her patients. The family aims for something not always associated with medical marijuana: professionalism.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"subscriber-only\">\n<p>Knox led the family\u2019s move into medical marijuana in 2012, when she retired from a decadeslong career in anesthesiology. One of 15 children, she grew up in the San Francisco Bay area and went north for medical school in the 1970s.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"tncms-region-article_instory_top\" class=\"tncms-region hidden-print\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"subscriber-only\">\n<p>\u201cThere were not very many black women or men, at least not at the University of Washington,\u201d she said. \u201cIt felt like a cultural shock when I went there.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"subscriber-only\">\n<p>Knox stuck it out, choosing a career as an anesthesiologist because she thought \u2014 wrongly \u2014 it would give her more time to raise children. After 35 years, however, she got tired of working up to seven days a week. And she got tired of being mistaken for a nurse.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"subscriber-only\">\n<p>\u201cPatients would say, \u2018I want a white male doctor,\u2019 \u201d Knox said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"subscriber-only\">\n<p>After she stepped away from the job, she got a call from a \u201ccard mill\u201d \u2014 a practice known more for writing prescriptions for medical marijuana quickly than for close attention to patients\u2019 needs. One of the doctors couldn\u2019t be found. Could she fill in?<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"subscriber-only\">\n<p>Knox wasn\u2019t sure. One of her colleagues, a marijuana enthusiast, had been sent to rehab. And despite going to college at the University of California at Berkeley, she was a square \u2014 had never seen or smelled marijuana \u201cat a time when drugs were everywhere,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"subscriber-only\">\n<p>But she had always been interested in natural treatments, and she agreed to fill in \u2014 and was pleasantly surprised to see the patients weren\u2019t a bunch of a reprobates.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"subscriber-only\">\n<p>\u201cI was shocked to see the people that came into card mill,\u201d she said. \u201cGrandmothers, grandfathers, people with Seeing Eye dogs. They weren\u2019t at all who I expected\u2026 . These were people who conventional medicine had failed.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"subscriber-only\">\n<p>Nor was Knox content to sign prescriptions and send patients on their way. Some had questions, as anyone would when told to take any drug. What strain was best? What about dosage? And was smoking pot better than a cannabis edible or a cannabis oil or a cannabis hand cream?<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"subscriber-only\">\n<p>Knox didn\u2019t know. \u201cI was embarrassed because they expected me, a physician, to tell them how to use this medicine,\u201d she said. \u201cI couldn\u2019t answer them. I did not know anything about cannabis.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"subscriber-only\">\n<p>Undaunted, she delved into research of what\u2019s called the \u201cendocannabinoid system\u201d \u2014 a network of receptors in the body and brain that respond to cannabis and regulate, among other things, immune response, liver function and the production of insulin.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"subscriber-only\">\n<p>This is not just something discussed in parking lots at Phish shows.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"subscriber-only\">\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s very, very real,\u201d said Nora Volkow, director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse at the National Institutes of Health.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"subscriber-only\">\n<p>Volkow pointed out that understanding of the endocannabinoid system suffers from what she called a \u201ccircular problem.\u201d Even though more states are moving to legalize medical marijuana, there is insufficient evidence about how it works partly because the drug, a federally controlled schedule 1 substance purportedly of no medical use, is restricted and not easy to study.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"subscriber-only\">\n<p>The American Medical Association considers cannabis \u201ca dangerous drug and, as such, a serious public health concern,\u201d according to a policy statement. And while it thinks the drug should not be legalized for recreational use, a policy updated last year urged further study, saying the drug\u2019s schedule 1 status should be reviewed \u201cto facilitate grant applications and the conduct of well-designed clinical research involving cannabis and its potential medical utility.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"subscriber-only\">\n<p>Knox has read all the studies she could, attended conferences and been certified as a cannabis specialist. She learned, for example, the difference between THC, the cannabis compound, or cannabinoid, that gets people high, and CBD, a cannabinoid that offers therapeutic effects sans psychedelia.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"subscriber-only\">\n<p>Knox\u2019s husband, David Knox, an emergency room physician for 38 years, kept his day job but also started working at the clinic. He knew nothing about the endocannabinoid system but quickly saw the potential of cannabis as a treatment for epilepsy, cancer-therapy side effects and pain, particularly in the middle of an opioid epidemic.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"subscriber-only\">\n<p>He also said President Richard M. Nixon\u2019s decision to sign the Controlled Substances Act, which slated marijuana as a schedule 1 drug in 1970, was \u201cone of his biggest crimes.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"subscriber-only\">\n<p>\u201cI think a majority of establishment medicine still is not on board with [medical marijuana],\u201d he said. \u201cThat\u2019s the way we were taught.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"subscriber-only\">\n<p>Meanwhile, some other Knoxes were getting in on the game. Rachel Knox, 35, and Jessica Knox, 31, seem closer than many siblings. After leaving Portland, where they grew up, they lived together in Boston while Jessica finished her undergraduate degree at Harvard and Rachel did a post-baccalaureate program in preparation for medical school at Tufts. Then both entered Tufts medical school, graduating in 2012 from a dual-degree program that also offered MBAs.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"tncms-region-article_instory_middle\" class=\"tncms-region hidden-print\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"subscriber-only\">\n<p>\u201cIf we were alone, we might have gotten discouraged and changed our minds,\u201d Jessica Knox said. \u201cInstead, we thought: \u2018Oh, my sister\u2019s doing it, I could do it, too.\u2019 \u201c<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"subscriber-only\">\n<p>After they completed their residencies, Rachel Knox ended up back in Portland, while her sister moved to San Francisco. But telemedicine allowed Jessica Knox to work with her sister and her mom at the American Cannabinoid Clinics, where the family battles the card-mill mind-set. Instead of seeing as many patients as possible as quickly as possible \u2014 a model that led to \u201cdoctors becoming millionaires,\u201d Rachel Knox said \u2014 the family would actually practice medicine with cannabis.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"subscriber-only\">\n<p>This demands more than teaching patients not to spill the bongwater. Every client is different. Some don\u2019t want to get high or might have anxiety that doesn\u2019t respond well to products high in THC. Those new to marijuana use \u2014 \u201cnaive users,\u201d as Rachel Knox puts it \u2014 might turn to edibles. But marijuana edibles are notoriously easy to overdo, especially if a patient takes them on an empty stomach.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"subscriber-only\">\n<p>Veteran pot smokers, meanwhile, might wish to turn to vaporizing, which Jessica Knox said \u201cis certainly cleaner, often less harsh, and definitely less stigmatic than smoking.\u201d And all patients should be made aware of the possible side effects of any medication. Like the beneficial effects of marijuana, there is still a lot to be learned about its dangers, such as the risk of lung cancer, cognitive impairment or impaired driving.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"subscriber-only\">\n<p>\u201cIf you\u2019re trying something new for the first time, maybe do that at home on a Saturday when you don\u2019t have to go anywhere and don\u2019t have any responsibilities at home to worry about,\u201d Jessica Knox wrote in an email.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"subscriber-only\">\n<p>But whatever the chosen remedy, the Knoxes aren\u2019t going to sign a prescription and send patients on their way.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"subscriber-only\">\n<p>\u201cWe want our patients to come to us for guidance, not this card,\u201d Rachel Knox said. \u201cWe\u2019re not here to see a patient every five minutes.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"subscriber-only\">\n<p>After a year of the Trump administration, the future of patients seeking medical marijuana still isn\u2019t clear. Attorney General Jeff Sessions sought the ability to prosecute medical marijuana providers in states where the practice is legal. Such providers have been protected by federal law since 2014, but those protections expire Friday.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"subscriber-only\">\n<p>The Knoxes, however, aren\u2019t that worried. While Janice Knox acknowledged that physicians are \u201cin a precarious position\u201d working with a federally controlled substance, 29 states and the District of Columbia have legalized medical marijuana; eight have legalized recreational use by adults. With so many benefiting from the once banned drug, it\u2019s hard to imagine going back.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"subscriber-only\">\n<p>\u201cWe\u2019re going to plow ahead and do what it\u2019s right for us to do,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n<p>Retrieved from: http:\/\/www.santafenewmexican.com\/news\/health_and_science\/family-of-doctors-helps-reinvent-medical-marijuana\/article_452a1a31-7982-5c23-8af3-2c7da37357b1.html<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Family of doctors helps reinvent medical marijuana By Justin Wm. Moyer | The Washington Post Jan 14, 2018\u00a0Updated\u00a0Jan 14, 2018 \u00a0(0) From left, physicians David Knox, Rachel Knox, Janice Knox and Jessica Knox are the founders of the American Cannabinoid Clinics. MUST CREDIT: photo for The Washington Post by Amanda &hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":6092,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[617],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6090","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-cannabis"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lutzlivetotell.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6090","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lutzlivetotell.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lutzlivetotell.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lutzlivetotell.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lutzlivetotell.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=6090"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lutzlivetotell.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6090\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lutzlivetotell.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/6092"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lutzlivetotell.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=6090"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lutzlivetotell.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=6090"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lutzlivetotell.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=6090"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}