Vancouver, May 29, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- May 29, 2019:
NanoSphere Health Sciences Inc. (CSE: NSHS) (OTC: NSHSF) CEO Robert Sutton today congratulated the Governor and Legislature of Colorado for their passage of an historic bill allowing physicians to recommend cannabis instead of opioids for relief of pain.
“Colorado is the first state in the US, and among very few governments around the world, that has recognized the potential of cannabis to deal with chronic or acute pain,” said Sutton. “This is a courageous and critical first step in battling the epidemic of opioid deaths we have suffered in the United States.”
Colorado Governor Jared Polis signed Senate Bill 13 on Thursday as the State wrestles with the growing problem of opioid addiction. Currently physicians can prescribe medical marijuana for patients suffering from cancer, glaucoma, HIV and AIDS, PTSD, or other chronic disorders that cause severe pain, seizures and nausea.
When the law takes effect on Aug. 2 this year, physicians will have the option of prescribing cannabis for any medical condition for which opioids are currently prescribed.
“The state government is not telling doctors they have to replace opioids with cannabis, but rather, they are endorsing the idea that doctors should be given the latitude to use cannabis for treatment, rather than opting for opioids, which are much more addictive and much more likely to result in a fatal overdose,” explained NanoSphere Chief Science Officer Richard Kaufman.
“This falls in line with all of our own research, much of which has been in the area of replacing opioids with cannabinoids for the treatment of severe and chronic pain.”
NanoSphere’s patented lipid nanoparticles efficiently encapsulate and effectively delivery therapeutic dosages of full spectrum cannabis oil extracts for relieving acute, chronic and neurogenic pain and inflammation through different routes of administration. They include transdermal, intranasal and intraoral delivered Nanosphere products. NanoSphere’s transdermal NanoSerum is currently sold through a network of dispensaries in Colorado and California.
“We have already seen significant results with our transdermal NanoSerum in clinical observations of patients with very severe, acute pain, and some people have stopped using opioids and have replaced them with our product, which is not addictive, and is free of any serious side effects,” said Kaufman. “What has been missing to date is the endorsement of government and the medical community that cannabinoids can, in fact, act as a viable alternative to opioids.”
Kaufman points out there is a large and growing body of evidence that medical cannabis can act as a substitute or an adjunct to prescription opiates in the treatment of chronic and acute pain.
A recent study in the Clinical Journal of Pain followed 176 patients with chronic pain in Israel, and found that 44 per cent of them stopped taking prescription opioids within seven months of starting use of medical cannabis. Patients cited several reasons for preferring cannabis over prescription drugs, with 65 per cent reporting fewer adverse side effects, 57 per cent citing better management of symptoms, and 34 per cent saying cannabis had far less potential for withdrawal issues. (Haroutounian S, et al: The Effect of Medicinal Cannabis on Pain and Quality-of-Life Outcomes in Chronic Pain: A Prospective Open-label Study. Clin J Pain. 2016 Dec;32(12):1036-1043)
“No one is claiming that cannabis can treat everything, or that it’s the right choice for every person suffering from severe pain, but what we believe and what the Colorado government has endorsed, is that proper application of medical cannabis can help reduce our society’s reliance on more addictive, more dangerous medicines,” said Sutton. “Colorado has taken an historic step forward, and we expect to be part of the solution as doctors and patients explore healthier alternatives to opioid=based therapies.”
On behalf of the Board
David Sutton, President and COO
720.520.4283
dsutton@nanospherehealth.com
Investor Contact:
Victor Goncalves, Executive Vice President
Mobile: 204-997-5517
E-mail: vgoncalves@nanospherehealth.com
About NanoSphere
NanoSphere Health Sciences LLC, is a biotechnology firm specializing in the creation of the NanoSphere Delivery System™, a revolutionary platform using nanotechnology in the biodelivery of supplements, nutraceuticals and over-the-counter medications for the cannabis, pharmaceutical and animal health industries, and beyond. For more information on NanoSphere, please visit http://www.nanospherehealth.com.
About Evolve Formulas
Evolve Formulas is the provider of the world's first and only scientifically proven nanoparticle delivery system in cannabis. Evolve’s pioneering product, Transdermal NanoSerum™, is a fast-acting, ultra-strength transdermal formula infused with nano-encapsulated cannabis and cannabis extracts. For more information on Evolve Formulas, visit https://www.evolveformulas.com/. Follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
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