Patients Push to Implement Medicinal Marijuana in Ecuador

Marijuana legalization was already approved in Ecuador in September but up until now, Ecuadorians are still waiting for its official implementation, according to an article by NBC News.

Once implemented, Ecuador will be the latest country in a tide of Latin American countries practicing the medical use of cannabis along with Argentina, Colombia, Mexico, Paraguay, Peru and Uruguay.

For Álvaro Torres, a Colombian businessman who co-founded Khiron Life Sciences Corp. which produces and distributes medical cannabis, said cannabis has a great potential to help many people in Latin America, with a population of 625 million people.

Nelly Valbuena, a university professor has found freedom from the cruel side effects of metastatic breast cancer through CBD, a compound extracted from the cannabis plant. Now she is urging Ecuador's government to put into effect the recently passed legislation permitting medicinal use of cannabis products so other patients can have new and more affordable options for pain relief.

"I desperately needed something to help," she said. "Only someone living in pain and unable to sleep could know what that means."

Valbuena's has been battling cancer since 2012. Morphine patches provided temporary relief, however, aside from its uncomfortable side effects, like vomiting, nausea and headaches, purchasing them was prohibitively expensive.

She shared how the oral CBD spray recommended by a doctor after she posted a plea on Facebook, provided her a huge relief. Not only her but her step daughter, Tahis Ponce who has severe cerebral palsy benefits from CBD be helping calm her laughing fits, anxiety and insomnia.

She and her husband started a social media campaign to educate their socially conservative country, further chipping away the cannabis' stigma.

Cannabidiol, or CBD, is a compound derived from the cannabis plant that is believed to be nonintoxicating and treats pain, reduces anxiety and helps with insomnia. However, there are only few researches done on humans to confirm those assertions.

Meanwhile, The U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced earlier this month, that CBD may have the potential to cause harm to its users.

Government institutions have not yet clarified the regularizing mechanism on the importation and production of medical cannabis under the new norms.

Omar Vacas, a scientist at Ecuador's Catholic University who has studied therapeutic cannabis, said that there are already 30 different brands of medicinal cannabis available on the black market and once legalized, there could potentially be a million consumers which will also benefit pharmacies across the country.

For Oscar Farith Pino Herrera, founder of a non-profit group promoting industrial hemp, Ecuador has ideal climatic conditions for growing hemp which has a wide variety of potential uses that transcend medical reasons.

"It could also help in the generation of jobs," he added.

Business News Daily reports that the cannabis industry be broken down into two categories known as "plant-touching" and "ancillary." Plant-touching businesses handle the cultivating, distributing, processing and selling of cannabis. Due to its potential harmful effects, these businesses are generally subject to the strictest regulations of the government and must navigate complicated licensing processes before they can fully operate.

Meanwhile, ancillary businesses are all the companies such as data platforms, ag-tech companies, point-of-sale systems, payment processors, digital marketers, lawyers, accountants, and more needed to support the actual growth, processing and sale of cannabis products . These companies are the usual ancillary of any businesses when it comes to operation.