Most doctors would allow medical marijuana for children with cancer, study finds

A considerable majority of medical physicians would help children treat cancer with medical cannabis, a new study suggests.

In a study published this week in the journal Pediatrics, researchers from the Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago found that 92 percent of all providers would give child cancer patients access to medical marijuana.

However, researchers found more support from medical providers from states without any current medical marijuana laws. Only 85 percent of providers certified to recommend medical cannabis would allow treatment for children, compared to 95 percent of their peers in prohibitionist states.

“It is not surprising that providers who are eligible to certify for medical marijuana were more cautious about recommending it, given that their licensure could be jeopardized due to federal prohibition,” wrote co-author Kelly Michelson, MD, Critical Care Physician at the Children’s Hospital of Chicago. “Institutional policies also may have influenced their attitudes. Lurie Children’s, for example, prohibits pediatric providers from facilitating medical marijuana access in accordance with the federal law, even though it…