WHAT is Rick Simpson Oil (RSO) and WHO is Rick Simpson?
Please note that this article was written for a British audience – where cannabis is illegal. Despite the 2018 changes in cannabis reform ( and unlike patients in countries where AUTHENTIC cannabis reform has taken place), cancer patients such as myself, as well as others using cannabis as medicine, are doing so illegally because it is impossible to access medical cannabis via the NHS – although you can access it privately if you are wealthy enough.
Dr. Jenn, who has a practice in the US (California), where cannabis is fully legal, explains to her patients the success of RSO in clinical settings in treating cancer, and how to access the medicine (-3mins).
A summary of the results of the 1974 study (published in 1975) has been published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute and the full paper can be read HERE.
The Ultimate Guide to Making Cannabis Oil/Extracts.
RSO Oil is extracted from the cannabis plant with a solvent (e.g. ethanol or a grain alcohol). The mixture is then heated in a rice cooker until the residual alcohol dissipates.
This forms a thick and highly concentrated THC extract that is dark in color and has a similar consistency to marmite. It is then administered orally or topically.
For those not wanting to feel the effects of THC, the medicine can be taken via a suppository. This does not give the person any unwanted effects because it bypasses the digestive system.
In this very short video (4m), a researcher at Colorado University explains the effect of THC on cancer. Note: The interview took place in 2006, so today we have far more scientific evidence than what is mentioned.
IMPORTANT: The small human trial he discusses was carried out by GW Pharmaceuticals in the UK – so prior to 2006, which is when this interview took place. However, the trial was testing the firm’s product Sativex (NOT RSO or similar), and Sativex is also the product being tested in current human trials for brain cancer. The question is, why bother testing a product that only has a 1-1 THC/CBD ratio, when scientific evidence from abroad, as well as a huge catalogue of anecdotal evidence, all report the effectiveness of THC-rich oils such as RSO?
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Rick Simpson Oil (RSO) is a concentrated, full-spectrum cannabis extract that is produced with cannabis strains that have high levels of THC. Named after Rick Simpson, a Canadian who accidently discovered that cannabis extracts had CURED his skin cancer in 2003, RSO is currently being used by numerous people across the globe to successfully treat their cancer (see a few examples in the right-hand sidebar), as well as many other serious health conditions.
Due to its illegality, medical patients in the UK obtain their medicine by: (a) growing cannabis and producing their own medicine; or (b) buying large quantities of raw cannabis to make their own medicine; or (c) buying RSO from someone who produces the medicine for their own (often identical) health needs (e.g. I buy medicine from someone who also had a cancer diagnosis; albeit different to mine. Yet we, like the rest of the people on our community, are cancer free).
As described by Markham Heid, ‘RSO is an oil made by washing cannabis buds with a solvent, such as pure naphtha, and then boiling off the solvent, leaving behind the oil.’ This process is not difficult as long as certain rules are adhered too and, importantly, RSO is NOT a branded product: In other words there is no one ‘Rick Simpson Oil,’ but the product of a specific recipe. Any like other recipes, the end result will always be the same once the technique is mastered. It really isn’t rocket science.
Rick Simpson, who has never profited from his discovery, shared the recipe far and wide. His advice to anyone wanting to use RSO is to grow cannabis and then make the medicine themselves. You can find clear instructions on Rick’s website, as as via YouTube (see sidebar).
Rick’s decision to try cannabis to treat his skin cancer was due to two reasons: 1. The inability of licensed medicines and surgeries to effectively treat his condition, and 2. His memory of a media report almost 30 years earlier claiming that the University of Virginia (US) had found that THC killed cancer in mice. Rick, deciding he had nothing to lose, decided that it was worth finding out whether cannabis would kill his skin cancer too. Unsurprisingly, he was astounded when it did exactly that! Just four days after applying the extract to the lesions on his hands, Rick removed the bandages and to his astonishment the cancer had completely disappeared – and it has never came back.
Unsurprisingly, Rick wanted to share his discovery with his doctors and the Canadian health authorities, including cancer research organisations, but they all, without exception, refused to listen. So Rick decided to grow and make the medicine himself, subsequently giving the medicine away to anyone who needed it as word quickly spread. It is not difficult to guess the outcome – after all, at that time cannabis was illegal. So, once the police realised what Rick was doing, they raided his home numerous times, cutting down the plants, seizing the equipment he used to make the oil, and charged Rick with being a drug dealer (despite him providing the oil free of charge). Despite this, Rick continued to make the medicine so that he could help others.
The documentary ‘Run from the Cure: The Rick Simpson Story,’ was first published on YouTube in 2008. The film not only tells Rick’s story, but also the stories of several other people who were/are using RSO to treat their cancer successfully. All of these people had different cancers and stages of cancer, including terminal, and all testify that the oil works. The film, despite being age-restricted on YouTube, has been seen by millions of people across the globe, and more and more cancer patients (including me) are choosing RSO over or alongside standard cancer treatments after having watched this documentary. Why? Because it is obvious that Rick is telling the truth – RSO kills cancer.
Unlike CBD-only products, RSO, which is also known as cannabis oil, marijuana oil, full extract cannabis oil (FECO), wax, hash oil, shatter, and dabs, is a sticky, thick resinous that looks like Marmite or Black Treacle. It is what is known as a whole-plant extract because the entire plant is used (except stalks and fan leaves), and therefore includs all the cannabinoids, terpenes, and other substances found in the cannabis plant – including THC. This produces what is known as the entourage effect. Although it can be extracted from either indica or sativa strains, indica seeds/plants are usually favoured over sativa because its psychoactive effects are more conducive with the healing process (e.g. more relaxing, helps with sleep).
RSO is produced by separating (or extracting) the resins from cannabis buds (flowers) using a solvent extraction process. This method produces a potent medicine that due to its high concentration is more powerful than any other cannabis product, including buds (flower), resin (hashish), edibles, and CBD oils. It can be ingested or vaped, and if taken in suppository form usually eliminates the plants psychoactive effects.
Cannabis Medicine is HERBAL Medicine
Cannabis is a plant – a herb – and the medicine produced from it is made with plant material alone, as are the cannabis products made within pharmaceutical settings. As such, and in accordance with the UK’s Human Medicines Regulations (2012) , medicinal cannabis products derived from cannabis plant material alone are herbal medicines – nothing more – and they should be licensed as such. Contrary to the propaganda and demonisation of cannabis by global leaders, including the British authorities, cannabis has a 100% safety record that spans back thousands of years – which is a lot more than the vast majority of prescription drugs, chemotherapy and many other treatments offered on the NHS. You risk NOTHING by taking this medicine – and it is more than probable that you have everything to gain.
Despite the very long traditional use of herbal medicines, along with a catalogue of evidence reporting their effectiveness, the message from the U.K’s health industry and authorities remains the same: that pharmaceutical drugs are a far better choice than herbal ‘remedies’ because they have been scientifically proven to be both effective and safe. This is despite the fact that, ‘prescription drugs are the third leading cause of death after heart disease and cancer in the United States and Europe.’ In contrast, herbal medicines are derived as ‘quackery,’ old wives tales, superstition, and folklore, because their healing ability cannot be tested scientifically.
The medicinal use of plants to treat disease, including cannabis, goes back thousands of years. So most people know that plants such as garlic, feverfew, St. John’s Wort, chamomile, lavender, and thousands more common herbs have many different healing abilities. Like cannabis, these herbal treatments can be very effective in naturally treating health needs.
The goal of the pharmaceutical/health industry is to find new drugs that treat diseases and health conditions that are without effective treatments. New treatments are always highly lucrative. And it is with this goal in mind that researchers are currently examining the medicinal properties of scores of British plants, herbs, and flowers used historically to treat disease (e.g. Scientists at the Royal Botanical Gardens in Kew are currently studying dandelion, which treats warts, because early tests have shown that it could also play a role in treating cancer).
However, researchers are not examining the role of the whole plant, but are instead looking for the ‘active compounds they contain which treat the illness’ (LINK), so they can be isolated, synthesised, or standardised, and then make into medicine. This is the case for recent licensed cannabis medicines such as Sativex (used to treat MS), and Epidiolex (used for treating the rare forms of childhood epilepsy that acted as the springboard for the UK’s changes in cannabis law in 2018). Unfortunately, research shows that cannabis products made with standardised hybrids, do NOT work as well as those made with ordinary cannabis plants: But the pharmaceuticals will never admit to that.
Why it’s Best to GYO!
What the government terms as ‘street’ cannabis can be crap – and that is the truth – because the quality of the product you are buying will always depend on the growing ability of the person you are buying it from (or that of their source). But let’s be clear, ALL illegal growers that are serious about their trade (and almost all are), have NO CHOICE but to provide quality cannabis bud – or lose their trade via their reputation. It really is that simple.
This means that unless you are getting your weed from a new grower, the weed will be great – BUT it might not be what you need for your particular health need. And that is why it is best to grow your own or procure your medicine from someone who is growing cannabis to treat the same or a similar health condition as you. You can find resources about growing your own cannabis, including information on different strains and producing high quality oils, in the sidebars.
Rick Simpson
Joy Smith was diagnosed in July 2016 with ovarian cancer. In August 2017 she was given six weeks to live after it was discovered that the cancer has spread to her stomach and bowel. Joy, like myself has been cancer free since starting RSO. Research Consultant Matthew Atha explains why the research into cannabis oil has been so limited. Broadcast on ITV’s This Morning 13/03/2018
Callie Blackwell’s son Deryn was given just days to live when she took the brave step to give her son cannabis oil as a last-ditch attempt to help his immune system. From series 21 of ITV’s Loose Women broadcast on 23/10/2017
Documentary: Run From the Cure (the Rick Simpson story).
Medical cannabis has the potential to save lives, but the existing laws in the UK prohibits millions of people from accessing this life-saving medicine and experiencing the life-changing benefits of cannabis as a cancer treatment.
This documentary follows the lives of several families that are using RSO to save the lives of their most precious ones – their children, who had all been diagnosed with terminal cancer.
From filmmakers Ricki Lake and Abby Epstein, this film looks beyond the politics and propaganda. It will challenge everything you might have known about cannabis as it reveals the brave stories of these ordinary families and their journey with RSO.
Also available on Netflix.
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