Scottish Mother wins fight with cancer with help of medical cannabis
- Glaswegian mother, Sharon Fitzsimons, claims to have beat her cancer with a combination of chemotherapy and medical cannabis
- Sharon was able to replace all medications with a 1:1 THC:CBD
- Cannabis activist group, Tottenham Compassion Club, helped save Sharon from the mercy of criminal street gangs
- The courageous cancer survivor now wants to help save other terminal cancer patients with medical cannabis provided by a UK Compassion Club.
Sharon Fitzsimons, 50, from Glasgow, announced she had won her battle with cancer on Monday, claiming her use of a tincture containing THC and CBD, helped her deal with the pain her chemotherapy was causing.
Sharon was diagnosed with ovarian cancer last year after going for a routine check-up:
“I went for a routine hysterectomy on the 18th July of last year, because of my family history of cancer. I decided to go for surgery, it all went well.
“Two weeks after my first surgery I was told they found cancer in both fallopian tubes and also on the outside of my ovaries, which makes cancer spread.
“There was a second surgery to remove Omentum fatty layer which covers the organs. They found cancer in there as well and also in 7 lymph nodes.
“I was diagnosed with stage 3b and aggressive cancer.”
Sharon explained how she used the cannabis tincture to replace the pharmaceutical medications she was prescribed to help her deal with the pain the chemo was causing:
“I did initially take the prescribed medications, but managed to wean myself off them. I never took the morphine, or any of the other opiates.
“I just took my 1:1 tincture and it took the pain away! It helped me sleep, helped me eat.
“I noticed an instant difference, both night and day.”
Medical cannabis has not only helped Sharon win her battle with cancer, it is also helping her deal with the pain that chemotherapy has left her in:
“Just because I am cancer free, I have been through chemo which has left me in pain 24/7 a day… if I didn’t have my 1:1 tincture I wouldn’t be functional right now.”
“By the time they make it legal, I will have lost many friends who are truly beautiful people. People, who are in the worst pain imaginable! Shame on the establishment! They have blood on their hands!”
– Sharon Fitzsimons, Cancer Survivor & Medical Cannabis Warrior
Despite the help cannabis provided Sharon, the ancient herbal medication is still demonized in British society due to the decades of Prohibition and propaganda rhetoric, such as the current “Skunk” madness circling British media stories.
The current climate of fear about cannabis is putting patients, who could significantly benefit, off from trying cannabinoid medications:
“I deal with this issue all the time with terminal patients who are afraid to take it, even after I explain all the potential benefits.
“The stigma is so bad they probably think I’m mad!
“I can only lead them to the water, I can’t make them drink. It’s so sad to me, as a warrior for legalise medical cannabinoids.”
“I’m made to feel like a criminal, but I would go to jail in a second rather than die!
“I try very hard to get my terminal friends to take it, but the stigma cannabis gets makes me sick.
“By the time they make it legal, I will have lost many friends who are truly beautiful people. People, who are in the worst pain imaginable!
“Shame on the establishment! They have blood on their hands!
“Medical cannabis is an amazing, natural, medicine. No one will stop me from what I am doing. Ever!”
Not fazed by the law surrounding cannabis, or the stigma, Sharon informed her medical team exactly what she was using, finding surprising support:
“I told every doctor I have had what I use; ‘they say good!’ They were so positive about it.
“When I was given the all-clear on Monday, they were nonchalant about it. I know their hands are tied though.”
Cannabis clearly has the potential to help so many people who are in life-threatening medical conditions or constant pain. Without it, brave women like Sharon may not be alive.
Due to prohibition, patients are at the mercy of the black market, often being over charged or scammed by criminal gangs.
The cannabis picked up from street dealers may not be the right strain, with the right cannabinoid ratio, for a patient, and is often over-priced, leaving patients in financial ruin, just for trying to access a medication.
“I took street cannabis,” Sharon explained, “but I didn’t like the high it gave me.”
Thankfully organizations and clubs are being set up all over the UK to defy the government and bring medical cannabis to those who need it most.
“I just wanted something for the pain. I am not, nor was ever, a smoker.
Unlike many medical cannabis users in the UK, however, Sharon was able to find a Compassion Club, The Tottenham Compassion Club (TTCC), after speaking to Callie Blackwell, who brought medical cannabis into headlines last year after going on national TV to announce it had helped save her son’s life.
“As soon as I had cancer I started looking into Medical Cannabis.
“I contacted Callie after seeing her on loose women and she gave me the details for someone from Tottenham Compassion Club (TTCC).
“I had messages from many different sources, including a lab in Barcelona, offering me help.
“I decided to go with TTCC after a long conversation with one of their members. He advised me to begin a 1:1 tincture in August, last year.
“He also gave me cannabis flowers, high in CBD, and that was it!
“He is a life saver! My pain just went away, it was truly amazing!
“There was no high like the street stuff, and I knew exactly what I’m getting when I use the tincture and flowers from TTCC.”
“Having him has provided peace of mind. I no longer need to worry about going to the streets anymore.” While Sharon did use chemotherapy to initially treat her cancer, the brave mother’s story clearly indicates that medical cannabis helped her survive the battle, and will continue to help her deal with the constant pain she is in post-chemo.
British laws, which classify cannabis as having “no medicinal value,” are endangering the most vulnerable members of our society. Not only are patients being warned against the “dangers” of cannabis, which is putting many off the non-fatal drug, but it is also forcing them to fund criminal gangs by buying cannabis from the streets.
While many Governments across the world, most recently Greece, are legalising cannabis for medicinal purposes, our Conservative Government is refusing to allow patients the same right in the UK.
In response to a public outcry for Alife Dingle, a young boy fighting intractable epilepsy, to be given a special prescription, the Government released a statement clearly ruling out legalisation:
“Cannabis is listed as a Schedule 1 drug, as in its raw form it is not recognised in the UK as having any medicinal benefit and is therefore subject to strict control restrictions.
“This means it cannot be practically prescribed, administered, or supplied to the public in the UK, and can only be used for research under a Home Office licence.
“The Home Office would not issue a licence to enable the personal consumption of a Schedule 1 drug.”
This is not right. It is a cruel, heartless response to a situation which needs addressing with compassion. The same compassion TTCC showed to Sharon, which she is now passing onto other terminal cancer patients.
Without more medical cannabis patients standing up to share their story, the public will never know how ridiculous and vicious our current drug laws are.
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I think Sharon’s story is amazing, we need Medical Cannabis legalised in UK. I too have Cancer (nsclc) had radiotherapy changed the food I eat, take supplements and a bit exercise also take cannabis now too, but don’t know how much cannabis is in capsules as not controlled.
I too have terminal sclc and take oil. But tbh don’t know if it’s the right stuff
My wife was diagnosed with multiple myeloma January 2015 and has had 4 treatment plans to date with no success and now told there is only 1 treatment plan left which she started now on her 5th cycle so have to wait and see, but now looking for another option can anyone advise me about cannabis treatment please, thank you,