GULFPORT — A few weeks ago, 8-year-old Brennan Davis had 60 seizures within two days at his home in Diamondhead.
He was born with a rare neurological disorder and the frequency of his seizures has only been increasing as he gets older.
“He takes over $3,000 worth of medications a month and we still cannot get a break from the seizures,” said his mother, Grace Darrow.
Relief may soon be in sight, though, because of a bill that hit Gov. Phil Bryant’s desk Friday. If approved, the law would allow a high-cannabinoid, low-THC oil derived from marijuana to be dispensed from the University of Mississippi Medical Center with a prescription.
Similar bills are making their way through legislatures in Alabama, Georgia, Tennessee and Utah.
“The governor will review it closely when it reaches his desk,” Bryant spokeswoman Nicole Webb said Friday.
A UMMC doctor said access to the drug would most likely come through a controlled study.
“What I envision is that initially any patient who we judged to be a candidate would be enrolled in a research study housed here,” Dr. Brad Ingram said.
The oil, called cannabidiol or CBD, has been used to treat symptoms of a wide range of diseases including epilepsy, chronic pain and Parkinson’s disease.
Darrow said the neuro-pediatrician they have been seeing in Pensacola, Fla., has seen success with the treatment in his other epileptic patients. The family has even been considering moving there to be closer to the doctor.
Brennan averages one to three seizures a day, she said. Last year, the family went to Miami to see if he was a candidate for a surgery that would remove the part of the brain causing seizures, but tests showed his seizures come from many different parts. In August, he got an Iron Man-style implant below his collarbone that stimulates a cra
nial nerve, much like a pacemaker. They have not yet seen an improvement.
“There’s nothing else available,” she said. “I mean at this point, what do you do?”
Rep. Mark Formby, R-Picayune, supported the CBD bill for a very personal reason.
His 6-year-old son, Eli, also has severe epilepsy and has three to seven seizures a week. Unlike Brennan, Eli was a candidate for the brain surgery and had an operation in January.
The seizures have not lessened, though.
“It appears that the surgery did not get the results for which we had hoped,” Formby said.
However, he does not plan to try the CBD treatment for Eli until more tests are done. Not many studies have been done on that specific formulation as a treatment method and the Federal Drug Administration has not yet released results of its study.
“I supported the bill for those parents who think they would like to try this treatment,” he said. “But I did make the point on the (House) floor that it’s untested and experimental and I hope that parents will proceed with great caution.”
Formby said he has mixed emotions about the bill and would have liked to see a study committee formed for a year before the drug is available.
“We’re all looking for the miracle drug or the miracle surgery or the miracle treatment,” he said, adding even over-the-counter drugs have dangerous side effects and can affect people differently.
“But I do know there are parents who are desperate.”
The Associated Press, contributed to this report.
South Mississippi family with epileptic child glad for cannabis oil bill
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