A bong has a few main parts. The first one is the chamber. That’s where all of the smoke comes through while you hit it. The stem of the bong goes out the side, towards the bottom, and represents a pipe where you put your bud in. Oftentimes, a bong requires a screen (a metal screen that keeps the marijuana from falling through the pipe). The last part of the bong is the mouthpiece. That’s where you put your lips to inhale the smoke. You fill up the chamber of the bong with water. Depending on your experience and taste, you might prefer different liquids. In effect, they all cool down the smoke. Things like ice-cold Koolaid and/or orange juice have been used, and people say they give bud a delicious taste. When you smoke weed out the bong, you inhale it through the stem. Crush it up, and put it in the pipe that goes out the side. Make sure the bottom part of the pipe of your bong is covered with water – only then will the smoke pass through the water. No worries: the THC won’t dissolve in water. This process cools down the smoke with air bubbles while you smoke weed. The bong itself is held with your hands as you put your mouth to the mouthpiece.

To take care of your bong and make sure it hits nice every time, make sure to keep it clean. Resin, or left-over buildup that remains in the stem / chamber of the bong, must be cleaned out every once in a while. After every 8-10 times of moderate use, clean your bong with household cleaning solutions. Warm water and soap work well, but might not get all the sticky grime off. Just make sure to rinse it well before using again – no one wants cleaning chemicals in their lungs.

Traditional Cancer Treatments

Lung cancer, prostate cancer, breast cancer – in fact, most types of cancer all start the same basic way. Something causes cancer cells to divide and grow without pause, spreading badly damaged DNA. Those cells invade other tissues and, in most cases, form tumors.

Cancer studies have taken leaps and bounds as far as finding treatments to slow, and sometimes stop, the spread of cancer. However, two of the most important treatments, chemotherapy and radiation therapy, also cause damage and, often, severe side effects.

For instance, some of the most powerful, toxic chemicals are used in chemotherapeutic agents. Both treatments kill cancer cells, but healthy cells as well. Chemotherapeutic agents such as Adriamycin (doxorubicin) and Platinol (cisplatin) can, and have, caused immune suppression and multiple organ damage, but they also cause severe nausea and vomiting.

The vomiting can last over a period of days, to the point that some patients have actually torn their esophagus. Due to the vomiting and lack of appetite, severe dehydration and weigh loss is normal. In fact, many cancer patients begin having a reaction before chemotherapy begins, in “anticipation” of the side effects. Unfortunately, although chemotherapy and/or radiation therapy may be an integral part of their survival, many cancer patients decide not to take the therapies because the side effects are so severe.

Because of this, many are given a mix of anti-nausea drugs. Often, the anti-nausea drugs work. However, the drugs only give partial symptom control, while for others they give no control at all. In addition, those who take traditional medications may also suffer fever, bone pain, fatigue, anxiety, sleep problems and changes in heart activity, among other issues. This leaves cancer patients to suffer from the effects of the cancer itself, the side effects of the treatments, and the side effects of medications used to alleviate the initial side effects of the treatments.

Medical Marijuana for Cancer Patients

It has proven in many studies, performed by prestigious scientific and medical organizations and individuals, that medical marijuana can (and does) relieve pain and nausea. In fact, some of these studies go as far back as the 1970s and older.

For instance, in 1975, the New England Journal of Medicine published the results of a “double-blind” study on the effects of oral (ingested rather than smoked) tetrahydrocannabinol on nausea and vomiting. According to the study, “No patient vomited while experiencing a subjective “high”. Oral tetrahydrocannabinol has antiemetic properties and is significantly better than a placebo in reducing vomiting caused by chemotherapeutic agents.”

A 1999 report by the Institutes of Medicine concluded, “In patients already experiencing severe nausea or vomiting, pills are generally ineffective, because of the difficulty in swallowing or keeping a pill down, and slow onset of the drug effect. Thus an inhalation (but, preferably not smoking) cannabinoid drug delivery system would be advantageous for treating chemotherapy-induced nausea.”

Although freedom from nausea and vomiting are two of the most noticed benefits of medical marijuana use, many have reported a reduction in the severity of wasting away. As well, they’ve notice a lessening in depression and other “side effects” brought on by the disease, including an increase in appetite. All of these things together have helped many cancer patients live a better, happier, more comfortable life. However, studies have also shown a shocking benefit.

Over twenty major studies in the past nine years have shown that cannabinoids (the chemicals in cannabis) actually fight cancer cells. In fact, it’s been shown that cannabinoids arrest cancer growths of many different forms of cancer, including brain, melanoma and breast cancer. There’s even growing evidence that cannabinoids cause direct anti-tumor activity.

Since the possibility was first realized, many more studies have been conducted, focused on the possibility of cannabinoids have anticarcinogenic effects. A 2007 study by the Institute of Toxicology and Pharmacology in Rostock, Germany focused on human cervical cancer (HeLa) cells. The cells were treated with specific cannabioids and THC. Even at low concentrations, MA and THC “led to a decrease in invasion of 61.5% and 68.1% respectively.”

The benefits of medical marijuana for cancer patients are clear when it comes to increased appetite, reduction of pain, wasting, vomiting and nausea, as well as depression. Although its anticarcinogenic effects aren’t quite as clear, ongoing research further points to the possibility that medical marijuana may actually be what many claim it is – a truly miraculous drug.

Researchers found that a chemical called cannabidiol (CBD) affects the activity of a gene known as Id-1 in patients with hormone-independent breast cancer. In embryos, Id-1 is responsible for helping cells grow and spread, but is supposed to remain inactive in adults. In human adults, it is found only in metastatic cancer cells, or cancer cells that are spreading throughout the body.  “When [the Id-1 genes] wake up, they are very bad,” said senior researcher Pierre Yves-Desprez. “They push the cells to behave like embryonic cells and grow. They go crazy, they proliferate, they migrate.”

According to Desprez, shutting off the activity of Id-1 can make cancer far less lethal. Tumors, Desprez says, can be “removed easily by surgery,” but if the cancer is spreading then the disease becomes much more difficult to contain.  “[Id-1 is like] an [orchestra] conductor,” Desprez said. “If you shoot the violinist, the orchestra just continues to play.”
“In this case, you shoot the conductor, and the whole orchestra is going to stop,” he said.

Because CBD occurs in only very small quantities in the cannabis plant, the researchers do not recommend smoking marijuana as a cancer treatment. To be effective, CBD will either have to be artificially synthesized or extracted and concentrated.  The chemical’s major advantage, according to the researchers, is its apparent non-toxicity.

“Right now we have a limited range of options in treating aggressive forms of cancer,” co-author Sean D. McAllister said. “Those treatments, such as chemotherapy, can be effective but they can also be extremely toxic and difficult for patients. This compound offers the hope of a non-toxic therapy that could achieve the same results without any of the painful side effects.”

The researchers also expressed hope that CBD will also prove effective against other cancers that rely on Id-1, including brain, colon and prostate cancer.