Cannabinoid Therapy for Children

By João R. Negromonte

Today, August 24, National Childhood Day is celebrated. The date marks an important advancement of Law No. 13,257/2016, which establishes principles and guidelines for the formulation and implementation of public policies for children, aiming to promote reflections and ensure the fundamental rights of our little ones.

This recognition represents a unique window of opportunity for the neurological, cognitive, psychomotor, and emotional development of children. Therefore, in honor of the date, the Sechat Portal brings here the life story of Isadora B. T. (13), who lives with the diagnoses of Down Syndrome, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD), and Autism, and uses cannabis for the control of these pathologies. Follow this journey.

The Beginning

Isadora is the daughter of the executive secretary and business administrator Patrícia Boscatto (46), and logistics technologist Adilson Trevisan (48), residents of the city of São Caetano do Sul, in the ABC region of São Paulo (SP).

Patrícia recounts that Isadora showed the first symptoms of ADHD at three years old and ODD at six. She used various psychotropic medications, acting on the central nervous system (CNS) producing alterations in behavior, mood, and cognition.

From a very young age, Isadora was a restless and impulsive child. "She had difficulties sleeping, eating, and became aggressive; when she started walking at two years old, we enrolled her in a regular preschool," says Patrícia.

Despite some educational issues, the girl's school trajectory, as far as possible, was going well. However, in 2018, problems with a teacher directly affected Isadora's development, who until then had not used cannabis derivatives.   

From then on, after an episode of emotional breakdown never seen before, a family friend working at the Apae (Association of Parents and Friends of the Exceptional) of São Caetano, recommended the neurosurgeon Dr. Pedro Pierro, one of the pioneers in prescribing cannabis-based medications in Brazil. 

Patrícia says that initially, when they learned about this treatment alternative, she was worried because it was something unknown to the family. After researching and demanding explanations from the responsible authorities about the teacher's attitude towards Isadora, which directly compromised the child's development, in 2019, she sought help from the specialized doctor.

A Turning Point

“The consultation with Dr. Pedro was a turning point in our lives! After a long year of struggles and battles, in that meeting, I saw that perhaps there was a solution to our problems,” highlights Patrícia.

The mother also reveals that she only found out about her daughter's Down Syndrome at birth and, to worsen the situation, the girl was also born with a cleft lip and palate. However, the suffering experienced throughout this time brought to light this alternative of cannabinoid therapy.

“When starting the treatment, Dr. Pedro told me that this was not the last resort, but rather, a new journey we would face,” the mother says.

Patrícia began medicating Isadora with oil from Abrace Esperança and, over four months, already noticed an improvement in the girl's condition, who before the treatment took about six different medications with strong side effects, none of which yielded the expected results. 

“There was resistance from the Apae of São Caetano at the beginning. I even heard in the institution's corridors that I was giving marijuana to my daughter. However, the results were so apparent that I defended and still defend the cause to this day,” the mother says. 

With Isadora's progress, who, despite the Covid-19 pandemic, remained stable and medicated at home, Patrícia put Apae in contact with Dr. Pedro Pierro so that the specialist could explain how cannabis could be beneficial to other families.

Patrícia now works with the support of families and patients using the same medication as Isadora and creates adapted materials for the learning of children with attention deficit.   

She is also part of the IASM - Institute Love without Measures, formed by mothers of children with disabilities. “We support needy families and fight for the rights of our children in the municipality of São Caetano do Sul,” she says. For 6 years, she was also Social Director of Apae São Caetano and, with the support of politicians, helped create a project that served 12 families for a year with medications from Carmen’s Medicinals provided free of charge.

Today, according to Patrícia, Isadora is a happy child and no longer needs to take several medications that brought unwanted adverse effects.

A New Beginning

“Over these three years of treatment with cannabis derivatives, I can say that my daughter leads a normal life. She plays, eats well, exercises, interacts at school with other classmates, says I love you all the time, in short, she is a new Isadora,” says Patrícia.

“Over these three years of treatment with cannabis derivatives, I can say that my daughter leads a normal life. She plays, eats well, exercises, interacts at school with other classmates, says I love you all the time, in short, she is a new Isadora,” says Patrícia. 

Currently in Brazil, the use of medicinal cannabis is not yet regulated by the legislature; however, the National Health Surveillance Agency (Anvisa) and the judiciary already allow the use of these products by those in need, including children and adolescents. Thus, here is the appeal of a mother seeking the right to health not only for her daughter but for those who need and want to use cannabis as a treatment alternative.

“If we have so many success stories and various studies proving the benefits of cannabis, why not regulate and make it accessible to many families and patients who depend on the treatment?” questions Patrícia, who concludes: “we went through dark times to get here, but I would face it all over again just to explain to the population how cannabis can change our lives”.