Steady growth seen in medical marijuana use

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http://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/2015/10/24/demand-for-medical-marijuana-massachusetts-grows/BZLd9mbtZ96572G6DpGiTM/story.html



A patient displayed medical marijuana from the Alternative Therapies Group dispensary in Salem.

Steady growth seen in medical marijuana use
By Kay Lazar Globe Staff October 24, 2015

Norton Arbelaez has met some unusual people in his six years working in the medical marijuana industry, but one patient who gingerly walked into New England Treatment Access in Northampton, the latest marijuana dispensary to open in Massachusetts, took him by surprise.

The patient was seeking relief from gnawing foot pain, a pain the man said had plagued him for 70 years.

“I was really blown away when this older gentleman walked in and he described to me his experience in the Battle of the Bulge in World War II,” said Arbelaez, New England Treatment’s consultant for standards and practices. “His feet froze during that battle (in the winter of 1944), and he said he found a lot of relief from medical cannabis products.”

While the medical benefit of marijuana continues to be hotly debated nationwide, one picture coming into sharper focus in Massachusetts is the burgeoning number of patients seeking cannabis products.