June Jessee has lived with seizures, dozens almost every day, for her entire 23-month life.
After other options failed, a neurologist recommended a hormone treatment.
“The doctor told me it could kill her — but he was still recommending it,” said June’s mother, Genny Jessee.
June was diagnosed early on with infantile spasms that have left her developmentally like a four-month-old, her mother said. June’s not yet crawling, doesn’t typically sit up and has trouble sleeping because of the seizures, which intensify when she’s drowsy.
“The brain isn’t making the connections,” Genny Jessee said. “It must be so hard to understand what’s going on when your brain is constantly hitting the pause button.”
The hormone treatment didn’t work. Then the family turned its attention to a promising new therapy using an oil derived from marijuana. But the treatment is illegal in Missouri.
When the Jessee family learned the therapy is legal in Colorado, they decided to leave their home in Brentwood and move there.
June’s father, a lobbyist with the St. Louis-based law firm Bryan Cave, mentioned the move to a friend, state Rep. Caleb Jones, R-Columbia. Jones asked what he could do to help.
Change the law, Matt Jesse told Jones.
That exchange led Jones to sponsor a bill passed by the Missouri House last week that would allow patients such as June access to the therapy. The bill now heads to the Senate.
The oil involved in the treatment is extracted from cannabis plants with low amounts of THC, the chemical that gets people high, and high amounts of cannabidiol, or CBD.
The bill applies solely to people with epilepsy who have not responded to at least three other treatments and would strictly regulate the use and growing of plants for research and medical purposes.
My name is Maricel Mark from Holland,my daughter who was suffering from epilepsy from the age of 5 years was cured with CBD and THC cannabis oil from cancer centre London i contacted via email londoncancercentre@gmail.com The cannabis oil was supplied to me here in Holland with prescription on how to use it for treatment of seizures/epilepsy.After 3 months my daughter was cured and free from seizures.
Maricel,
We are currently trying to find an alternative to treat our son with epilepsy besides surgery. We have contacted the londoncentre & received information from them. I was hoping you could also give me some information on your experience. They are asking for $760. For 90 day supply. Is that approximately what your cost was? Has your daughter had to continue with the cannabis oil treatment after the three months? Thank you so much for your time and any information you could give us.
Shanell