Last updated on: 5/12/2008 | Author: ProCon.org

Robert DeLorenzo, MD, PhD, MPH Biography

Title:
Professor of Neurology in the Virginia Commonwealth University School of Medicine
Position:
Con to the question "Should Marijuana Be a Medical Option?"
Reasoning:

“[I]ndividuals both here and abroad report that marijuana has been therapeutic for them in the treatment of a variety of ailments, including epilepsy. But the psychoactive side effects of marijuana make its use impractical in the treatment of epilepsy. If we can understand how marijuana works to end seizures, we may be able to develop novel drugs that might do a better job of treating epileptic seizures.”

“Marijuana and Its Receptor Protein in Brain Control Epilepsy,” Virginia Commonwealth University Press Release, Sep. 30, 2003
Theoretical Expertise Ranking:
     Key Experts
Physicians [Physicians are the "key experts" in the medical marijuana debate because the issue is thought by many to be ultimately based on the medical value and risks of marijuana, and Physicians, with their training and clinical work, should (at least in theory) have the best knowledge of marijuana's medical value and risks.] [Note: Key Experts definition varies by sites that have this designation.]
Involvement and Affiliations:
  • Professor of Neurology, Pharmacology and Toxicology, Biochemistry and Molecular Biophysics, Virginia Commonwealth University School of Medicine
  • Recipient, Milken Foundation American Epilepsy Society Clinical Investigator Award, 1998
  • Recipient, First Annual Dixon Woodbury Memorial Lecture Award for distinguished research in neuropharmacology, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah, 1994
  • Recipient, Distinguished Neuroscientist Award, Louisiana State University Neuroscience Program, New Orleans, 1993
  • Recipient, Jacob K. Javits Award for outstanding research in molecular neurobiology by the NIH, 1986
  • Recipient, Walter O. Klingman Award for outstanding research in neurology and epilepsy, University of Virginia, 1985
  • Recipient, Award for Outstanding Research in Neurological Diseases and Epilepsy, American Society of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics, 1985
  • Recipient, Biennial Jordi-Folch-Pi Award for Neurochemical Research, American Society of Neurochemistry, 1984
  • Chief Resident and Post-Doctoral Fellow in Neurology, Yale New Haven Medical Center, 1976-1977
  • Resident and Post-Doctoral Fellow in Neurology, Yale New Haven Medical Center, 1974-1976
Education:
  • MD, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut, 1974
  • MPH, Yale University School of Epidemiology and Public Health, New Haven, Connecticut, 1974
  • PhD, Yale University Graduate School, New Haven, Connecticut, 1973
  • BS, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut, 1969
Other:
  • None found
Quoted in:
  1. Is Marijuana an Effective Treatment for Epilepsy (Seizures)?