Pill-testing scrapped as deadly opioid emerges
Queensland has decided not to renew contracts for fixed pill testing sites at Brisbane's Bowen Hills and Burleigh Heads on the Gold Coast, with doors set to close on April 4.
Australian Medical Association Queensland president Dr Nick Yim said he was disappointed the state government had discontinued the service, and feared it would lead to higher rates of harm.
"It is disappointing the Crisafulli government, who was elected on a promise that they would listen to the experts, has once again dismissed the evidence supported by doctors," he said in a statement to AAP.
Dr Yim was concerned the sites were closing after a deadly synthetic opioid 40 times more powerful than fentanyl was detected for the first time in wastewater testing across Australia over the New Year period.
Two highly potent and addictive variants of nitazene - a psychoactive synthetic substance - were detected at five separate sites in Australia and the United States.
Protonitazene is one of the variants and is three times stronger than fentanyl, a drug that has driven an overdose crisis in the US.
The other is etonitazepyne which is 40 times more powerful than fentanyl.
Nitazene has led to fatal overdoses globally often due to being mixed with other illegal drugs like MDMA or ketamine. Considering the Australian wastewater findings, Dr Yim said now was the best time for Queensland to have permanent pill-testing clinics.
"Without regulated testing, already vulnerable community members remain exposed to these hidden dangers," he said.
He said health authorities could lose visibility of what dangerous substances, like synthetic opioids, are circulating.
The Queensland Mental Health Commission has been tasked with developing an overdose monitoring system but without an early warning system like pill-testing, Dr Yim said it would do little to protect people.
Health Minister Tim Nicholls stood by the decision to rip up the clinic contracts, citing the Liberal National Party's stance against drugs.
"We have made it abundantly clear that there is no good way to acquire drugs in the shadows, under the counter and we don't believe that pill testing is going to resolve those issues," he told reporters on Friday.
Meanwhile, the state government made a pharmacist prescription program permanent after a six-month trial.
Mr Nicholls said he received reports of 92 per cent satisfaction with the program that allows pharmacists to prescribe a range of common medications for contraception, nausea, acne and allergies.
Pharmacy prescription models have been rolled out in NSW and Victoria.
The decision was welcomed by the Pharmacy Guild of Australia which said it turned pharmacies into urgent care clinics to provide access across the state.
But Dr Yim said the trial had not been evaluated and he was concerned the government would ignore advice if the review came back negative.
"This is what they have done by refusing to follow the evidence about our world-leading drug diversion, pill testing and alcohol harm reduction programs," he said.
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Newsweek
3 days ago
- Newsweek
Doctor Raises Concerns Over Medical Cannabis Use With Cancer Treatment
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. Despite its growing popularity among cancer patients for managing symptoms like nausea, pain and reduced appetite, a new study has warned that the use of medicinal cannabis could make immunotherapy less effective. This is the warning of Australian medical cannabis advocate Dr. Ben Jansen, whose newly-published review paper poses the question: "Are cannabinoids with cancer immunotherapy contributing to early death?" "As both a physician involved in the medicinal cannabis industry and an advocate for patient care, I find the discussion and patient informed consent around this interaction critical," Jansen wrote in his study. "Three key studies on this topic offer preliminary data suggesting a potential reduction in immunotherapy efficacy from cannabis use," he continued. "Though the results remain limited and controversial, warranting caution and additional research." Medical marijuana over official looking subscription document. Medical marijuana over official looking subscription document. thegoodphoto/Getty Images The first study looked into patients receiving the immunotherapy drug nivolumab for advanced cancers, including lung cancer, renal cell carcinoma and melanoma. It compared those on nivolumab alone (89 patients) and those on both nivolumab and cannabis (51 patients). The findings, Jansen noted, showed a significantly lower treatment response rate in patients using cannabis than in those on just nivolumab (15.9 vs. 37.5 percent.) The analysis excluded patients with advanced disease with survival of less than two months. "This suggests that patients using cannabis were approximately three times more likely to have a poor response to immunotherapy. Notably, cannabis use did not significantly impact progression-free survival or overall survival," Jansen wrote. Building on this, the second study compared 34 patients prescribed both immunotherapy and cannabis with 68 patients receiving the cancer treatment alone. That study found that tumors tended to take less than three-and-a-half months to grow or spread in the patients taking cannabis, as compared to more than a year for patients on immunotherapy alone. It also found the median overall survival time for cannabis users was 6.4 months compared to 28.5 months for non-users. A colourful illustration representing immune cells and white blood cells. 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"While cancer has a promising role in supportive cancer care, these early findings support careful consideration when patients are concurrently undergoing immunotherapy." Jansen emphasized how important it is that clinicians ensure patients are well informed of potential interactions, particularly until we have a clearer understanding of the situation, and has called for more thorough research and trials. "Future studies should aim to control for variables such as cancer type, cannabis dosage, socio-economic status and patient lifestyle factors, particularly tobacco use, which may confound results," he concluded. Do you have a tip on a health story that Newsweek should be covering? Do you have a question about cancer? Let us know via health@ References Bar-Sela, G., Cohen, I., Campisi-Pinto, S., Lewitus, G. M., Oz-Ari, L., Jehassi, A., Peer, A., Turgeman, I., Vernicova, O., Berman, P., Wollner, M., Moskovitz, M., & Meiri, D. (2020). Cannabis Consumption Used by Cancer Patients during Immunotherapy Correlates with Poor Clinical Outcome. Cancers, 12(9), Article 9. Hadid, T., Biedny, A., Mamdani, H., Azmi, A., Kim, S., Jang, H., Uprety, D., Al Hallak, M. N., & Sukari, A. (2024). Association between cannabis use and clinical outcomes in patients with solid malignancies receiving immune checkpoint inhibitors. Therapeutic Advances in Vaccines and Immunotherapy, 12, 25151355241309095. Jansen, B. (2025). Are cannabinoids with cancer immunotherapy contributing to early death? A call for caution and further study. New Zealand Medical Journal, 138(1619). Taha, T., Meiri, D., Talhamy, S., Wollner, M., Peer, A., & Bar‐Sela, G. (2019). Cannabis Impacts Tumor Response Rate to Nivolumab in Patients with Advanced Malignancies. The Oncologist, 24(4), 549–554.
Hamilton Spectator
3 days ago
- Hamilton Spectator
Drug User Advocacy Groups Challenge ‘Recriminalization' in Court
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'I've never been violent,' they say softly. 'But if I go to St. Paul's [Hospital] I have to take a sobriety and drug test, with a security guard posted outside of my room. I don't drink and I have to wait for hours before someone even asks me what's wrong.' To actually end the ongoing toxic drug crisis, Rufus-Sedgemore said, the government needs to bring back decriminalization, introduce a regulated safer supply that is more accessible and actually separates people from the unregulated supply, and create comprehensive drug education for kids. They've worked with youth before and remember being asked if you can un-burn microwave popcorn by microwaving it again, or, if drugs are making you feel weird, taking more drugs will make you feel better. Kids are still figuring this world out and won't know something if we don't teach them, they said. Error! Sorry, there was an error processing your request. There was a problem with the recaptcha. Please try again. You may unsubscribe at any time. By signing up, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy . This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google privacy policy and terms of service apply. Want more of the latest from us? Sign up for more at our newsletter page .
Business Wire
3 days ago
- Business Wire
Mauna Kea Technologies Enters Australian Market with Endotherapeutics Partnership
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Endotherapeutics' mission is to improve healthcare and achieves this by supplying innovative healthcare solutions with the highest levels of service and support. To find out more, visit About Mauna Kea Technologies Mauna Kea Technologies is a global medical device company that manufactures and sells Cellvizio®, the real-time in vivo cellular imaging platform. This technology uniquely delivers in vivo cellular visualization which enables physicians to monitor the progression of disease over time, assess point-in-time reactions as they happen in real time, classify indeterminate areas of concern, and guide surgical interventions. The Cellvizio® platform is used globally across a wide range of medical specialties and is making a transformative change in the way physicians diagnose and treat patients. For more information, visit Disclaimer This press release contains forward-looking statements about Mauna Kea Technologies and its business. All statements other than statements of historical fact included in this press release, including, but not limited to, statements regarding Mauna Kea Technologies' financial condition, business, strategies, plans and objectives for future operations are forward-looking statements. Mauna Kea Technologies believes that these forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions. However, no assurance can be given that the expectations expressed in these forward-looking statements will be achieved. These forward-looking statements are subject to numerous risks and uncertainties, including those described in Chapter 2 of Mauna Kea Technologies' 2024 Annual Report filed with the Autorité des marchés financiers (AMF) on April 30, 2025, which is available on the Company's website ( as well as the risks associated with changes in economic conditions, financial markets and the markets in which Mauna Kea Technologies operates. 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