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WAMC NPR: NY’S FIRST MEDICAL MARIJUANA PATIENT SHARES HER STORY

Now that New York has become the 23rd state to legalize medical marijuana, reporters Tuesday met the woman believed to be the first patient in the state.

Brittany Barger suffers from Stage IV ovarian cancer that has metastasized. The 27-year-old who was diagnosed about a year ago says surgery is not an option and chemotherapy has not worked. She requires some 15 pills just to get out of bed in the morning. After having registered, Barger arrived through the double doors at Vireo Health of New York’s White Plains Dispensary January 7, the day the state’s Medical Marijuana Program launched. She says she is already taking fewer pain meds and had an appetite for the first time in more than a year.

Read and listen to the full story here.