Last updated on July 15th, 2022 at 09:39 am
Critical care specialist, Dr. Manoon Leechawengwongs, of the Vichaiyut Hospital in Bangkok posted on Facebook that a 48 year old male lung cancer patient suffering from pneumonia and respiratory failure had been diagnosed with EVALI (electronic cigarette, or vaping product, use-associated lung injury – also known as vaping-associated pulmonary injury, or VAPI).
According to Dr. Leechawengwongs the patient had ordered a THC/CBD vape pen from the United States and had begun vaping the product prior to the respiratory failure.
Earlier this year, in March, the patient began using lung cancer medication, Ceritinib. The patient was said to be improving but by August the patient began hearing word of mouth that he shouldn’t be taking so much of the cancer drug and self-adjusted his dosage downward without notifying his treating physician.
The patient then ordered a CBD/THC vape pen from the United States hoping to cure his cancer through more traditional/organic means.
The man began vaping in November and by November 15th he reported he was feeling increasingly fatigued and he was hospitalized with a fever, coughing, and breathing difficulties (symptoms all closely associated with EVALI). Within three days of being hospitalized, his condition took a turn for the worse and he was admitted to the intensive care unit for artificial respiration.
Fortunately the patient began receiving steroids, and has slowly begun to improve.
It was unclear from Dr. Leechawengwongs’ post as to whether or not the patient had obtained both the vape pen and the cartridges from the United States or if he had produced his own CBD oil. Given the strict laws on exporting CBD/THC products outside of the country, if the patient did source the cartridges from the US, he was likely purchasing a black-market product.
Many of the EVALI cases in the United States have been linked to black-market vaping products.
