Tue, October 31, 2023, at 9:00 AM EDT · 6 min read
TORONTO, ON / ACCESSWIRE / October 31, 2023 / NHL Alumni Association (NHLAA), NEEKA Health Canada(“NEEKA”), and CanaQuest Medical Corp (“CanaQuest”) are pleased to announce a transformative study partnership that will investigate the efficacy of Mentanine® as a potential treatment to reduce anxiety in former NHL players.
NEEKA will lead studies on Mentanine®, a natural cannabidiol and essential fatty acid product, to evaluate the efficacy of the formulation to reduce anxiety and increase quality of life. The research will be conducted by NEEKA’s extensive and expert clinical research team which has been formed by Dr. Amin Kassam, a world-renowned neurosurgeon, and Founder / Chief Executive Officer of NEEKA, and will be led by Dr. Hunter Land, Chief Scientific Officer of NEEKA.
“The demanding nature of playing the fastest game on the planet, with no out of bounds, against the best competitors in the world, can often have a tremendous toll on the physical and emotional well-being of our NHL Alumni members, and their families, in retirement,” said Glenn Healy, Executive Director of the NHLAA. “Our mission at the NHLAA is to ‘Honor the Past’ by finding ways to support our members in the next phase of their careers. For me personally, this means having as many tools as possible at our disposal that allow us to say ‘yes we can help’ when an NHL Alumni member requires assistance. This study is exactly that, another potential solution that we think could make an immeasurable difference in the lives of our members.”
A substantial number of high-performing, former professional athletes have developed impairments as a result of mental and physical trauma that has resulted in overwhelming changes to their Quality of Life (QoL). The impairments can range from mood disorders, sleeping challenges, anxiety, and issues with social and work status, among many others. In some cases, this leads to limitations in their ability to cope with their environment, a term NEEKA has defined as “functional disintegration”. This study will undertake the rigorous science needed to establish the medicinal value of cannabinoids when combined with other proven interventions amongst this highly afflicted group of elite athletes and potentially improve their ability to interact with family, friends, and their communities.
“Our team has witnessed the debilitating effects of mental and physical trauma on the lives of professional athletes and their families while struggling with functional disintegration,” said Edward Francis, President, and Chief Operating Officer of NEEKA. “This study represents an immense opportunity to evaluate QoL indications with cannabidiol, particularly when coupled by innovative paradigms such as upstream peer support, artificial intelligence conversation entities and digital mental health intervention.”
“It’s an honor to be chosen as a partner by the NHLAA and NEEKA teams. This partnership will not only transform the lives of these professional athletes and their families but could be a catalyst for new discoveries,” said Paul Ramsay, CEO of CanaQuest. “This decentralized and observational study will further substantiate our pre-clinical trial results and provide valuable data on the effects and efficacy of Mentanine® and the results of this study could also develop new research initiatives as alternative treatments to help former athletes with a variety of other QoL issues such as addictions, PTSD and other secondary neurological conditions”.
Dr. Amin Kassam has led four neurosurgery programs over two decades, has vast clinical experience, has published over 320 peer-reviewed articles, and is widely recognized as a true leader in technology developments that advance and define next generation patient care serves as the CEO of NEEKA. NEEKA’s clinical team will be led by the global thought leader in cannabinoid research, Dr. Hunter Land. Dr. Land, CSO of NEEKA, co-led the clinical development of Epidiolex (FDA approved prescription cannabidiol) for GW Pharma, has over 20 years of R&D expertise across 25 different indications, as well as over 12 years of cannabinoid-focused research.
For more information on the clinical study, visit CanaQuest and NEEKA
About: NHL Alumni Association
The NHL Alumni Association (NHLAA), established in 1999, is an organization devoted to bettering the lives of all former NHL players and their families. The NHLAA exemplifies this commitment to its members in many different ways, including financial assistance, mental and emotional wellness support, physical care, post-playing career transition and family aid, all in furtherance of its efforts to ‘Honor the Past.’ Since its inception, the NHLAA has become the largest membership of retired professional hockey players and focuses on making tomorrow better than today for all NHL Alumni throughout their journey. To learn more, and to view our latest news posts, please visit us at www.nhlalumni.com.
About: NEEKA Health
NEEKA Health is a next-generation digital health technology and a clinical research organization company based out of Charlottetown (Prince Edward Island), Canada with a research and development subsidiary in Santa Monica (California), US. With an experienced global team of healthcare experts, epidemiologists, clinical trialists, and a robust team of data analysts and security professionals, NEEKA Health has decades of proven success in designing, implementing, and conducting clinical trials, as well as in providing regulatory and commercial support in natural therapeutics in Europe and North America. NEEKA Health is also focused on its proprietary and gold standard upstream peer support and data analytics platform that has already shown incredible success in helping professional athletes, former athletes and other transitioning groups rebuild structure and connectivity in their day-to-day activities and functionally integrate with society.
About: CanaQuest MedicalCorp
CanaQuest Medical,a clinical-stage, life sciences company,is focused on the drug discovery and development of next-generation targeted therapeutics within the endocannabinoid system and specific brain receptors. CanaQuest is focused on treating neurological conditions, such as epilepsy, anxiety, depression, and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder “PTSD”, including addiction. CanaQuest has created a novel master formulation derived from cannabidiol “CBD” + IP formula. The company has a drug candidate, CQ-001, which is positioned for clinical trials, targeting epilepsy. An OTC version of the master formulation, branded as Mentanine®, is available for sale via CanaQuest Store in the US. Pre-clinical trial results and clinical studies have demonstrated beneficial effects on several mental and neurological conditions. Its non-psychoactive properties provide a safe and effective alternative to traditional treatments with minimal effects.
Media Contacts:
NHLAA: Brodie Palango bpalango@nhlalumni.com
NEEKA Health: Morgan Martin morgan@neekahealth.com
CanaQuest: Paul Ramsay paul@canaquest.com