cannabisnews.com: Canada Approves Cannabis Drug 





Canada Approves Cannabis Drug 
Posted by CN Staff on December 21, 2004 at 19:44:42 PT
By Ben Kilbey, The Guardian 
Source: Guardian Unlimited
The prospects of using cannabis to treat the symptoms of multiple sclerosis were given a boost yesterday after Canadian regulators gave the go-ahead for a compound called Sativex to be developed by Britain's GW Pharmaceuticals. Geoffrey Guy, the GW chairman, who has struggled to win mainstream acceptance for the medicinal properties of cannabis, said: "The Canadian regulators have realised the benefits of the drug to patients, whereas in the UK the regulators look purely at the data supplied and not at the patients."
Shares in GW lost a third of their value this month after UK regulators decided Sativex, a nasal spray, could not go on sale due to a lack of evidence about its effectiveness. Hopes that Canadian approval will pave the way for the launch of the drug in Britain saw GW shares rise 8.5p to 113.5p, triggering upbeat reports from City analysts. "I wouldn't suggest that the approval by Health Canada will affect the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) decision, it certainly doesn't apply any direct pressure. It does, however, suggest that Sativex should be approved on a wider basis at some point in the near future. It's more a question of when rather than if," said Jonathan Senior, an analyst at Evolution Securities. In the UK the company still has to prove the effectiveness of Sativex with a further trial. GW expects to start selling the drug in Canada next year. The Home Office granted GW a licence to grow marijuana plants at a secret location in the English countryside in 1998. Many patient groups in the UK were disappointed with the decision by the MHRA and the Committee on Safety of Medicines this month. At the time, Mike O'Donovan, the chief executive of the Multiple Sclerosis Society, said: "The results are extremely disappointing for many of the 85,000 people in the UK who have MS. The society believes those who might benefit should be able to have treatment prescribed on the NHS and we very much hope the Medicines Commission will take that view." Source: Guardian Unlimited, The (UK)Author: Ben Kilbey, The Guardian Published: Wednesday, December 22, 2004Copyright: 2004 Guardian Newspapers LimitedContact: letters guardian.co.ukWebsite: http://www.guardian.co.uk/Related Articles & Web Site:GW Pharmaceuticalshttp://www.gwpharm.com/GW Cannabis Drug on Path To Approval http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread20051.shtmlCanada To Approve UK Cannabis Drughttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread20050.shtml Anger as Cannabis Drug Fails MS Trial http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread19975.shtml
Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help




Comment #1 posted by Taylor121 on December 21, 2004 at 21:53:57 PT:
Marijuana Policy Project Grows
With more than 18,000 members and 150,000 e-mail subscribers nationwide, the Marijuana Policy Project is the largest marijuana policy reform organization in the U. S.http://www.mpp.org/trials
Help marijuana in the United States get through the Senate
[ Post Comment ]


Post Comment