The first drops of medical cannabis will soon appear in pharmacies: who will be able to buy
9 January 10:28
Ukraine has registered the first medicines based on medical cannabis – oral drops of a Spanish brand. This was reported by Komersant ukrainskyi with reference to the Patients of Ukraine Charitable Foundation and the Ukrainian Medical Cannabis Association.
“Ukraine has registered the first active pharmaceutical ingredient based on medical cannabis – oral drops from the Spanish manufacturer Curaleaf… We expect that the first drops based on medical cannabis will appear in production pharmacies in the first half of 2025,” the association said.
The entry of the Spanish manufacturer Curaleaf into the Ukrainian market was accompanied by the Ukrainian Cannabis Consulting Group. In addition to oral cannabis drops, pharmacies will soon be able to buy hard capsules, dental pastes, and gels. The Ministry of Health approved these forms of medicines in 2024.
In addition, the list of diseases and conditions for which doctors will be able to prescribe medical cannabis treatment was adopted. The treatment will be available for patients with chronic pain, Parkinson’s disease, nausea and vomiting caused by chemotherapy, Tourette syndrome, drug-resistant epilepsy, diseases that cause seizures in childhood, and anorexia due to HIV.
“So far, the list of conditions is not progressive. The patient community insists that PTSD should be included in this list. So far, we have been able to achieve that medications can be prescribed for other conditions based on the conclusion of a medical advisory committee in hospitals with a scientific basis. This will give access to treatment to more patients who need it,” said Inna Ivanenko, Executive Director of Patients of Ukraine.
Medicines will be dispensed in pharmacies on the basis of an electronic prescription issued by a doctor in the patient’s name. Pharmacies that will manufacture medicines must have three licenses: for retail trade, manufacturing of drugs, and drug trafficking.
“Together with the NHS Academy, we are preparing online training that will allow our doctors to adopt modern treatment regimens from foreign colleagues,” said Hanna Glushchenko, head of international partnerships at the Ukrainian Medical Cannabis Association.
The Ministry of Health estimates that six million patients in Ukraine need medicines based on medical cannabis.
What is medical cannabis
The medical value of cannabis lies in the cannabinoids, the compounds found in the plant. Most of the known cannabinoids have not been well researched so far. The most well-known are tetrahydrocannabinol (THC or THC in Latin) and cannabidiol (CBD). These are the two cannabinoids most often mentioned when talking about medical cannabis.
Tetrahydrocannabinol is the “narcotic” component of cannabis. It is because of it that hemp was classified as a dangerous drug in the XX century. Medical cannabis is not only hemp with a low content of the narcotic compound THC, but also those with a low percentage of tetrahydrocannabinol.
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Treatment with cannabis
The feasibility of therapeutic use of cannabis has been confirmed by scientists for the following conditions
- neurological diseases: multiple sclerosis, epilepsy (according to preliminary findings, cannabis can have a positive effect on the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease, Huntington’s disease, and Tourette’s syndrome);
- diseases of the digestive tract (according to convincing evidence, cannabis has a significant positive effect on alleviating side effects during chemotherapy in oncology (especially nausea and vomiting) and side effects associated with HIV/AIDS treatment;
- according to preliminary conclusions, a positive effect is also observed in relation to ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease, as well as in inflammation and intestinal motility dysfunction;
- in addition, cannabis-based products are used to increase appetite in diseases that lead to weight loss and exhaustion);
- drug addiction and mental health problems (according to preliminary evidence, cannabis is effective as a substitute therapy for opioids, stimulants (including cocaine) and alcohol, as well as for overcoming anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorders and sleep disorders);
- chronic pain of neuropathic origin;
- palliative care (mainly cannabis-based products are used to relieve a range of symptoms in cancer patients in need of palliative care, including pain relief, eating disorders, and sleep).
In addition, it has been scientifically proven that phytocannabinoids have a highly effective antimicrobial effect (on staphylococci and streptococci), and also demonstrate a significant positive effect in the treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder, various diseases of the immune system, arthritis and rheumatism, asthma, various forms of sclerosis, herpes, diabetic neuropathy, anorexia, and many other ailments.
The use of hemp (Cannabis) in the world
The use of cannabis for medical purposes (or, depending on the specifics of regulation, the use of cannabis-based drugs) is allowed in more than fifty countries, including Germany, Spain, the Netherlands, Italy, the Czech Republic, France, Portugal, Poland, Greece, Austria, Denmark, Belgium, Norway, Israel, the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, etc.
