Medicinal cannabis black market alert

A LEADING manufacturer of medical cannabis has warned Tasmanians frustrated by the complex process of having it prescribed that it could be dangerous to buy the painrelieving medication from the black market.

The managing director of AusCann — a business partner of Tasmanian Alkaloids, which gained a licence in July to grow cannabis to produce painrelieving drugs — says those wanting the drug should go through the proper channels.

Interest in the ethical production of medicinal cannabis and cannabis technology was evident at the recent Earth Expo in Launceston.

But AusCann’s Elaine Darby said it could be dangerous to take unregulated medicinal cannabis sourced from the internet or a “street corner”.

“At best, the products are ineffective in terms of what they are claiming to treat. At worst, they are highly toxic and dangerous to the person’s health,” Ms Darby said.

Since September it has been legal for Tasmanians wanting to access medicinal cannabis to obtain it through a prescription from a medical specialist.

So far no prescriptions have been written.

GPs are required to refer patients to a specialist, who then applies to the secretary of the Health Department for a decision.

A Tasmanian Health Service spokesman said the first three applications received under the state’s medical cannabis access scheme were being assessed.

AMA Tasmania president Stuart Day said there was limited evidence of the benefit of medicinal cannabis and most patients that had requested access so far did not have conditions that would be helped by a prescription.

“The current available preparations are uncontrolled and variable, unlike approved medications, and they are also expensive and not subsidised by the PBS,” Dr Day said.

“As such, the only affordable way patients can access this product is via public hospital pharmacies. The AMA supports the process in place to allow patients access to this product where there is some evidence medicinal cannabis might offer additional benefit to current treatment.”

Ms Darby said there were up to 104 different cannabinoids that had different effects depending on the condition being treated.

She encouraged those wanting to access the medi- cation to find the right GP.

“If a doctor is not willing to discuss medicinal cannabis with you, seek one who is open to finding out about cannabinoid medicines or has educated themselves on whether these medicines may be suitable for your medical condition,” she said.

Ms Darby said only medicines supplied by a pharmacy on prescription from a doctor met the Therapeutic Goods Administration’s high quality and efficacy standards.

She said there were strict international guidelines to ensure the medications contained exactly what was on the label.