First cannabis patient hits out at cost

A FORMER university lecturer who is the first person in Britain to be prescribed cannabis by a doctor, has hit out at having to pay £2,500 for a three-month supply.

Carly Barton suffers from chronic nerve pain as a result of a stroke eight years ago. She was bedbound for five years, but was walking within weeks of taking cannabis as a last resort.

The 32-year-old, who has been diagnosed with fibromyalgia, has been taking cannabis illegally, but following a change in the law has now been given a three-month prescription from a private pain specialist.

Miss Barton, from Warrington, said she would have to return to buying it illegally if she couldn’t get an NHS prescription next time, adding: ‘Who can afford £10,000 a year? It’s an unfair system.’