Legal cannabis has opened Pandora’s box, says top medic

THE introduction of medicinal cannabis has “opened a Pandora’s box”, with patients believing the drug can cure multiple conditions, the chief medical officer has said.

Dame Sally Davies told MPS that despite being recently legalised for medical use, there is currently insufficient evidence to prove the products are both effective and safe.

She expressed concerns about the suitability of the drugs for some patients, warning that until widespread trials had been completed medicinal cannabis should only be prescribed as a “last resort”.

Her comments follow a change in the law last November which removed the products from Schedule 1 of the Misuse of Drugs Regulations, which had banned their use in all circumstances.

The move came after the high-profile campaign by supporters of Alfie Dingley, a young boy who had been forced to travel to Holland to receive cannabis oil prescriptions to treat his severe epilepsy. The ban had also prevented any clinical trials taking place, without which medicinal cannabis products cannot formally be licensed.

It means doctors who prescribe the products enjoy less legal protection if something goes wrong. Last week The Daily Telegraph reported a widespread refusal to prescribe the drug by NHS doctors, despite the change to the law.

Dame Sally told the health and social care select committee that while she “totally understands the desperation” of parents of children with conditions such as severe epilepsy, many doctors were reluctant to hand out medicinal cannabis until evidence from thorough clinical trials emerged.

“I think we have opened a Pandora’s box and there is a belief that it works for many conditions,” she said, adding: “I do have concerns about safety.”

She went on: “THC (Tetrahydrocannabinol) we know has an impact on the brain and causes depression, schizophrenia, brain development problems in young and adolescents. If a pregnant mother was taking it I’d be very worried.”