An Australian medicinal cannabis company has launched in the UK following a change in government law that allows specialist doctors to prescribe cannabis-based products for medicinal use (CBPM).
Medical cannabis
Althea will supply CBPM to UK prescribers through its partnership with global medicinal cannabis company Aphria. Althea expects to being supplying products from March 2019 and is hoping that the UK acts as a second distribution channel for its Australian grown and manufactured products.
UK patients can be prescribed cannabis-based medicinal products by specialist doctors on the General Medical Council (GMC) Specialist Register.
Clinical guidance on cannabis-based products for medicinal use is being produced by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) and is expected by October this year.
The NHS currently says that medicinal cannabis is likely to be recommended to patients suffering from rare, severe forms of epilepsy and adults with vomiting and nausea caused by chemotherapy.
Althea is also launching a medical education resource hub for healthcare providers called the Althea UK Concierge. The platform is designed to provide guidance to healthcare providers on how to access Althea UK products.
Althea CEO, Josh Fegan, said: “Althea’s mission is to facilitate the appropriate provision of cannabis-based products for medicinal use where it can improve patients’ lives. The UK Government’s positive regulatory change represents another major milestone in the advancement of medical cannabis around the world. We look forward to collaborating with UK health authorities and healthcare professionals (HCPs) to share our extensive experience in providing cannabis-based products for medicinal use to tackle unmet medical needs across a range of conditions and disease areas.”
Aphria President, Jakob Ripshtein, said: “We’re proud to be one of the first Licensed Producers to support patients in the UK with access to high-quality medicinal cannabis products following the recent legislation change through this extension of our strategic partnership with Althea.”