Cannabis: From Illegal Street Drug to Miracle Cure?

From hemp seeds and shampoo to proteins and oil, cannabis products are gaining popularity as healthy and sustainable products. As cannabis products are becoming more mainstream, big names are now also entering the cannabis market. While Sephora is selling beauty products containing cannabinoids, Heineken-owned Lagunitas recently introduced a beer containing cannabis.  

Based on research conducted by Arcview Market Research and BDS Analytics, by 2027, worldwide spending on legal cannabis is expected to hit 57 billion dollars. While recreational use will take up 67%, medical cannabis is estimated to cover the remaining 33% of the total spending.

Medical use of Cannabis 

Medical cannabis is prescribed to patients receiving chemotherapy, as a treatment of nausea and vomiting. Besides that, medical cannabis is also used as a treatment for patients that suffer from chronic pain and spasticity and to improve the appetite of people with HIV or AIDS. At the moment, clinical trials are conducted for other medical conditions as well, such as the treatment of inflammation, seizures and mental disorders. 

Opponents of medical cannabis

The growing medical application of cannabis has also given rise to an increasing number of critics. They argue that there is limited scientific evidence that supports the medical claims of cannabis. That is why to date, the FDA has not approved the use of medical cannabis. The limited available evidence is due to a lack of large-scale clinical trials that might show the benefits of cannabis use in the aforementioned medical conditions. 

Another argument against the medical use of cannabis are the side-effects and risks. These side effects include: vomiting, dizziness, hallucinations and feeling tired. The risks include: addiction, cognition problems, schizophrenia and psychosis. However, the risk of cannabis use and psychiatric disorders remains debated. The same applies for psychosis, the relationship between cannabis use and psychosis is a complex one, factors such as genetic vulnerability, age and quantity and frequency of use appear to play a part. 

Countries that allow medical cannabis

An increasing number of countries are allowing the use of cannabis for medical applications. The following European countries already allow the use of medical cannabis: Germany, the Netherlands, Poland, Portuagal and the United Kingdom. Worldwide: Australia, Canada, Chile, Columbia, Israel, Peru, and Uruguay. In the United States, the use of medical cannabis is legalized in many states, but on a federal level is remains prohibited. 

Developments in the medical cannabis industry

As the global leader of the cannabis industry, Canada has 90 publicly listed cannabis companies with an estimated total market value of 31 $billion. Canada already legalized the use and production of medical cannabis in 2001, but is now the first G7 country to legalize recreational use of cannabis (as of 17th October 2018). This development has attracted a lot of attention to the Canadian cannabis industry. From the merger and acquisition frenzy of cannabis companies, tot the great number of cannabis start-ups and IPOs, such as Aurora (TSE:ACB), Cronos (NASDAQ:CRON) and Canopy Growth Corp (NYSE:CGC). The cannabis industry is booming!

Furthermore, experts already anticipated big pharma to acquire Canadian licensed cannabis producers, but these companies were often restricted by regulations in their own countries. Recently however, the first major pharmaceutical company, Sandoz Canada (an affiliate of Novartis AG), formed a strategic alliance with one of the largest licensed cannabis producers, Tilray (March 2018). This is really a milestone for the cannabis and medical industry. 

Tilray and Sandoz have made it their goal to educate and convince physicians that their medical cannabis products should be the choice, over other products on the market. Though Canadian pharmacies are not allowed to sell medical cannabis, future regulatory changes are anticipated. Sandoz would then become the wholesale distributor of medical cannabis products (produced by Tilray) to pharmacies and hospitals in Canada.

Other interesting developments are governments looking into reimbursing patients for several treatments with medical cannabis, as is the case in Germany. Also the first global cannabis investor conference will be held in the Netherlands (26th of September 2018). Clearly, all these developments are a sign of a changing attitude towards cannabis use; cannabis is becoming more mainstream. But will the cannabis revolution really have a great impact on the global healthcare industry? 

The following BBC Documentary gives a great inside into the world of medical cannabis: