Australia’s Office of Drug Control has granted a medical cannabis cultivation license to AusCann – believed to be the first license issued in Western Australia, Perth Now reports. The company, led by former federal Liberal Member of Parliament Mal Washer, will partner with Canada’s Canopy Growth Corporation to import medical cannabis from Chile until their cultivation facility is online.
Elaine Darby, Auscann managing director, said there would be a focus on educating physicians about the potential therapeutic uses of medical cannabis.
“We’re not saying it is suitable for all patients but there is good evidence about the use of cannabinoid medicines for indications such as chronic pain,” Darby said in the report. “There are a considerable number of people who could benefit from a treatment where the side effects are quite low.”
Australian Medical Association Western Australia president Andrew Miller indicated he was skeptical about the demand for medical cannabis because he believes only a small number of patients would find benefit from it.
“People have to understand that it’s not cannabis, it doesn’t have the THC that gives people a high,” Dr Miller said. “We’re not prudes, we’re just scientists.”
Daniel Schecter, a Canadian medical cannabis expert, will be giving an educational talk on medical cannabis at the University of Western Australia Club later this month.
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