What should doctors do if patients reveal they are smoking cannabis for medical reasons? How should doctors respond to requests for medications that contain cannabis extracts?
These are some of the questions NDARC director Professor Michael Farrell and colleagues have addressed in a new article published this week in the British Medical Journal (BMJ).
The article provides a summary of recent evidence on the effectiveness of medications containing cannabis plant extracts (or similar synthetic ingredients) in the treatment of nausea, the symptoms of multiple sclerosis, chronic pain and cancer pain.
The article includes recommendations for doctors on how to best respond to patients’ use of, or requests for, 'medicinal cannabis' or cannabis-related medications.
The BMJ has also featured the topic in its ‘Talk medicine’ podcast series – listen here.