More than a million Britons buy cannabis illegally for treatment

A YouGov survey commissioned by Center for Medicinal Cannabis reveals that almost 3% of the UK adult population uses cannabis to treat one or more illnesses, across all age groups, social classes and genders.

The prospective study surveyed over 10,000 people representative of the UK adult population between October 23 and 30, 2019.

More than half use cannabis every day, and the average expenditure is £163 per month (€190). Patients spend over £2.6 billion a year (€3 billion) on cannabis on the black market.

The survey suggests that people with Huntington's disease are the most likely to take cannabis for their condition, with over two-fifths of patients admitting to taking it. Nearly a third of people with Parkinson's disease and a fifth of MS sufferers also claim to use the drug illegally to relieve their symptoms.

People suffering from depression make up the largest group self-medicating with cannabis, with over 650,000 people, who still represent less than one in ten people suffering from depression. 325,000 chronic pain sufferers form the second largest group of medical users, while 183,000 people use cannabis to treat insomnia.

Survey results published in the report from Center for Medicinal Cannabis, «Left Behind - The Scale of Illegal Cannabis Use for Medicinal Intent« an organization representing British cannabis manufacturers. It calls on the government to urgently review policies that prevent people from legally accessing cannabis-based medicines.

The report states that «The monetary, ethical and social cost to people using cannabis to relieve their symptoms is high and unnecessarily exposes them to significant personal risk. At present, there are a limited number of appropriately sized clinical trials evaluating the therapeutic value of cannabis-based medicines, reflected recently by calls from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence [NICE] and the National Institute for Health Research for targeted research.»

The United Kingdom legalized cannabis in 2018, But the conditions of access are so strict that only a few patients have been able to obtain prescriptions from the British health system. Wealthier patients can pay for a private prescription at €700 per prescription, and are more easily dispensed. Prescription-free cannabis patients face up to five years in prison, an unlimited fine or both.