Cannabis: Pharmacists against the use of the plant for medicinal purposes

"There is no scientific evidence to prove the efficacy and safety of its use," said the Order of Pharmacists.

The Order of Pharmacists on Tuesday expressed concern about the use of the cannabis plant for medicinal purposes, "since there is no scientific evidence to prove the efficacy and safety of its use."

This position, which the Lusa agency had access to, was also presented today in Parliament by the working group of the Order of Pharmacists on the use of the cannabis plant for therapeutic purposes.

For this working group, composed of four experts, "there is no robust scientific evidence regarding the benefit-risk ratio of the use of the cannabis plant" for medicinal purposes. "

"On the other hand, there is strong evidence that there are safety concerns and toxicological potential," according to the opinion of the Order of Pharmacists.

The presentation of the arguments of pharmacists, presented today in the working group of the parliamentary committee of Health on the use of cannabis for medicinal purposes, under the BE and PAN bills, fell to Félix Carvalho, for whom "there is no evidence that proves the efficacy and safety of its use ".

Félix Carvalho, a professor at the Faculty of Pharmacy of the University of Porto, recalled that "there are already medicines, whose active substances are cannabinoids, authorized in the market for therapeutic indications with clinical evidence that supports a positive benefit-risk ratio in terms of efficacy and safety".

The opinion of the Pharmacists' Order indicates that "there is no robust scientific evidence regarding the benefit-risk ratio of the use of Cannabis sativa L. for medicinal purposes."

On the other hand, the document continues, "there is strong evidence that there are safety problems and toxicological potential."

"In view of the existence of cannabinoid medicines that meet the current therapeutic needs", this working group expresses its concern regarding the use of the plant for medicinal purposes.

This is because "there is no scientific evidence to prove the efficacy and safety of its use, in the model in which it is intended to legislate, nor does it present added value compared to the drugs already approved."

In the opinion, experts point out that in Portugal there is a standard medicinal product THC (tetrahydrocannabinol, the main psychoactive substance in cannabis plants) and CBD (cannabidiol, one of the cannabinoid chemicals found in Cannabis sativa), indicated "in the improvement of the symptoms related to muscle stiffness (spasticity) in multiple sclerosis, refractory to other first-line medications. "

"In situations considered clinically appropriate, this medicine may be used on an off-label basis, whenever there is evidence to support this indication," the experts say.

The opinion also indicates that, in relation to the use of medicines not marketed in Portugal, there are legal mechanisms that allow them to be accessed in Portugal, namely through Special Use Authorization (UAL)."