RCPsych has published a position statement on cannabis-based medicinal products (CBMPs).
Adrian James, Registrar of the Royal College of Psychiatrists said: There is a paucity of high-quality evidence supporting the use of CBMPs for any medical indication, as is reflected in the current NICE guidance. For psychiatric conditions, evidence is particularly scarce and there is a pressing need for more high-quality research examining the efficacy of these substances for specific psychiatric indications.
We welcome evidence of the potential benefits of CBMPs but caution that most of it comes from small-scale studies and the low rate of use worldwide means that the side effect and risk profile is not adequately evidenced. To correct this and gather the evidence that patients and clinicians need and deserve, key organisations must act to reduce the barriers that exist to this research.