30 Jul, 2010 @ 17:58
1 min read
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Spain to allow medicinal cannabis use

By Nicola Cowell

A DRUG containing cannabis to treat MS sufferers has been made legal in Spain.

The tongue spray, Sativex, is proven to reduce muscle spasms in people who suffer from Multiple Sclerosis and whose condition does not respond to other pain killers.

British company GW Pharmaceuticals got the green light to distribute the drug in the UK last month, and have now been approved here with the help of Spanish partners Almirall.

Marketers now hope to get backing from other EU countries like France, Germany and Italy.

The Spanish Ministry of Health will now seek pricing approval for the drug, which is expected to be awarded towards the end of the year.

Health minister Trinidad Jimenez said the drug will be carefully prescribed and the health authority has ruled out the possibility of cannabis being used to treat other diseases like cancer.

Click here to read more News from The Olive Press.

Jon Clarke (Publisher & Editor)

Jon Clarke is a Londoner who worked at the Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday as an investigative journalist before moving to Spain in 2003 where he helped set up the Olive Press.

After studying Geography at Manchester University he fell in love with Spain during a two-year stint teaching English in Madrid.

On returning to London, he studied journalism and landed his first job at the weekly Informer newspaper in Teddington, covering hundreds of stories in areas including Hounslow, Richmond and Harrow.

This led on to work at the Sunday Telegraph, Sunday Mirror, Standard and even the Sun, before he landed his first full time job at the Daily Mail.

After a year on the Newsdesk he worked as a Showbiz correspondent covering mostly music, including the rise of the Spice Girls, the rivalry between Oasis and Blur and interviewed many famous musicians such as Joe Strummer and Ray Manzarak, as well as Peter Gabriel and Bjorn from Abba on his own private island.

After a year as the News Editor at the UK’s largest-selling magazine Now, he returned to work as an investigative journalist in Features at the Mail on Sunday.

As well as tracking down Jimi Hendrix’ sole living heir in Sweden, while there he also helped lead the initial investigation into Prince Andrew’s seedy links to Jeffrey Epstein during three trips to America.

He had dozens of exclusive stories, while his travel writing took him to Jamaica, Brazil and Belarus.

He is the author of three books; Costa Killer, Dining Secrets of Andalucia and My Search for Madeleine.

Contact jon@theolivepress.es

1 Comment

  1. This doesn’t make sense (surprise!) If this medicine eases the pain of M.S. Why should it not be used in other ailments?
    During chemotherapy, people have trouble eating. Cannabis famously causes the “munchies”. Perhaps people would tuck in after a spray or two. If pain relief is sought, take the example of Queen Victoria, who used it to ease childbirth.
    This stuff grows wild (if allowed to) so should be cheap as chips to produce. Politics trumps medicine every time though.
    Incidentally. The report dates from 2010. Wonder if this medicine ever saw the light of day?
    Anyone had any?

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