“Scientists have developed a cannabis-based medicine which relieves chronic pain without any of the “high” normally associated with the drug.
They believe the discovery could pave the way for cannabis-based medication to become available by prescription within two years.
Much of the controversy surrounding the medicinal use of cannabis has centred on fears that it would be used solely for its mood-altering effects.
However, scientists at the University of Massachusetts in the United States say their discovery should help authorities to overcome these fears.
Dr Sumner Burstein and colleagues say early trials of the medication in animals and healthy patients have been promising.
The medication, called ajulemic acid or CT3, has been manufactured in laboratories.
It maximises the medicinal effects of tertrahydrocannabinol – the key ingredient of cannabis – without any of the mind-altering effects.
‘More effective’
In animal tests, this compound was found to be between 10 to 50 times more effective at reducing pain than tetrahydrocannabinol.
Those tests showed that ajulemic acid was very effective at preventing the joint damage associated with arthritis and relieving the muscle stiffness associated with multiple sclerosis.”