A CANNABIS-BASED medicine has been approved for use for people living with multiple sclerosis (MS) in Scotland.
The Scottish Medicines Consortium approved the use of Sativex, which is the only drug in the UK licenced to treat the muscle stiffness and spasms – also known as spasticity – caused by MS.
It contains two chemicals from the cannabis plant called cannabinoids: tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and cannabidiol (CBD).
Sativex is a mouth spray that is used to treat moderate to severe spasticity in MS when other medicines haven’t worked.
Until today Sativex was approved for use on the NHS in England, Wales and Northern Ireland but not in Scotland, although a limited number of people have been able to access it through an individual patient treatment request process.
More than 15,000 people in Scotland live with MS, and today’s SMC decision means more eligible adults in Scotland will be able to benefit from the potentially life-changing effects of the drug.
Lillias Rapson, a 38-year-old from Thurso, Caithness, was diagnosed with MS ten years ago after experiencing symptoms since she was 13. She has been using Sativex since 2018.
She said: “It's a real worry removed from my mind, knowing I can keep my muscle spasms and therefore my pain levels down and under control while maintaining my functionality as much as possible and without using addictive opioids.
“It feels wonderful knowing other people with MS will be able to easily access Sativex on the NHS in Scotland from now on. No one should have to live a life struggling to manage muscle spasms and pain."
She said that getting a doctor to prescribe her the drug had not been an easy journey. Rapson lived with severe MS hugs, a type of neurological pain that affects the chest and abdomen, which could last for hours.
“I was prescribed Sativex by my neurologist, initially as a four-week trial, to ease muscle spasms,” she added. “He needed a lot of convincing as he seemed reluctant to prescribe it when it wasn’t approved for use on the NHS in Scotland.
“I’d get MS hugs that were so severe I'd struggle to breathe and be unable to do anything until the pain passed.
“The hugs would last anything from minutes to hours. I'd also struggle to walk due to tremors in my legs. I'd often nearly pass out from the intensity of the muscle spasms.
“I take eight sprays of Sativex a day. I’m able to live a life and work out without the severe intensity of MS pain. I still experience muscle spasms but they are now mostly controlled using Sativex, along with meditation, breathing exercises and listening to my body, resting when I need to."
Sativex only has a licence to treat spasticity but some people say it also helps with their other MS symptoms, including bladder problems, difficulty sleeping and tremor (uncontrolled shaking of the arm or leg).
While a number of drugs already exist to treat spasticity, many people with MS have told the MS Society they find these ineffective and they struggle to tolerate the side effects, which can include memory problems and depression.
Morna Simpkins, Director of MS Society Scotland, said: “We welcome the SMC’s decision to approve Sativex for use on the NHS in Scotland.
“MS is relentless, painful and disabling. Sativex has been proven to relieve muscle spasms and their associated pain, leading to increased mobility, better sleep patterns and an improved quality of life for the person living with MS and their family and loved ones.
“We will continue to work with the SMC, NHS Scotland, individual health boards and neurologists to ensure Sativex quickly becomes available to everyone throughout Scotland whose life could be significantly improved by taking it.”
