GWP GW Pharm.

RNS Number:4431I
GW Pharmaceuticals PLC
14 August 2001


                                           14 August 2001
                            
                 GW Pharmaceuticals plc
                 ("GW or "the Company")
                            
                GW PHARMACEUTICALS STARTS
           MEDICINAL CANNABIS TRIALS IN CANADA

GW   Pharmaceuticals  plc,  the  company   developing   a
portfolio   of   prescription  medicines   derived   from
cannabis, is commencing clinical trials in Canada.   This
is  the first trial undertaken outside the United Kingdom
by  GW, and is believed to be the only trial of its  kind
in North America.

The start of this first trial in Canada follows the grant
to  GW  earlier this year of an Investigational New  Drug
(IND)   by   Health   Canada,  the  Canadian   regulatory
authority.  The Phase Two trial, in which  patients  will
take  cannabis-extract by means of a sub-lingual  (under-
the-tongue)  spray,  will include sufferers  of  Multiple
Sclerosis, Spinal Cord Injury and other forms of  chronic
pain,  and  will be under the supervision  of  Dr  Daniel
DeForge,  of The Rehabilitation Centre, Ottawa  Hospital.
The  trial will be randomised and double-blind - that is,
neither  doctors nor patients will know whether  drug  or
inactive placebo is being taken.

In  addition to providing useful data on GW's  non-smoked
cannabis-based medicines, the Canadian trial will provide
GW  with a platform from which to expand further research
in Canada.

The  commencement of trials in North America follows  the
rapid  progress of GW's European programme.  Following  a
series  of  Phase Two trials involving 75  patients  that
have  been underway in the UK since May 2000, GW  started
its   first  Phase  Three  clinical  trial  in   Multiple
Sclerosis  in the UK in May 2001.  Recruitment  for  this
trial is now well underway.

Dr   Geoffrey  Guy,  GW's  Executive  Chairman,  will  be
providing a progress report on the company's UK Phase Two
trials  in  a keynote speech at the American  Academy  of
Pain  Management in early September.  GW  has  previously
noted  that patients in these trials are clearly  gaining
benefit  with  clinically significant improvements  in  a
range   of  symptoms,  including  pain,  muscle   spasms,
spasticity, bladder related symptoms, tremor and  overall
improvements in quality of life.

Canada  allows sufferers from chronic conditions such  as
Multiple Sclerosis and Arthritis to apply to possess  and
to  cultivate cannabis for medical purposes legally.  The
Canadian Medical Association and other organisations have
expressed  concern over this development in  that  smoked
cannabis  does  not  offer  physicians  and  patients   a
solution which fits the norms of medical practice.   GW's
programme is designed to provide an appropriate long term
solution  for Canadian patients by providing a non-smoked
prescription   medicine  which  harnesses   the   medical
benefits  of  cannabis and which is  of  proven  quality,
safety  and  efficacy  and  approved  as  a  prescription
medicine by Health Canada.


Dr  Geoffrey  Guy,  Chairman of GW Pharmaceuticals  said,
"The  start  of clinical trials in Canada  is  the  first
phase   of  our  international  trials  programme.    The
Canadian health authorities have recognised the potential
contribution of cannabis-based medicines in the treatment
of  many  different conditions. GW has been in discussion
with  Health  Canada for some time and  has  developed  a
close and positive working relationship over that period.
We remain committed to the view that a non-smoked form of
cannabis-medicine developed in full accordance  with  the
standards  of  modern  pharmaceuticals  offers  the  best
solution for patients."






Enquiries:

GW Pharmaceuticals plc            (14/08/01)020 7601 1000
Dr Geoffrey Guy, 
Executive Chairman              (Thereafter)01980 619 000
Justin Gover, Managing Director

Square Mile BSMG Worldwide                  020 7601 1000
Kevin Smith/Graham Herring

Website
www.gwpharm.com

Gw Pharmaceuticals (LSE:GWP)
Historical Stock Chart
From Jun 2024 to Jul 2024

Gw Pharmaceuticals (LSE:GWP)
Historical Stock Chart
From Jul 2023 to Jul 2024