LEICESTERSHIRE MAN HOPES CANNABIS-BASED DRUG WILL EASE AGONY OF MS

A man is paying hundreds of pounds for a cannabis-based drug to try
and ease the agonising pain caused by multiple sclerosis.

Andrew Cooper, from Ibstock, is about to begin taking the new drug,
Sativex, the first cannabis-based medicine licensed for use by MS sufferers.

However, the drug has not been approved by National Institute for
Health and Clinical Excellence (Nice) and is not routinely available
on the NHS in Leicestershire.

Mr Cooper, 48, said he is so desperate to alleviate the crippling
pain, which means he only gets three or four hours sleep a night, he
felt no option but to fork out for a private prescription for UKP465
for three bottles.

Specialists doctors at the Queen's Medical Centre in Nottingham, where
he has been treated for the past three months, suggested he try the
new drug, which is a mouth spray.

He said: "Anything that makes my life a little better is worth a
try.

"I was first diagnosed with MS nine years ago.

"Thanks to medication it wasn't too bad for the first year or two but
it has got worse and over the last 12 months it has affected everything.

"I am in constant pain and nothing really takes it
away."

Mr Cooper, a former fireman, said that in the past he has resorted to
smoking cannabis but could not cope with the side effects.

Sativex contains two chemical extracts derived from the cannabis
plant.

The drug is legal but is tightly controlled when Mr Cooper goes on
holiday abroad he will have to take documentation from the hospital
with him.He is unsure how long the bottles will last him.

Mr Cooper said: "It costs about UKP155 a bottle, but with a private
prescription you have to buy three at a time.

"If it doesn't work I will have wasted more than UKP400, but I am
willing to try anything to help ease the pain.

"This is a new drug so I am hoping it will be effective."

He believes the drug should be given on the NHS and added: "Getting
treatment for MS is a real lottery. It depends on your GP and your
hospital consultant some seem to know more than others.

"But most people with MS will go to the end of the earth to try and
relieve the pain."

Dr Peter Critchley, head of neurology at Leicester's hospitals, said:
"Sativex was only licensed very recently and still awaiting NICE approval.

"It hasn't been approved for use in Leicestershire so we can't
prescribe it at the moment.

"New drugs are considered by the therapeutic advisory service which
advises on whether drugs should be prescribed locally by studying
clinical evidence. Sativex is going through this process."

"It is used to the symptoms of multiple sclerosis. However, there are
other drugs which should be tried first which may be equally effective."

Officials at the primary care trusts, NHS Leicester City and NHS
Leicestershire County and Rutland, said they have received no requests
for funding for Sativex.

The MS Society said has received more than 60 inquiries from people
across England living with MS who are struggling to obtain Sativex.

Laura Weir, head of policy and campaigns, said: "The response from
people has been overwhelming and it's clear that accessing it is a
problem in many parts of the country.

"Sativex should be made available for all those who would benefit."