“UK Medical Professionals Urged to Expand Knowledge of Medical Cannabis as Patient Demand Rises”
Thursday 23 October, 2025
London, UK – Thursday 23 October, 2025 — Seven years after the legalisation of medical cannabis in the UK, less than 1% of the approximate 100,000 doctors on the General Medical Council (GMC) Specialist Register have the necessary training to prescribe medical cannabis.
Despite the rapid growth of the UK’s medical cannabis market and increasing patient demand, public institutions have failed to keep up. Universities have not yet integrated cannabis-based products for medicinal use (CBPMs) into their medical curricula, and the NHS does not offer centralised guidance or training programs. Major health bodies have also remained largely silent on the clinical use of medical cannabis.
As a result, individual clinicians have taken it upon themselves to seek independent education, join peer networks, and drive change from within the system in order to better serve their patients.
According to global cannabis data specialists Prohibition Partners, nearly 80,000 patients in the UK will receive medical cannabis treatment in 2025, making it the second-largest medical cannabis market in Europe. This number is expected to rise to almost 190,000 by 2029, with an estimated market value of €619 million (£539 million).
However, the majority of patients currently access treatment through private clinics, as the number of medical cannabis prescriptions issued by the NHS remains extremely low, with estimates suggesting fewer than five prescriptions to date.
Expanding access to medical cannabis could also have wider economic benefits. A report from the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry (ABPI) highlights the potential for effective treatment to reduce long-term illness and help more people return to work.
While there are approximately 100,000 doctors on the GMC Specialist Register who are legally permitted to initiate a medical cannabis prescription, only 180 clinicians are currently doing so – less than 1%. Professor Mike Barnes, Chair of the Medical Cannabis Clinicians Society (MCCS) and a leading authority on medical cannabis, believes that the key barrier to increasing this number is the lack of education.
“We urgently need to train more clinicians in the science of cannabis medicine,” said Professor Barnes. “We are barely touching the surface of those who would benefit from medicinal cannabis. Many tens of thousands of people living with chronic anxiety, pain, sleep problems, epilepsy, and other conditions are being deprived of access, due to both the intransigence of the NHS and the lack of knowledge and education about the plant.”
In an effort to address this education gap, hundreds of healthcare professionals (HCPs) will gather in London next month (25th November 2025) for the Cannabis Health Symposium, which aims to drive clinical change for UK-based patients. Presented in partnership with Curaleaf Laboratories and the UK’s Medical Cannabis Clinicians Society (MCCS), the CPD-accredited educational event will provide UK healthcare professionals with expert-led, clinically grounded education on CBPMs to meet the growing patient demand for medical cannabis to treat a range of conditions.
Jonathan Hodgson, CEO at Curaleaf Laboratories, believes that expanding access to medical cannabis is crucial and hopes to help the hundreds of thousands of patients in the UK who will access these medicines in the coming years.
“In order for us as a medical community to adequately support patients, it’s vitally important that healthcare professionals (HCPs) have access to much-needed education on cannabis-based medicines, so they can help their patients through guiding access or prescribing directly,” Hodgson stated.
About Cannabis Health Symposium
Cannabis Health Symposium is designed to provide UK healthcare professionals with expert-led, clinically grounded education on (CBPMs). Tailored for those seeking evidence-led guidance, this forum offers practical insights and the confidence needed to safely and effectively integrate CBPMs into patient treatment protocols.
About Curaleaf Laboratories
Curaleaf Laboratories is the UK’s leading expert in the manufacture and distribution of EU-GMP medical cannabis as part of Curaleaf International, a subsidiary of Curaleaf Holdings, Inc., the largest cannabis company in the world. With over a decade of experience in unlicensed medicines (Specials), Curaleaf has heavily invested in its state-of-the-art UK manufacturing facility, positioning the company to deliver cannabis-based medicinal products (CBPMs) of the highest quality for specialists to prescribe to their patients.
About the Medical Cannabis Clinicians Society (MCCS)
The Medical Cannabis Clinicians Society is the UK’s independent, clinician-led organisation dedicated to supporting and educating healthcare professionals in the safe and ethical prescribing of cannabis-based medicines.
Media Enquiries
Mike Hoban
Prohibition Partners (C/O Cannabis Health)
michael@prohibitionpartners.com
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