Dementia sufferers will trial a cannabis-based medicine that could ease symptoms The government allowed medicinal cannabis products to be legally prescribed in November 2018

Dementia sufferers could soon benefit from a cannabis-based treatment to help ease behavioural symptoms of the condition.

Alzeheimer’s Research UK is funding a £300,000 trial to investigate if the drug Sativez can help ease agitation and agression.

These symptoms affect around half of those with dementia, which is estimated to be 850,000 people in the country.

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Clinical trial

Sativex is a peppermint-flavoured mouth spray that contains a 1:1 ratios of two key cannaboids found in the cannabis plant, known widely as THC and CBD.

It is currently licensed in the UK for treatment of muscle stiffness experienced with people with multiple sclerosis, however is not licensed for treatment for other conditions.

Current treatments for behavioural and psychiatric symptoms of dementia are very limited Proffersor Dag Aarsland

Researchers at King’s College London will recruits volunteers between the ages of 55 and 90 with Alzeheimer’s who have symptoms of agitation or agression.

They’ll take the medication for four weeks after which the results of those taking Sativex will be compared to those who have taken a placebo.

Living with dementia

Lead researcher Proffersor Dag Aarsland said: “While people most often associate Alzheimer’s disease with memory problems, this is just one aspect of a complex condition that can affect people in different ways.

“Many people with Alzheimer’s can become agitated or aggressive, and this can pose difficulties for the person with the condition and those closest to them.

“Current treatments for behavioural and psychiatric symptoms of dementia are very limited, and we desperately need to develop alternatives.

“Doctors sometimes prescribe anti-psychotic medications, and while these drugs can have important benefits, these need to be weighed against the risk of very serious side effects.”