FDA Approves Marijuana-Based Drug To Treat Seizures

Marijuana plant

Patients who have been suffering from frequent seizures as a result of two rare forms of epilepsy may soon be getting some relief after the FDA approved a new drug that is based off marijuana to help curb their symptoms. The new drug is called Epidiolex and was created by GW Pharmaceuticals. It's derived from cannabis but does not contain THC, which is the substance that produces the high that people get when using marijuana recreationally. Instead, the drug contains cannabidiols, which do not have the hallucinogenic properties of THC. 

The FDA announced the approval of the drug but warned that "this is not an approval of marijuana or all of its components." Instead, the FDA explained the agency approved "one specific CBD medication for a specific use" of treating people with Dravet and Lennox-Gastaut syndromes. 

“The difficult-to-control seizures that patients with Dravet syndrome and Lennox-Gastaut syndrome experience have a profound impact on these patients’ quality of life,” said Billy Dunn, M.D., director of the Division of Neurology Products in the FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research. “In addition to another important treatment option for Lennox-Gastaut patients, this first-ever approval of a drug specifically for Dravet patients will provide a significant and needed improvement in the therapeutic approach to caring for people with this condition.”

The product cannot go on sale yet because it is still classified as a Schedule I drug, but it is expected to be reclassified in a process that can take up to three months.

 Photo: Getty Images


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