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GW's Epidiolex Approval Encouraging For Pharma-grade Cannabinoid Pipeline

 
• By Emily Hayes

Beyond Epidiolex for severe epilepsy, cannabinoid candidates are in development for a range of diseases, including acute pain, graft-versus-host disease, scleroderma, schizophrenia, pain and substance use disorder.

Powder of Cannabis (Drugs), Analysis of Cannabis in laboratory.

US FDA approval of GW Pharmaceuticals PLC' marijuana plant-derived product Epidiolex in rare epilepsy disorders sets a regulatory precedent and is encouraging for the large pipeline of cannabinoid candidates in development for various disorders.

The agency cleared Epidiolex (cannabidiol, or CBD) oral solution on June 25 for the treatment of Lennox-Gastaut syndrome (LGS) and Dravet syndrome (DS), noting that this is "the first FDA-approved drug that contains a purified drug substance derived from marijuana." (Also see "Gottlieb: Epidiolex Approval Covers One Specific Cannabidiol Medication, Not Marijuana" - Scrip, 25 June, 2018

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