(PharmaNewsWire.Com, June 14, 2018 ) The medical marijuana market is estimated to represent a global market of USD 13.88 billion by 2017 with growth rate of 18.3%. According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), Marijuana (also referred as cannabis) is the dried leaves of female flowers of hemp plant which contain psychoactive properties. Delta- 9- tetrahydrocannabinol (Delta-9-THC) is the important psychoactive ingredient, the most abundant cannabinoid presents in marijuana. The movement to accept cannabis as a medicine is propel by multiple factors, including inadequate relief of current available treatment approaches for number of chronic disease conditions such as Crohn's disease, multiple Sclerosis, cancer, Alzheimer's disease, and chronic pain. Such conditions are frequently cited by the proponents of marijuana i.e. cannabis for medical use. The market for medical marijuana is primarily driven by the growing application of marijuana in mentioned medical conditions.
Furthermore, large number of companies are increasingly investing in this market to capture significant revenue share. For example, Australia based MMJ PhytoTech Limited is considered to be the pioneer in the development of medical cannabis for international market, under regulated medical cannabis laws. The company is the first medical grade cannabis (MGC) company to list on the ASX. PhytoTech is primarily focused on the research and development activities on MGC therapeutics to be used in various medical applications. The company is aimed to become a leader in commercialization of cannabinoids based therapeutic products. Such initiatives would in turn help this market to establish healthy platform, hence drives the market growth. However, low penetration of marijuana for medical application in some developed as well as developing countries hamper the market growth.
The market is categorized as Migraine, Arthritis, Cancer, Chronic Pain, and Others. Chronic pain segment achieved largest share of the total medical marijuana market, captured 35.26% share of the market. The use of pain medication is rapidly increasing, imposing a major burden on the healthcare system. The use of medical marijuana is reported to significantly alleviate pain symptoms. Its application in cancer and arthritis is also considered to be growing in near future due to advancements and increasing awareness among patient population.
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