Dec 5, Kuala Lumpur: Scientists and experts at Universiti Malaya have moved to form Malaysia’s first medical marijuana research hub after Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin clarified last month that use of medical marijuana is permissible.

The Universiti Malaya Medical Marijuana Research Consortium (UM-MMRC) said Malaysia has been one of the slowest countries to adopt medical marijuana. According to the group, Malaysia is far behind in its research efforts on medical marijuana, which it said has “far-reaching economic healthcare benefits”. Due to the “misinformed reputation” of marijuana as a recreational and addictive substance, leading to legislative restrictions, interest in marijuana-related research has been almost non-existent. “We intend to catch up with our ASEAN neighbours,” it said.

It is no secret that illegal transactions of both therapeutic (cannabinoid oil) and recreational marijuana have existed all across Southeast Asia despite strict laws, including capital punishment, in these countries. Such laws only increase contraband distribution that escapes tax implementation and this causes billions of dollars lost in collectable income for these countries. Along with this, there is a complete lack of regulatory and surveillance by national-based pharmaceutical agencies and this could lead to a high level of misuse.

UM-MMRC aims to deliver “a balanced perspective on the medical application of marijuana and the adverse effect of non-medical or recreational use.” It intends to work with the government and pharmaceutical industry to educate the nation on the use of medical marijuana. This strategy is expected to promote advancement in marijuana research in Malaysia and also pave the way for the nation to join the expanding global medical marijuana market which is estimated to reach USD 70.6 billion in 2028, with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 26.7%.

Thailand and Singapore have begun funding medical marijuana research and have approved the use of medical marijuana for treatment-resistant conditions such as Dravet syndrome, Lennox-Gastaut syndrome, patients on palliative care and pain management for rheumatoid arthritis patients. UM-MMRC will take the lead by fostering fundamental research to unravel other potential applications of medical marijuana, promoting a better understanding of the benefits and risks.

“The UM-MMRC research cluster will apply the scientific and medical findings by conducting clinical trials on our patients, in control and closely monitored settings,” it said. “This would enable UM to begin the process of designing therapeutics based on medical marijuana of the highest grade for multiple applications in medicine, both as research and commercial use, acquiring patents and creating a revolution in health economics that could challenge the market monopoly by the big pharmas.”

Dr Sharifah Zamiah Syed Abdul Kadir, Department of Pharmacology

Dr Ng Kee Seong, Department of Medicine

Prof Dr Sargunan Sockalingam, Department of Medicine