The Medical Cannabis Clinicians Society (MCCS) has released a major new clinical reference text, Medical Cannabis Oils: Dosing and Guidance for Safe and Effective Treatment in Adults and Children.
The 189-page handbook, officially launched at the 2025 Cannabis Health Symposium, provides structured dosing tables for twelve commonly treated conditions, including chronic pain, epilepsy, autism, anxiety, headache and sleep disorders. It also sets out detailed recommendations for safe initiation, titration, monitoring, adverse-effect management, drug-interaction considerations and harm reduction.
The resource aims to address a significant gap in medical training, according to Dr Rowan Thompson, Resident Doctor and Vice Chair of the MCCS.
“The vast majority of resident doctors have received no teaching on the endocannabinoid system or medical cannabis at undergraduate or postgraduate level, and the prospect of starting work in this field can be daunting.
“This guide lays the foundations to build and develop a clinician’s prescribing experience with cannabis oils. Prescribing can go beyond simply choosing which oil to prescribe – building confidence in titration allows clinicians to optimise the potential of medical cannabis oils.”
The dosing tables and safety guidance draw on clinical expertise, prescribing experience and published, peer-reviewed evidence.
“This dosing handbook has been developed to address a clear and pressing need in clinical practice. Our foremost responsibility is to ensure safety while providing effective care, and that requires access to guidance that is both rigorous and practical,” said Dr Evan Cole Lewis, paediatric neurologist and Assistant Professor at the Hospital for Sick Children and the University of Toronto.
“The dosing strategies presented here are grounded in published evidence and shaped by the cumulative expertise of experienced clinicians who have treated thousands of patients across diverse indications.
We have designed this resource not only to provide clear protocols but also to serve as a teaching tool, equipping practitioners with the knowledge required to make informed decisions in complex situations.”
“This is a vital publication for every prescriber working with cannabis-based medicines,” said Professor Mike Barnes, Chair of the MCCS. “It builds directly on the Society’s prescriber training programme and reflects the experience of clinicians who have been prescribing safely and effectively for many years. Standardised guidance of this quality is essential for improving patient outcomes and supporting new prescribers across the UK.”
The handbook includes dosing tables for:
- ADHD
- Anxiety
- Autism
- Chronic pain
- Dystonia
- Epilepsy
- Headache
- Multiple sclerosis
- PTSD
- Sleep disorders
- Tics and Tourette syndrome
- Cannabis use disorder
A second publication – Medical Cannabis Flower (Flos), Minor Cannabinoids and Terpenes: Dosing and Guidance for Safe and Effective Treatment – is in development and expected in the coming months. It will provide detailed protocols for prescribing inhaled cannabis products.
The guide is available as a PDF download and Kindle eBook, with a print edition to follow. It is intended as a professional reference and not for patient self-use, and is is intended to complement existing clinical resources.
