This year, Brazil reached the mark of 672 thousand patients treated with medicinal cannabis, a record number and 56% higher than last year. The data appears in the yearbook produced by Kaya Mind and released this Tuesday (26).
The segment generated R$853 million, a value that helps to measure its strength. Another fact mentioned by the report is that patients are spread across approximately 80% of municipalities.
According to Maria Eugenia Riscala, CEO of the company Kaya, which houses Kaya Mind, there are more than 2,180 medicinal cannabis products, a variety that covers different needs. “The expansion of medicinal cannabis is visible in Brazil, not just in numbers, but in the way medicine integrates these treatment options into the routine of patients across the country,” he says.
The amount reached this year exceeds last year’s figure of R$699 million by 22%. The projection is that revenue will reach R$1 billion in 2025.
In 2021, the amount was much lower, at R$144 million, rising to R$364 million the following year.
For the head of Intelligence and partner at Kaya, Thiago Cardoso, progress in the field of cannabis regulation, such as the Federal Supreme Court’s approval of the cultivation of the plant (https://agenciabrasil.ebc.com.br/justica/ noticia/2024-11/stj-autoriza-cultivo-de-cannabis-para-fins-medicinals) put Brazil in the spotlight. In total, this year, 413 foreign companies exported products to the country, which also meant diversification of items in this market.
“This advance allows more patients to find therapeutic solutions suited to their needs and positions Brazil as a competitive and innovative market on the global stage”, assesses Thiago.
Bottles with capsules and packaging of oils, sprays and topicals still do not stand out on the shelves due to obstacles related to legalization. This helps to explain why almost half of medicinal patients (47%) depend on importing the product they need and obtain with a doctor’s prescription. The rest use pharmacies (31%) and associations (22%), and these play a fundamental role for those who do not have the financial means to cover expenses.
Jonadabe Oliveira da Silva, vice-president of TO Ananda, an association in Tocantins that offers support to patients and families of patients who use medicinal cannabis, says that he sees even more conservative people understanding that it is something truly effective and abandoning prejudice .
“They are breaking [a visão preconceituosa ou de que é tabu] after seeing patients”, says Jonadab.
The organization completed two years, always maintaining the spirit of collaboration and collective sense. He says that the entity arose from the experience of the current president, who took a well-known, very strong painkiller for pain for a long time and decided to detox. She then discovered cannabis oil. “And then, she went looking for people who had some history with the oil”, explains Silva.
Currently, the association has the support of the Public Defender’s Office and the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation (Fiocruz) and, for next year, the expectation is that they will form partnerships with laboratories and private higher education institutions. The expansion of the entity has given Silva confidence, including, to change careers. “I work as a hairdresser, but I’m in transition, studying cultivation and the market.”