MCAW:
Medical Cannabis Awareness Week
What is MCAW?
From 1 to 7 November, patients, carers, families and supporters across the UK speak up about medical cannabis. No one owns the week. It is run by the community, for the community, and anyone can take part.
Medical Cannabis Awareness Week, often shortened to MCAW, is a yearly week of events, stories and conversations about cannabis as a medicine. It starts on 1 November. That date matters. On 1 November 2018, medical cannabis became legal to prescribe in the UK.
The week was first started in 2020, patients shared their stories, doctors and advocates joined online panels, and people across the UK were asked to talk about medical cannabis with friends and family.
In 2026, the week marks eight years since medical cannabis became legal to prescribe, it runs from 1 to 7 November as it does every year. We at the United Patients Alliance are Helping to carry on this tradition and encourage all to join in, whether thats by joining our events or throwing your own. MCAW is for everyone!
MCAW has always been bigger than any one organisation. It grew because patients wanted it and because people gave their time for free. When the group that started it closed, the week did not close with it. That tells you who it really belongs to.
Nobody needs permission to take part. You do not need to sign up to anyone, pay a fee or use a set logo. A patient talking to their GP, a family sharing a story online, a clinic holding an open day, a local group meeting in a cafe: all of these are Medical Cannabis Awareness Week.
Our plan for
MCAW
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“Why I Became a Patient”
The week opens with the people at the heart of the campaign: patients.
Topics:
Life before medical cannabis
Discovering cannabis as medicine
Getting a prescription
What has changed
The cost of treatment
NHS vs private access
Stigma and discrimination
What patients still need
Format: 90-minute live patient panel + audience Q&A.
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“Eight Years On: What Is Medical Cannabis Access Actually Like?”
Bring together representatives from UK medical cannabis clinics to discuss the reality of accessing treatment.
Topics:
Who is accessing medical cannabis?
Cost of treatment
Patient support
Access barriers
NHS access
Affordability
Patient education
What needs to change?
Special segment: Ask the Clinic — questions submitted by patients.
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“Prescribing Cannabis: What Does the Medical Profession Really Think?”
A discussion with prescribing doctors and other healthcare professionals.
Topics:
Evidence vs patient experience
Why some doctors remain cautious
THC and CBD
Side effects and risks
Mental health
Dependency
Drug interactions
Medical education
The future of prescribing
Key question:
If medical cannabis is legal, why are so few NHS doctors prescribing it?
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“Patients Around the World — One Fight, Many Systems”
Connect UPA with patient activists from around the world.
Potential guests: UK, Germany, USA, Canada, Australia, Ireland, Netherlands, Portugal and beyond.
Compare:
Legal access
Prescription costs
Public healthcare
Home cultivation
Patient rights
Criminalisation
Remaining barriers
Special feature:
The Global Patient Declaration
A collaborative statement setting out the principles that patients around the world believe should underpin medical cannabis policy.
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Tell the story of UPA and the UK patient campaign.
The timeline:
UPA's beginnings
Patient activism
Parliamentary campaigning
Patients at Parliament
The Billy Caldwell case and 2018 law change
The reality after legalisation
Brighton Medicinal Cannabis Summit
UPA's campaigns today
Bring back some of the people who were involved in the early campaign.
The big question:
“Did we actually win?”
Then ask the next generation of activists:
“What are we fighting for now?”
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“Should Medical Cannabis Patients Be Allowed to Grow Their Own Medicine?”
A patient-rights and policy discussion around home cultivation.
Topics:
Why patients want to grow
Affordability
Patient autonomy
Experiences in other countries
Quality and safety
Possible regulatory models
Criminalisation of patients
What legislation could look like
Campaign moment:
UPA — GROW YOUR OWN CAMPAIGN
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“Where Do We Go From Here?”
The big finale.
Bring together patients, campaigners, doctors, clinics, researchers and patient organisations.
Ask each participant:
“What is the single biggest change patients need to see over the next five years?”
Then UPA presents its proposed:
UPA 2027–2030 CAMPAIGN AGENDA
Potential pillars:
1. NHS ACCESS
2. AFFORDABLE MEDICINE
3. PATIENT RIGHTS
4. GROW YOUR OWN
5. BETTER MEDICAL EDUCATION
6. PATIENT INVOLVEMENT IN POLICY
7. INDEPENDENT RESEARCH
8. ENDING PATIENT STIGMAFinish with all the week's speakers coming back together and the question:
“What are we going to do next?”
MCAW
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Nov 1st-7th
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MCAW 〰️ Nov 1st-7th 〰️
We Want You To Join In!
--Get involved
What can you do?
There are so many things you can do to celebrate MCAW!
You could:
Host your own event- Anyone that wants to join in the MCAW celebrations should feel more than welcome to. The UPA encourage you to hold a meeting, coffee shop meet up or host an online event. Make your own MCAW logos and materials or use ours for free! [linked here]
Post on social media - Share your story, post pics of your own events and MCAW celebrations, use hashtags such as #MCAW and #MCAW2026, share your own logo and give us a tag, We’d love to see what you’re upto
Donate- The UPA is entirely volunteer ran, however unfortunately it still takes money to do anything. You can donate to help towards the hosting of our MCAW events or even to just support our campaigns.
Volunteer with us - As mentioned, everyone in the UPA is a volunteer, we give our time because we believe in the good medical cannabis does. Do you feel passionate about medical cannabis? Have you got a skill you feel would be helpful towards our goal? We would love to hear from you
Tell us what you’re up to- We love hearing from the community, contact us below to tell us your plans. We would love to help promote as many MCAW activities as possible