An Open Campaign for Everyone

Patients, families, advocates, healthcare professionals, researchers, organisations and businesses all have a part to play in helping people understand cannabis-based prescription medicines (CBPMs) and the lives of the people who rely on them.

MCAW is an open campaign. It belongs to everyone, and there’s a place for anyone who wants to get involved and add something positive to the conversation.

It isn’t about one organisation, one group or one person’s voice.

It’s about all of us working together for patients.

A campaign with a story

MCAW has been bringing people together for several years.

The campaign began in 2020, when the UK medical cannabis community was still finding its voice. Patients and others got together to raise awareness, share their experiences and help more people understand what life with a medical cannabis prescription is really like.

Since then, MCAW has been a friendly space for patients, healthcare professionals, organisations, advocates and others to join the conversation.

That story matters.

It reminds us that MCAW has always been bigger than any one event, organisation or person. It grew because people who care about the same community and the same patients decided to get together.

A place for everyone

One of the best things about the medical cannabis community is how wonderfully varied it is.

There are patient-led groups doing incredible work.
There are clinics and healthcare professionals helping patients navigate treatment.
There are researchers working to improve our understanding of CBPMs.
There are organisations campaigning for change.
There are businesses supporting patients in different ways.
And there are thousands of individual patients whose lived experiences are an essential part of the conversation.

MCAW wants to make space for all of them.

Everyone brings something different, and nobody has to give up their own identity or independence to join in.

You can be part of MCAW while still being completely yourself.

MCAW is a shared banner to gather under. It doesn’t replace the organisations and communities that make this sector so great.

The idea behind MCAW is simple: where we share a goal, why not help each other get there?

Patient groups can introduce their work to new audiences.
Clinics can share useful educational information.
Researchers can help make science more accessible.
Organisations can highlight campaigns and initiatives.
Patients can share their stories and experiences.
And everyone can help amplify the voices of others.

When we shout about each other’s work, good things reach far more people.

Someone who discovers one part of the community through MCAW might go on to find another organisation, another resource, another patient story or another way to get involved.

When we help one another, everybody’s reach becomes a little wider.

We don’t have to agree on everything

The medical cannabis community is diverse, and that’s a good thing.

We won’t always agree.

Different organisations have different experiences, priorities and ideas about how things should change. That’s natural, and those differences can spark really important conversations.

But disagreeing doesn’t have to mean dividing.

We can disagree and still listen to one another.
We can have different approaches and still share a platform.
We can run separate organisations and still promote each other’s work.
And we can have different ideas about the future while recognising the things we have in common today.

Unity doesn’t mean everyone saying the same thing.

It means standing alongside one another when we can.

Let’s keep our eyes on what matters

There are real challenges facing patients.

Access.
Affordability.
Availability.
Education.
Stigma.
Understanding among healthcare professionals.
The quality and consistency of patient experiences.
Better evidence and better support.

These challenges are bigger than any one organisation, and they won’t be solved by working against each other.

Our community has so much knowledge, experience, passion and determination.

Imagine what we can do when we put all that energy into working together.

The patients we’re here for deserve that.

MCAW isn’t about deciding who’s right, who gets the credit or whose voice matters most.

It’s about giving more voices the chance to be heard.

Our theme for 2026

That’s why this year’s theme is:

Together for Patients

It’s an invitation.

To patient groups.
To clinics and healthcare professionals.
To researchers.
To charities and campaigners.
To businesses and organisations.
To advocates.
And to every patient who wants to share their experience.

You don’t have to agree with everyone.

You don’t have to belong to the same organisation.

You don’t have to approach things in the same way.

You just need to care about making things better for patients and be up for working together where we can.

MCAW has a history built on people coming together.