When France began its first large-scale experiment with medical marijuana, the expectation was that it could lead to legalisation. But three years on the experiment is ending with no clear path forward, leaving hundreds of patients who took part in the study in limbo.

In 2021, Nadine Attal was on the scientific committee that was putting in place France's first large-scale experiment with medical marijuana, recruiting patients, doctors and pharmacists to see how it could be prescribed and used in the health system.

Three years later, when it was becoming clear that the experiment would end without a legalisationof the use of medical marijuana, Attal had to break the news to her patients.

"I wanted them to receive the information from me, because I did not want them to learn it through the media," she said.

"So we sent them letters, to inform them. And they are extremely unhappy. They're extremely emotional. They are going to pharmacies, weeping, crying. Some say: 'What are we going to do?'"

Listen to an interview with Nathalie Attal in the Spotlight on France podcast, here:

The experiment recruited 3,200 patients across the country with disorders ranging from cancer, to epilepsy, to multiple sclerosis that could benefit from medical cannabis.

The 1,200 patients currently using medical marijuana in the experiment will have to stop.