Kenilworth medical cannabis campaigner Hannah Deacon dies

A campaigner who fought for permission to treat her son’s epilepsy with cannabis has died aged 45, after being diagnosed with cancer.

Hannah Deacon’s son Alfie, from Kenilworth, Warwickshire, would have 150 seizures a week before he started taking medical cannabis.

In 2018, his family celebrated with other campaigners as the government legalised the use of the drug.

Ms Deacon’s website said: “We are heartbroken to share that Hannah Deacon died on Tuesday 6 May, surrounded by those who loved her, after a short and brutal illness.”

It added she was “remarkable, determined, tenacious, and fiercely compassionate”.

“Her fight to find treatment for her son Alfie’s rare and severe epilepsy led to a breakthrough that changed his life and ultimately changed the law.”

Nearly six weeks ago on Instagram, Ms Deacon said in order to focus fully on her health, she was stepping down as chair and trustee of Medcan Family Foundation, which works on behalf of families to access “life-saving cannabis derived medications”.

She said she was also temporarily stepping back from her responsibilities with Maple Tree Consultants, which describes itself as a group of UK medical cannabis experts, and the Medical Cannabis Clinicians Society.

Alfie became front and centre of campaigns for the use of cannabis oil when he was aged seven.

It came about when Ms Deacon petitioned the government in March 2018 after she found his condition improved when he was given a cannabis-based medication in the Netherlands, where it was legal.

In 2022, Ms Deacon said her son, then 10, had been free of seizures for two years since using medical cannabis.

The statement on her website said she transformed the lives of “thousands of patients and families, never stopping in her work to push for better access, better care, and a better understanding of medical cannabis”.

It added: “More than anything, Hannah’s most proud and important role was being a mum.”

The website also said the “devastating loss” to her partner, Drew, and children was “impossible to put into words”.