AbstractThe incidence of tuberculosis in the non‐indigenous Australian population is low. However, in this paper we report on three cases of cavitating disease, which seem to be associated with a common illicit drug habit namely smoking marijuana using a makeshift pipe or bong. There was a total of 34 positive contacts of these cases and among the contacts sharing a bong with an index case was associated with a sixfold risk of transmission (odds ratio 6.5, confidence interval 1.4–30.4, P = 0.016). When cavitating tuberculosis is detected in a young non‐indigenous native born Australian, marijuana use should be considered as a possible risk factor.