Right Or Wrong – Cancer Patients Use Cannabis More Than the General Public?

A new study shows that the rate of cannabis use among cancer patients in no way reflects the rate of use of the general population.

Only 9% of cancer patients use cannabis products, while 14% of the general population without a history of cancer use cannabis.

Study details

Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) conducted the study as part of the Massey Cancer Center Study Center. The study has since been published in the journal Cancer.

The study team was led by Dr. Bernard Fuemmeler headed. Bernard is assistant director of population science. He is also the associate director of the cancer prevention and control research program at the Massey Cancer Center, VCU.

The study was conducted to determine the levels of cannabis use among cancer patients and the general population with no history of cancer on their medical records.

In five years, between 2013 and 2018, the team collected data from over 19,000 people in the United States.

During the study, factors such as the age, sex, and race of the subjects were used to control the experiment. Although the researchers were aware of these factors, the usage rate of cancer patients did not increase over time, while that of the general population increased.

Dr. Bernard said in a press release that cancer patients pay more attention to their health and often analyze the pros and cons of substances like cannabis. Being diagnosed with cancer is a life changing moment and patients must decide whether the substance they are taking will improve or worsen their health.

Dr. Bernard added that prior to conducting the study, the team predicted that both groups would have similar cannabis use rates.

“The study describes how the use of cannabis by cancer patients has changed over the years,” said Sunny Jung Kim, Ph.D., study co-author and Harrison Fellow at the VCU Massey Cancer Center. Jung Kim also works as an Assistant Professor of Health Behavior and Policy in the Virginia Commonwealth University School of Medicine.

Cannabis use rates are higher in people with increased pain

Cancer patients are very careful about the type of medication they consume, be it traditional drugs or alternative drugs.

The study shows the prevalence of cannabis in people with severe pain. These people use cannabis to manage their pain regardless of their cancer history. Medical marijuana drugs help patients suffering from various medical conditions, but it is mainly used to treat the various types of pain that develop as a result of these medical conditions.

From the experiment, the researchers also observed that people with higher incomes, health insurance, and satisfactory mental health rarely use cannabis. Older people and women also had lower rates of cannabis use. White people also tend to give up cannabis drugs.

Growing cannabis reforms and social acceptance are still not enough to boost cannabis use among cancer patients

The published study shows that cancer patients are not moved by the increasing legalization of cannabis in the states of the country. If this were the case, the maximum level for cancer patients would rise above 9%, it could even be the same as for people with no history of cancer.

Over the years this observation has been made, despite the relaxed laws, cancer patients have not increased their consumption over time. The team expects cancer patients’ attitudes towards cannabis drugs to change in the next few months as more information is released about the perceived benefits and harms of the drugs for cancer patients.

Dr. Fuemmeler, who is also a professor of health behavior and policy at the VCU’s medical faculty, mentioned that marijuana use rates among cancer patients in the study were more or less unchanged between 2018.

The use of cannabis by the general public did not slow down over the duration of the study. Perhaps that’s because they didn’t face the difficulty of deciding whether or not cannabis had any more potent effects on their bodies. Unlike cancer patients, people without a medical record of cancer are not so attuned to their health.

Egidio Del Fabbro, MD, co-author of the study and professor of internal medicine at the VCU School of Medicine, advised all cancer patients to discuss the effects of marijuana drugs with their doctor before including them in their prescriptions. Egidio is the endowed chair for palliative medicine from Thomas, who also takes over the management of palliative medicine at the VCU Massey Cancer Center.

He added that with the nationwide approved cannabis policy, cancer patients will be asking questions about the pros and cons of marijuana.

“Although we don’t have all the expected answers, we’ll be here to listen,” said Egidio. He also promised that the exact evidence available would be provided to all patients.

The study’s authors stressed that the study is insufficient to answer the expected questions, hence the need for deeper exploration of the therapeutic benefits of cannabis in treating cancer. This way, doctors will be better equipped with information to make better decisions and make calls.

Limits of the Study

Some of the cancer diagnoses were self-reported, and the researchers had limited information to work with based on the cancer patients’ PATH dataset. Basic information such as cancer type and stage or relapse and prescribed treatments were not available.

Should this type of study be carried out again in the future, the trend in cannabis use among cannabis survivors could be better identified if all the necessary information is provided.

last words

There is no data to show that cannabis is more effective than common medicines in treating symptoms of cancer or other symptoms that it is often treated with.

There are different types of cannabis, all with different potency levels, it is too early to say which are best for treating cancer and which are harmful.

Patients must always consult their doctor before using any medical marijuana drug.

The authors of this study recommend that more of these studies be conducted to monitor cannabis use by cancer survivors as well as the general public with no history of cancer.

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