Abstract
The analgesic potential of Cannabis sativa L.—based medicinal cannabis products for treatment of cancer associated chronic pains has gained increased interest in recent years. To ensure a controlled distribution of these products and investigate their therapeutic potential, several countries have established so-called pilot trials. Many doctors, however, are hesitant to prescribe medicinal cannabis primarily due to lack of research evidence regarding the products’ efficacy, safety and thus questionable dosing guidelines. This review aims to elucidate clinical research supporting administration of medicinal cannabis in cancer patients for analgesic purposes. The cannabinoids’ effects on the endocannabinoid system (ECS) and its implication in pain regulation is included to illustrate the complexity related to this research field. Published clinical studies on medicinal cannabis primarily consist of observational studies and only one pilot randomized controlled trial (RCT), where more RCTs exist on the cannabis-based product, Sativex® (GW Pharma Ltd., Cambridge, UK). The studies indicate analgesic potential, however non-significantly, for most patients and with acceptable safety profile. Summarizing, high-quality RCTs are scarce in this research field, and the limitations of the observational studies complicates interpretation of clinical outcomes. Despite discrepancy among the studies, they do show indications for administration and dosing regimens providing analgesic effects for some cancer patients.
Reference84 articles.
1. Update on Cannabis and Cannabinoids for Cancer Pain;Chung;Curr. Opin. Anaesthesiol.,2020
2. Cyr, C., Davis, M.P., Schecter, D., and Daeninck, P. (2022). Cannabis and Cannabinoid-Based Medicines in Cancer Care: A Comprehensive Guide to Medical Management, Springer Nature.
3. Beyond the high: Mapping patterns of use and motives for use of cannabis as medicine;Kvamme;Nord. Stud. Alcohol Drugs,2021
4. Survey of Australians using cannabis for medical purposes;Swift;Harm Reduct. J.,2005
5. The impact of legalization of access to recreational Cannabis on Canadian medical users with Cancer;Hawley;BMC Health Serv. Res.,2020
Cited by
3 articles.
订阅此论文施引文献
订阅此论文施引文献,注册后可以免费订阅5篇论文的施引文献,订阅后可以查看论文全部施引文献