Medical Marijuana Reduces Pain and Improves Quality of Life for Cancer Patients

Cancer patients who use medical marijuana experience less pain and an improved quality of life, according to Israeli researchers. The new study found that these patients were able to rely less on opioid painkillers and reported minimal side effects.

“I hope people pay attention to the results of this study and use cannabis when necessary for patients who need it,” said Dr. Alex Becker, professor and chair of the Department of Anesthesiology at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School in Newark.

Becker noted that many doctors are still hesitant to prescribe marijuana for chronic pain. “It’s difficult for physicians to use marijuana simply because of historical perspectives, and it’s still not legal at the federal level,” said Becker, who reviewed the study’s findings.

Most U.S. states and Washington, D.C. have legalized medical marijuana. However, since the federal government still considers it illegal, it has not been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and is not covered by government or private health insurance, Becker explained.

“Articles like this are important to convince lawmakers that there is something beneficial for patients, and we’re not using it for some strange reason—mainly due to propaganda that’s been around for years,” he said.

Pain, depression, anxiety, and insomnia all affect cancer patients undergoing treatment and can lead to poor outcomes, doctors say. “Traditionally, cancer-related pain is mainly treated with opioid analgesics, but most oncologists view opioid treatment as risky, so alternative therapies are needed,” said study author David Meiri, associate professor at the Technion – Israel Institute of Technology in Haifa.

Study Details: Medical Marijuana and Cancer Pain

In the study, Meiri’s team followed 324 cancer patients who used medical marijuana for six months. The researchers found that patients experienced a median reduction in pain symptoms of 20%. This means half of the patients had greater pain relief, while the other half had less.

Participants also reported other benefits. Anxiety levels dropped by an average of 22%, and depression severity decreased by 12%. At the same time, quality of life scores increased by 14%. Overall, about 60% of participants reported improvement in symptoms related to medical marijuana use.

After six months of using medical marijuana, nearly half of the participants stopped taking other pain medications, according to the researchers. “Medical cannabis was suggested as a possible remedy for loss of appetite, but most patients in this study still lost weight,” Meiri said. “Since a significant portion of patients had advanced cancer, weight loss is expected as the disease progresses.” He also noted that sexual function improved for most men but worsened for most women.

Becker said that most studies show medical marijuana improves patients’ quality of life. Since the results of this study were observed over six months, it’s hard to believe they are just a “placebo effect,” he added.

“From what we know, most studies show an improvement in quality of life,” Becker said, noting that marijuana may not prevent pain in chronic conditions but helps patients cope with it. “Let’s say you have chronic pain and you’re watching an interesting movie on TV—you don’t think about the pain for two hours, but when the movie ends, you feel it again,” he explained. “Cannabis has a similar effect. The pain may still be there, and the reduction may not be dramatic, but patients cope better. Quality of life definitely improves with cannabis use.”

However, for some patients, marijuana may not be the best choice for pain relief, especially those with mental health disorders, he said. The study was recently published in the journal Frontiers in Pain Research.

Legal Access to Medical Marijuana and Prescription Drug Use

When people have legal access to marijuana, they are less likely to use certain prescription drugs, according to a new study. In U.S. states where recreational marijuana is legal, there has been a significant decrease in the use of prescription medications for pain, depression, anxiety, sleep, psychosis, and seizures, researchers found.

“These results have important implications,” said study co-author Shyam Raman, a doctoral candidate at the Cornell University School of Public Policy in Ithaca, New York. “The reduction in medication use we found could lead to significant cost savings for state Medicaid programs. The findings also suggest the potential to reduce harm associated with dangerous side effects of some prescription drugs,” Raman said in a university press release.

For the study, researchers analyzed data from all states between 2011 and 2019, a period when the number of states allowing personal marijuana use increased.

Currently, recreational marijuana use is legal in 18 states plus Washington, D.C. Thirty-seven states plus Washington, D.C. have legalized medical marijuana.

Most previous research has focused on how medical marijuana affects prescription drug use or how legal recreational marijuana impacts opioid demand. This is one of the first studies to examine the effect of legal recreational marijuana on prescription drug use, the authors noted.

Despite the positive aspects of their findings, the researchers cautioned that marijuana use carries risks, citing several studies linking it to possible anxiety and psychosis, such as schizophrenia.

There is also a possibility that people using marijuana to treat health problems may visit their doctors less often, leading to gaps in primary care.

The study was published in the journal Health Economics.