We continue to learn more about the effects on cannabis as a treatment for ailments and how they can better help folks recover when dealing with symptoms of ongoing medical issues. Last week, Gynecologic Oncology Reports published a small study and found that 71 percent of gynecological cancer patients reported self-improvement when consuming medical cannabis to treat at least one symptom. Fifteen percent of patients stopped using cannabis because of side effects.
The study included 45 patients; the average age of the participants was 60 years old. It was conducted by researchers from New York University’s Mother-of-Pearl Cancer Center, the State University of New York Downstate Health Sciences University and the New York University Grossman School of Medicine.
As for other notable findings, 56 percent of the patients used medical cannabis for pain, 47 percent for nausea and vomiting, 33 percent for anorexia and 27 percent for insomnia. More than 70 percent of patients in the study also reported improvement in nausea and vomiting, and 36 percent found that medical cannabis was efficient in relieving their pain.
Given the above findings, the study notes, “In this limited cohort of gynecologic oncology patients, medical marijuana was effective for the relief of nausea/vomiting, anorexia, and insomnia in a majority of patients but was less helpful for pain management.”
The study also looked into what specific cannabinoids patients were consuming to manage symptoms. Approximately 55 percent of participating patients were prescribed cannabis products with a THC:CBD ratio of 1:1. Inhaled and sublingual cannabis was prescribed for more than 70 percent of patients, and some were prescribed more than one. Researchers said this limited their “ability to comment on the effectiveness of certain THC:CBD ratios or supplements for certain symptoms.”
Researchers also noted that they “did not explicitly exclude patients who used recreational marijuana.”
As cannabis continues to make waves over the country and states continue their legalization efforts for medical and recreational use, studies looking at the medical efficacy of cannabis use are becoming more frequent. The findings of these smaller studies will hopefully open the door for more related, and broader, research.
