13 Nov Cancer Patients May Be able to Manage Pain with Cannabis Instead of Opioids
Victoria Bethel
MedicalResearch.com Interview with:
Victoria Bethel, MSN
Department of Public Administration and Policy
University of Georgia, Athens
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study?
Response: From the same pool of commercially insured patients, we found that cannabis dispensary openings were associated with reduced opioid prescribing among patients with non-cancer pain.
For this study, we examined whether cannabis dispensary openings were also associated with reduced opioid prescribing among commercially insured patients who do have a cancer diagnosis.
Similar to patients without cancer, we estimated reductions in opioid prescribing after medical and recreational cannabis dispensaries open. These findings may suggest that patients who experience cancer pain are able to manage their pain with cannabis instead of requiring opioids, although we cannot directly observe substitution.
MedicalResearch.com: What should readers take away from your report?
Response: Cannabis legalization and access through dispensaries appears to reduce opioid utilization among commercially insured patients with cancer. Our results suggest that cannabis may be an effective treatment for cancer-related pain.
MedicalResearch.com: What recommendations do you have for future research as a results of this study?
Response: Research which can adequately assess the therapeutic benefits and potential negative side effects of cannabis use is imperative, although clinical research may be somewhat limited in scope while cannabis is federally scheduled.
MedicalResearch.com: Is there anything else you would like to add? Any disclosures?
Response: Again, we can’t directly observe substitution of opioids with cannabis. We also can’t rule out that physicians may alter their opioid prescribing practices after cannabis legalization. For example, a doctor may not feel comfortable co-prescribing cannabis and opioids. Furthermore, a patient may be more willing to disclose cannabis use to their physician after legalization.
Our research was funded by an NIH grant through NIDA.
Citation: Lozano-Rojas F, Bethel V, Gupta S, Steuart SR, Bradford WD, Abraham AJ. Cannabis Laws and Opioid Use Among Commercially Insured Patients With Cancer Diagnoses. JAMA Health Forum. 2025;6(10):e253512. doi:10.1001/jamahealthforum.2025.3512
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Last Updated on November 14, 2025 by Marie Benz MD FAAD
