Medical Cannabis May Improve Quality of Life for Cancer Patients

Medical cannabis use in cancer patients was associated with improvements in mental health, sleep, appetite, and pain management. It also decreased nausea, vomiting, and use of other medications including opioids. Increased survival time and cognitive function improvements were also observed. Adverse effects were generally mild or moderate.

Critical review of PubMed, LILACS, Scopus, VHL, and Embase databases. Inclusion criteria: English, Spanish, or Portuguese; published through January 2025; full content available. 267 articles identified, 16 selected for final analysis. Both THC and CBD (full spectrum) products evaluated.

Cancer patients often face poor quality of life from both the disease and its treatment. If medical cannabis can meaningfully improve multiple symptoms simultaneously while reducing opioid dependence, it could become an important supportive care option.

Cancer supportive care is an area where medical cannabis shows the most consistent promise across multiple studies. The potential to reduce opioid use while improving several quality-of-life domains simultaneously makes it an attractive complementary approach, but the evidence base needs strengthening.

Only 4 of 16 studies were RCTs — most were lower-quality designs. Heterogeneous cannabis products, doses, and outcome measures. Potential interaction with chemotherapy noted but not fully characterized. Insufficient evidence for systematic review or meta-analysis.