Medical Cannabis Improved Pain and Quality of Life for Endometriosis Patients Over 18 Months
A UK registry study of 63 endometriosis patients found medical cannabis improved pain scores, quality of life, anxiety, and sleep quality across 18 months, with about a quarter of patients experiencing mostly mild side effects.
Quick Facts
What This Study Found
Cannabis-based medicinal products were associated with significant improvements in all pain-specific measures from baseline to 18 months (p<.050). Quality of life (EQ-5D-5L) improved at all timepoints (p<.050). Anxiety and sleep quality also improved (p<.050). Clinically significant improvements: 11-37% minimal, 5-22% moderate, 0-11% substantial. Adverse events in 25.4% (16 patients), 62 events total.
Key Numbers
63 patients. 18-month follow-up. All pain PrOMs improved (p<.050). EQ-5D-5L improved at all timepoints. GAD-7 and SQS improved. BPI/VAS: 11-37% minimally significant, 5-22% moderate, 0-11% substantial improvements. 62 AEs in 16 patients (25.4%).
How They Did This
Case series from the UK Medical Cannabis Registry. 63 patients with endometriosis-associated chronic pain prescribed CBMPs. Patient-reported outcomes (BPI, VAS, EQ-5D-5L, GAD-7, SQS) collected at baseline, 1, 3, 6, 12, and 18 months. Repeated measures ANOVA assessed changes.
Why This Research Matters
Endometriosis affects 1 in 10 women and causes chronic pain that is often inadequately treated. This provides the first longitudinal evidence that medical cannabis may improve multiple dimensions of endometriosis burden — pain, quality of life, anxiety, and sleep.
The Bigger Picture
Endometriosis is chronically undertreated, and existing options (hormonal therapy, surgery) don't work for everyone. Medical cannabis could fill an important gap, especially given the multi-symptom improvement (pain, anxiety, sleep) that addresses the holistic burden of the disease.
What This Study Doesn't Tell Us
No control group — improvements could be natural fluctuation or placebo. Small sample. Self-selected patients in a registry (survivorship bias). UK-specific regulatory context. Cannot determine which specific CBMP formulations are most effective.
Questions This Raises
- ?Would a randomized controlled trial confirm these improvements?
- ?Which endometriosis patients respond best to medical cannabis?
- ?Can medical cannabis reduce the need for surgical intervention?
Trust & Context
- Key Stat:
- Evidence Grade:
- Registry case series without control group — provides encouraging longitudinal data but cannot establish causation.
- Study Age:
- Published in 2026, the first longitudinal study of medical cannabis specifically for endometriosis pain.
- Original Title:
- A Longitudinal Assessment of Endometriosis Patients Prescribed Cannabis-Based Medicinal Products: A Case Series From the UK Medical Cannabis Registry.
- Published In:
- The Australian & New Zealand journal of obstetrics & gynaecology, 66(1), e70078 (2026)
- Authors:
- Getter, Sara, Erridge, Simon(22), Warner-Levy, John(2), Clarke, Evonne, McLachlan, Katy, Coomber, Ross, Barnes, Shelley, Darweish Medniuk, Alia, Guru, Rahul, Holden, Wendy, Sajad, Mohammed, Searle, Robert, Usmani, Azfer, Varma, Sanjay, Rucker, James J, Platt, Michael, Sodergren, Mikael H
- Database ID:
- RTHC-08275
Evidence Hierarchy
Frequently Asked Questions
Can medical cannabis help with endometriosis pain?
This UK registry study found improvements in pain, quality of life, anxiety, and sleep over 18 months in 63 patients. While promising, the lack of a control group means we can't be certain cannabis caused the improvement — randomized trials are needed.
What side effects did endometriosis patients experience?
About 25% of patients reported adverse events, but most were mild to moderate. The study reported 62 total adverse events among 16 patients over the 18-month period.
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Cite This Study
https://rethinkthc.com/research/RTHC-08275APA
Getter, Sara; Erridge, Simon; Warner-Levy, John; Clarke, Evonne; McLachlan, Katy; Coomber, Ross; Barnes, Shelley; Darweish Medniuk, Alia; Guru, Rahul; Holden, Wendy; Sajad, Mohammed; Searle, Robert; Usmani, Azfer; Varma, Sanjay; Rucker, James J; Platt, Michael; Sodergren, Mikael H. (2026). A Longitudinal Assessment of Endometriosis Patients Prescribed Cannabis-Based Medicinal Products: A Case Series From the UK Medical Cannabis Registry.. The Australian & New Zealand journal of obstetrics & gynaecology, 66(1), e70078. https://doi.org/10.1111/ajo.70078
MLA
Getter, Sara, et al. "A Longitudinal Assessment of Endometriosis Patients Prescribed Cannabis-Based Medicinal Products: A Case Series From the UK Medical Cannabis Registry.." The Australian & New Zealand journal of obstetrics & gynaecology, 2026. https://doi.org/10.1111/ajo.70078
RethinkTHC
RethinkTHC Research Database. "A Longitudinal Assessment of Endometriosis Patients Prescrib..." RTHC-08275. Retrieved from https://rethinkthc.com/research/getter-2026-a-longitudinal-assessment-of
Access the Original Study
Study data sourced from PubMed, a service of the U.S. National Library of Medicine, National Institutes of Health.
This study breakdown was produced by the RethinkTHC research team. We analyze and report published research findings without making health recommendations. All interpretations are based solely on the published abstract and study data.