Medical Cannabis Associated With “Meaningful Improvements” In Patients’ Quality of Life
Nearly five dozen nations now permit some form of legal access to medical cannabis. Tens of thousands of peer-reviewed studies have focused on the medical benefits of cannabis, finding that it is an effective form of medicine. Legal medical cannabis is big business, too.
According to Persistence Market Research, “the global medical marijuana market is expected to grow from USD 33.1 Bn in 2025 to USD 83.1 Bn by 2032, registering a CAGR of 14.0% during the forecast period.”
A team of health researchers in Australia recently conducted a study examining medical cannabis’ impact on the health-related quality of life of patients who use it. Below is more information about the study via a news release from NORML:
Sydney, Australia: The use of physician-authorized medical cannabis products is associated with “statistically significant and clinically meaningful improvements” in patients’ health, according to observational study data published in the journal PLOS One.
Researchers assessed the efficacy of cannabis oil extracts containing standardized ratios of THC and CBD in more than 2,000 patients over one year. (Under Australian law, physicians may authorize cannabis products to patients unresponsive to conventional prescription treatments.)
Consistent with prior studies, patients reported sustained improvements following cannabis therapy.
“Statistically significant and clinically meaningful improvements were observed in HRQL [health-related quality of life], fatigue, pain, and sleep for people with chronic health conditions,” investigators concluded. “Similar improvements were found in pain outcomes for participants with chronic pain; sleep disturbance for participants with insomnia; depression scores for patients with depression; and anxiety scores in patients with anxiety. … The findings from this study contribute to the emerging evidence-base to inform decision making both in clinical practice and at policy level.”
Similarly designed studies involving patients enrolled in the United Kingdom’s medical marijuana access program have shown cannabis products to be safe and effective for those suffering from cancer-related pain, anxiety, fibromyalgia, inflammatory bowel disease, post-traumatic stress, depression, migraine, multiple sclerosis, osteoarthritis, hypermobility disorders, and inflammatory arthritis, among other conditions.
Full text of the study, “Improvements in health-related quality of life are maintained long-term in patients prescribed medicinal cannabis in Australia: The QUEST Initiative 12-month follow up observational study,” appears in PLOS One. Additional information about the therapeutic use of cannabis is available from NORML’s publication, Clinical Application for Cannabis and Cannabinoids.
