A study involving hundreds of Pennsylvania medical cannabis patients indicates many experienced significant improvements in quality of life during the first three months.
Research led by Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine (PCOM) tracked close to 400 adults who hadn’t used medical marijuana previously and had one of the 24 qualifying conditions that allows access to cannabis medicines in Pennsylvania. The study evaluated short-term changes in health-related quality of life (HRQoL).
“This study, one of the largest to date, captured how their lives and health status changed after using these products,” said lead author of the study, Michelle R. Lent, PhD. “In the era of precision medicine, understanding which type of patient may benefit from which type of therapy is of high importance.”
Interviews were conducted with participants after three months. Among the findings:
- a 20% improvement in reported pain levels,
- a 20% increase in social functioning.
- a 15% improvement in emotional well-being.
Participants were an average age of 46 years and were predominantly female (66.4%). They were mostly taking cannabis medicines to treat anxiety disorders (61.9%) or severe chronic or intractable pain (53.6%). The largest gains in physical functioning and pain levels were observed in younger compared to older participants.
Interviews also occur at six, nine, and 12 months, but data beyond the first three months have not yet been analyzed to determine if the short-term gains are sustained over the first year of use.
In part of the report’s conclusion, the researchers stated:
“Ongoing surveillance of HRQoL in individuals with physical and mental health conditions can help to treat the ‘whole person’ and to capture any collateral impact of selected therapeutic approaches as treatment initiates and progresses. Results from this study can help patients, their caregivers, and their providers to make more informed and evidence-based decisions on whether to incorporate medical marijuana into their treatment regimens.”
The study has been published in the Journal of Cannabis Research.
The Pennsylvania Department of Health oversees the state’s Medical Marijuana Program, which was signed into law on April 17, 2016.
As at May this year, the program had:
- 441,083 active patient certifications
- 9,135 active carded caregivers
- 1,946 approved practitioners
- 181 operational dispensaries
- 32 operational grower/processors
Further information on Pennsylvania’s program can be found here.
