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- Title
Cancer Patients' Experiences with and Perspectives on the Medicinal Cannabis "High".
- Authors
Tung, Stephanie C.; Nayak, Manan M.; Chai, Peter R.; Tulsky, James; Sannes, Timothy S.; Yusufov, Miryam; Braun, Ilana M.
- Abstract
Background: Patients with cancer employ medicinal cannabis for poly-symptom management and as cancer-directed therapy. Little is known about their perspectives on the medicinal cannabis "high." Methods: Qualitative interviews across eight states with medicinal cannabis users with physician-verified cancer diagnoses (n = 24). Results: Every participant referenced and 15 spoke in depth about the medicinal cannabis "high." Antitheticals characterized it: sleepiness versus heightened attention; calm versus "agitation." The intensity of the "high" served as a proxy metric by which participant's judged medicinal cannabis' cancer-directed therapy and symptom management efficacies. Overall, however, study participants viewed the "high" as a barrier to medicinal cannabis use and worked to avoid experiencing for prolonged periods. Conclusions: The "high" is central to the manner with which patients with cancer experience medicinal cannabis. Clinicians should be aware that patients may struggle to fine-tune medicinal cannabis dosing in the setting of the "high," and this challenge should be included in clinical discussions regarding oncological medicinal cannabis use.
- Subjects
CANCER patient psychology; INTERVIEWING; EXPERIENCE; PATIENTS' attitudes; QUALITATIVE research; MEDICAL marijuana; DESCRIPTIVE statistics; ALTERNATIVE medicine; CANCER patient medical care
- Publication
Journal of Palliative Medicine, 2022, Vol 25, Issue 9, p1418
- ISSN
1096-6218
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.1089/jpm.2022.0119