Title : Cannabinoid association with opioids in Cancer-related pain management therapy
Abstract:
Background: Cancer is the disease that causes the highest numbers of morbidity and mortality in the world, being one of the main symptoms chronic pain. Moderate and severe pain is usually treated with opioids, whose efficacy is proven but with several risks for the patient such as tolerance, dependence and overdose. Medical cannabis appears as a new hope for these patients in pain management. This study aims to understand whether the concomitant use of cannabinoids and opioids allows a more effective management of pain and reduce opioid use in cancer patients. Methodology: This systematic review was done through a search in three databases (PubMed, Scopus and Web of Science) for published articles that included the concomitant use of cannabinoids and opioids for the treatment of pain in cancer patients. Systematic reviews and meta-analyses to avoid duplication of studies, studies in animals or other models and studies in which cannabinoids were used recreationally were excluded. The results were presented in a table indicating the results obtained, as well as the population under study. Results: 10 studies between 2011 and 2021 with a total of 4 963 participants were considered. The studies range from randomized controlled-trials, prospective surveys and a case study. Most studies have reflected benefits in pain control and reduced use of opioids, although they are not conclusive. Discussion: The limitation of this study review is mainly based on the low number of studies pointing, however, to indications of the positive effects of the use of cannabinoids as adjuvants in the treatment of cancer-related pain.
