The risk of oral cancer between people with hemp use disorder

A recent study by researchers at the University of California Medical School, San Diego, found that people with cannabis disorder (CUD) are more than three times more likely to develop oral cancer within five years compared to those without CUD. The study highlights the potential long -term health risks associated with problematic use of cannabis.

In 2022, 17.7 million people reported daily or almost daily use of hemp. Although the CUD requires a formal diagnosis and not all cannabis users develop the disorder, recent research shows that up to 3 in 10 cannabis users will develop CUD.

As hemp becomes widely available and socially acceptable, it is necessary to understand the potential health risks. While many believe that hemp is safer than other medicines, such as tobacco and alcohol, there are still many unknown about the effects of cannabis, especially how the drug affects the risk of cancer. The new study has tried to identify the relationship between CUD and oral cancer, for which smoking tobacco is known to be an important risk factor.

Cannabis tobacco contains many of the same carcinogenic compounds found on tobacco tobacco, which have experienced devastating effects on the oral epithelial tissue. These findings add to a growing set of elements that suggest that chronic or problematic use of hemp can contribute to the risk of cancer in tissues exposed to combustion products. “

Raphael Cuomo, Ph.D. Associate Professor in the Department of Anesthesiology at UC San Diego School of Medicine and a member of UC San Diego Moores Cancer Center

By analyzing the electronic health files of more than 45,000 patients, of whom 949 developed CUD, he found Cuomo:

• After adapting age, sex, body mass index and smoking, people were 325 % higher chance of contributing from oral cancer within five years compared to those without CUD.
• CUD smokers were 624 percent more likely to contract from oral cancer within five years compared to smokers without CUD.

Because the association between CUD and oral cancer remained even after controlling smoking and because the CUD was associated with a higher risk of oral cancer, even when the analysis was limited to smokers, researchers assume that there may be other factors. For example, THC, the active compound in hemp is known to have effects that destroy immunosuppression, which can contribute to the increased risk of cancer.

While more studies are needed to fully explain the association between cannabis and oral cancer, the results of the study have a direct impact on cancer control practices and public health messages. Specifically, the findings emphasize the need for further research on the long -term effects of cannabis use and the importance of integrating the awareness of oral health in treatment and advice on the use of substances.