Individuals with a cannabis use disorder (CUD) have a 3 to 8 times higher risk of developing a “head and neck cancer” (HNC) when compared to non-cannabis users. These are among the findings of a new study released in JAMA Otolaryngology this week. Historically, these types of cancers have been associated to heavy tobacco and/or alcohol use. Given that many of the same carcinogens found in tobacco can be found in cannabis, this raised concerns about cannabis’s role in detected HNCs.
This study used patient data (deidentified), over a ten-year period comparing the occurrence of HNC in patients with a diagnosed CUD (N=116,076 patients) to those who did not use cannabis (N=3,985,286 patients) to arrive at relative risks factors. The authors (Gallagher, T. et.al.) found that when comparing non-users to those with a CUD, the risk of developing “any” HNC was 3.49 times greater in the CUD group. For location specific cancers in the CUD group, risk of oral cancer was 2.51 higher, oropharyngeal cancer (back of mouth and throat) was nearly 5 times higher, and laryngeal cancer (throat) was more than 8 times the risk, when compared to non-cannabis user group.
While the authors identify several potential relationships common to tobacco and cannabis use to adverse health outcomes, the call for more research to better understand this issue is clear.
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