Aims: Cannabis use has recently increased within Australia and its medicinal use has been legalised in 20161. Little is known about oncology patients’ perceptions and willingness to engage with doctors about cannabis. Our aim was to characterise the perceptions and practices of adult oncology patients towards cannabis use within Sydney, Australia. We hypothesised a high interest and perceived therapeutic benefits among oncology patients but hesitancy in approaching clinicians for cannabis.
Methods: Patients from a metropolitan teaching hospital; St Vincent’s Hospital, Sydney, Australia were recruited via consecutive sampling from medical oncology, radiation oncology and haematology outpatient clinics using anonymous paper-based questionnaires between November 2020 and November 2021. Cannabis users were defined as respondents who reported cannabis use daily, weekly, fortnightly, monthly OR have used cannabis in the last month.
Results: Out of 272 respondents (84% response rate), 60% were greater than 60 years of age; 56% identified as male; and 57% had completed a university degree or above. 60% selected cure as the aim for their cancer treatment and 38% reported having metastatic disease. The principal source of information about cannabis was the internet and media (35%). 15% of respondents acquired information from their doctors. Some respondents reported life prolongation (30%) and cancer cure (28%) as their reasons for cannabis use or interests. Among the self-identified cannabis users (n = 32, 12%) (reported having used cannabis in the last month or at least monthly), the most common reason for cannabis use was to improve mental capacity or resilience (56%). The majority of cannabis users perceived cannabis use as natural (97%) and safe (90%), and that it did not interfere with cancer treatments (63%). 44% of the reported cannabis users did not inform their oncologists of their use. Among non-cannabis users (n = 240, 88%), 73% were interested in cannabis use. The primary reported reasons for interest were to improve side effects of cancer treatments (76%) and to alleviate cancer symptom burden (71%). 29% of non-cannabis users did not feel comfortable asking their oncologist about cannabis use.
Conclusion: There seems to be significant interests in cannabis use for oncology treatment and symptom management among the adult oncology population. Some patients may seek information about cannabis via the internet and media rather than their health professional. Treating health professionals need to be proactive in having discussions regarding cannabis use with their patients to avoid misinformation, ensure safety and improve care delivery.