Ashare Rebecca L, Turay Esther, Worster Brooke, Wetherill Reagan R, Bidwell L Cinnamon, Doucette Abigail, Meghani Salimah H
Department of Psychiatry, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania.
Department of Psychology, University at Buffalo.
Cannabis. 2023 Jul 5;6(2):1-12. doi: 10.26828/cannabis/2023/000151. eCollection 2023.
Despite increased rates of cannabis use among patients with cancer, there are gaps in our understanding of barriers to accessing cannabis. Social determinants of health (SDoH) are associated with access to healthcare, but few studies have evaluated how SDoH relate to cannabis access and use among cancer patients. We examined whether access to and modes of cannabis use differed across indicators of SDoH among patients receiving treatment from a large National Cancer Institute (NCI) designated cancer center. This anonymous cross-sectional survey was developed in collaboration with the NCI Cannabis Supplement consortium, which funded 12 supplements to NCI Center Core Grants across the United States. We evaluated the association of race, gender, income, and age with mode of cannabis use, source of obtaining cannabis, what influences their purchase, and medical cannabis certification status. Overall, 1,053 patients receiving treatment for cancer in Pennsylvania completed the survey and 352 (33.4%) reported using cannabis since their cancer diagnosis. Patients who identified as Black/African-American were less likely to have medical cannabis certifications (=0.04). Males and Black/African-Americans were more likely to report smoking cannabis (vs other forms, s<0.01) and to purchase cannabis from an unlicensed dealer/seller (<0.01). Lower-income patients were more likely to be influenced by price and ease of access (s<0.05). Although cannabis users were younger than non-users, age was not associated with any outcomes. The current data shed light on how critical drivers of health disparities (such as race, gender, and income) are associated with where patients with cancer obtain cannabis, what forms they use, and what may influence their purchase decisions.
尽管癌症患者使用大麻的比例有所上升，但我们对获取大麻的障碍的理解仍存在差距。健康的社会决定因素（SDoH）与获得医疗保健的机会相关，但很少有研究评估SDoH与癌症患者获取和使用大麻之间的关系。我们研究了在一家大型国立癌症研究所（NCI）指定的癌症中心接受治疗的患者中，不同SDoH指标下大麻的获取途径和使用方式是否存在差异。这项匿名横断面调查是与NCI大麻补充剂联盟合作开展的，该联盟为美国各地NCI中心核心资助项目的12项补充剂提供了资金。我们评估了种族、性别、收入和年龄与大麻使用方式、获取大麻的来源、影响其购买的因素以及医用大麻认证状态之间的关联。总体而言，宾夕法尼亚州1053名接受癌症治疗的患者完成了调查，352名（33.4%）报告自癌症诊断以来使用过大麻。自我认定为黑人/非裔美国人的患者获得医用大麻认证的可能性较小（=0.04）。男性和黑人/非裔美国人更有可能报告吸食大麻（与其他形式相比，s<0.01），并从不法经销商/卖家处购买大麻（<0.01）。低收入患者更容易受到价格和获取便利性的影响（s<0.05）。尽管大麻使用者比非使用者年轻，但年龄与任何结果均无关联。目前的数据揭示了健康差异的关键驱动因素（如种族、性别和收入）如何与癌症患者获取大麻的地点、使用的形式以及可能影响其购买决策的因素相关联。
