An open-label extension study to investigate the long-term safety and tolerability of THCCBD oromucosal spray and oromucosal THC spray in patients with terminal cancer-related pain refractory to strong opioid analgesics.
Chronic pain in patients with advanced cancer poses a serious clinical challenge. The Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC)cannabidiol (CBD) oromucosal spray (U.S. Adopted Name, nabiximols Sativex(®)) is a novel cannabinoid formulation currently undergoing investigation as an adjuvant therapy for this treatment group. This follow-up study investigated the long-term safety and tolerability of THCCBD spray and THC spray in relieving pain in patients with advanced cancer. In total, 43 patients with cancer-related pain experiencing inadequate analgesia despite chronic opioid dosing, who had participated in a previous three-arm (THCCBD spray, THC spray, or placebo), two-week parent randomized controlled trial, entered this open-label, multicenter, follow-up study. Patients self-titrated THCCBD spray (n39) or THC spray (n4) to symptom relief or maximum dose and were regularly reviewed for safety, tolerability, and evidence of clinical benefit. The efficacy end point of change from baseline in mean Brief Pain Inventory-Short Form scores for pain severity and worst pain domains showed a decrease (i.e., improvement) at each visit in the THCCBD spray patients. Similarly, the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire-C30 scores showed a decrease (i.e., improvement) from baseline in the domains of insomnia, pain, and fatigue. No new safety concerns associated with the extended use of THCCBD spray arose from this study. This study showed that the long-term use of THCCBD spray was generally well tolerated, with no evidence of a loss of effect for the relief of cancer-related pain with long-term use. Furthermore, patients who kept using the study medication did not seek to increase their dose of this or other pain-relieving medication over time, suggesting that the adjuvant use of cannabinoids in cancer-related pain could provide useful benefit.