Study: Increased Marijuana Use May Cause Cancer in Heavy Smokers

Using marijuana regularly could lead to the development of some neck and head cancers in smokers.

A new study, published last week in JAMA Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery, found that heavy cannabis users are 3.5 and 5 times more likely to develop head and neck cancers than people who don’t use the drug regularly. But, this research is just the beginning as scientists explore the correlation between cannabis and cancer risk.

“The cannabinoids themselves could be carcinogenic, and it could also be that the smoke itself has potential for carcinogenesis,” said lead study author Dr. Niels Kokot, a head and neck surgeon at Keck Medicine of the University of Southern California.

SEE ALSO: Multiple States Working To Ban Popular Snacks Linked To Cancer

According to Dr. Glenn Hanna, a medical oncologist at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute’s Center for Head and Neck Oncology, smoking anything, including cannabis, could inflame certain pathways that could lead to cancer formation. Cannabinoids could become carcinogenic in the body.

“Cannabinoids have a lot of effects that drive immune response, and all these other things that are involved with either how cancer develops or how our bodies fight cancer,” Hanna said. “So it’s not unreasonable to think about the cancer-associated effects of cannabis use to be independent of whether or not you ingest smoke or vape or bake them into your brownies.”

For the study published in JAMA, researchers used data from a global database called TriNetX that included patient information from 64 health centers in the U.S. From April 2004 to April 2024, they found 116,000 people out of 4 million people had been diagnosed with cannabis use disorder. The diagnoses were based on self-reported data. Patients had to disclose their marijuana use to the health care provider.

The cannabis users in the study were more likely to develop head and neck cancer as opposed to nonusers. But, the study doesn’t clarify what dose, frequency and how someone ingests cannabis may affect their cancer risk. According to Dr. Joseph Califano, director of the Gleiberman Head and Neck Cancer Center at the Moores Cancer Center at the University of California, San Diego, the research links to the risk for cancer to heavy users and not occasional smokers.

Past studies investigating whether cannabis use increases a person’s risk for head and neck cancer have produced mixed results. This new study shows he increased need for research on the subject as marijuana use grows in popularity.

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, Using marijuana regularly could lead to the development of some neck and head cancers in smokers.
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