{"id":4652,"date":"2021-03-26T18:51:55","date_gmt":"2021-03-26T18:51:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.santecannabis.ca\/?p=4652"},"modified":"2023-01-23T13:46:02","modified_gmt":"2023-01-23T17:46:02","slug":"womens-health-medical-cannabis","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.santecannabis.ca\/en\/womens-health-medical-cannabis\/","title":{"rendered":"Women\u2019s health: the gap in research and medical cannabis"},"content":{"rendered":"

The gap on women\u2019s health, women and cannabis as both patients and leaders in the industry.<\/span><\/h2>\n

March 8th was International Women\u2019s Day and this year the theme is <\/span>#ChooseToChallenge<\/span><\/a>, which \u201chighlights the importance of challenging biases and misconceptions in the interest of creating a more inclusive and gender-equal world\u201d.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

At Sant\u00e9 Cannabis the theme resonated with us. We recognize that the medical community and the medical cannabis industry hold certain biases and misconceptions about women\u2019s health, including medical cannabis effects, consumption habits and impacts on homelife and workplace.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

We also recognize that there is important work underway by medical and research leaders to right these historical wrongs.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

We know that we need to challenge ourselves to ask: are we doing enough to support women\u2019s rights within our clinic and in our research?\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Our goal will be to continue to challenge the status quo, not just through March, women\u2019s history month, but every day.<\/span><\/p>\n

In our post today we will explore the gap on women\u2019s health, women and cannabis as both patients and leaders in the industry.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Graphic<\/p>\n

Knowledge gap on women\u2019s health<\/span><\/h2>\n

In modern medical practice, women receive equal treatment as compared to men, right?<\/span><\/p>\n

Not always.<\/span><\/p>\n

An excellent introduction to the subject comes from Dr. Alyson J. McGregor (MD), Division Director for the first program in Sex and Gender Emergency Medicine at the Alpert Medical School of Brown University (USA), and her book, <\/span>Sex Matters: How Male-Centric Medicine Endangers Women\u2019s Health\u2014and What We Can Do About It<\/span><\/a>. The author exposes clearly the current research health disparities between men and women and the challenges women face in what she calls \u201cthe male-centric medical system\u201d.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201c<\/span>The male-centric model of medicine is so pervasive in our health care systems, procedures, and philosophy that many don\u2019t even realize it exists. In this age of medical advancement, most people assume that women\u2019s differences are already being taken into account\u2014yet nothing could be further from the truth.<\/b>\u201d – Dr. Alyson McGregor<\/span><\/p>\n

Men and women differ not only in regard to their reproductive organs, but also biochemically due to sex hormones and their multisystem effects. These essential differences should have an impact on the way that medicine is practised and how research is done.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

However, like Dr. McGregor\u2019s book explains so well, there is a significant knowledge gap that results in unequal benefits for men and women from clinical research and medical care. It is a known fact that there are significant physiological differences in cardiac function between men and women (for example, susceptibility to QT interval prolongation and serious heart arrhythmias). (<\/span>article<\/span><\/a>) These sex differences combined to a lack of awareness translate in different diagnoses and treatment for women with a heart disease as compared to men. Outcomes for women are worse (read here <\/span>more women dying than men<\/span><\/i>), though there has been some recent improvement thanks to more awareness and better research. (<\/span>article<\/span><\/a>)<\/span><\/p>\n

In clinical research, to protect them, women are excluded from the early phases due to their childbearing capacity. This is the norm and such exclusions originate from international work to improve research ethics (<\/span>World Medical Association declaration of Helsinki<\/span><\/a>; <\/span>Rapport Belmont<\/span><\/a>).<\/span><\/p>\n

According to current ethics, a woman of childbearing age is not able to provide informed consent that she has no intention of having children and therefore could participate. Studies at this phase that are deemed safe for men then move subsequent trial phases where women are generally included, without consideration of whether side effects may vary by sex. To determine if there are sex-related differences in treatment efficacy and adverse events, logically data should be analyzed by sex.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Strikingly, a <\/span>2017 article<\/span><\/a> reported that on 100 randomized controlled trials in Canada, 98% of studies reported sex in the sociodemographic characteristics of participants, but only 6% reported subgroup analyses across sex. Of these, only a single study commented regarding the methodological challenges of subgroup analysis or on the significance of the findings and implications for clinical practice. Clinical research needs to improve to better serve <\/span>all<\/span><\/i> clinical trial subjects.<\/span><\/p>\n

Women and Cannabis<\/span><\/h2>\n

Women as medical cannabis patients<\/span><\/h3>\n

From July to November 2020, at Sant\u00e9 Cannabis, 64% of patients were women. Very frequently, our medical team sees patients that have tried several medications and treatments without success. They are often tired and search for something that will help them. Medical cannabis may offer relief for some; but patients also report feeling listened to and supported at our clinics, and that makes the world of a difference.<\/span><\/p>\n

An example of a health condition that we see frequently in our clinics that disproportionately affects women is fibromyalgia. For a long time, patients with this chronic pain condition were told that the pain was in their head. Nowadays, though it is better known, the condition relies on a diagnosis of exclusion. That means that when physicians are trying to find the problem, they must exclude other probable diseases or conditions with several tests and medical imaging. As a result, even when their pain is recognized (it\u2019s not always the case – <\/span>article<\/span><\/a>), patients often get shuttled around for a long time – while enduring constant pain. For those with a diagnosis, few medical treatments exist, but none are efficient to relieve the multiple symptoms.<\/span><\/p>\n

As Fibromyalgia remains difficult to diagnose and treat, it\u2019s important to question why this remains the situation. If we treated men and women equally in research protocols, and invested equally in women\u2019s and men\u2019s health, would there be more advancements? If women\u2019s pain was treated with the same seriousness as men\u2019s, what would the current state of diagnosis and treatment be?\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Senior<\/p>\n

Sex-related differences in medical cannabis:<\/span><\/h3>\n

In medical cannabis research as in many other clinical research fields, there is a lack of sex and gender-related analysis in studies. At this time, we barely know what sex-related differences may exist in medical cannabis efficacy and adverse events.<\/span><\/p>\n

Nonetheless, recent research findings do show some sex-related differences:<\/span><\/p>\n