Cannabis use makes you up to five times more likely to develop head and neck cancer than non-users, according to a new study.
Adults with cannabis dependence, known as cannabis use disorder, are three and a half to five times more likely to develop head and neck cancer than those who do not use the substance.
Published in JAMA Otolaryngology – Head & Neck Surgery, the researchers found that the prevalence of head and neck cancer among those with cannabis use disorder was independent of other factors, such as age, gender and ethnicity. Alcohol and tobacco use, which are linked with head and neck cancer, also did not play a role in the findings.
Niels Kokot is a head and neck surgeon with the USC Head and Neck Center and senior author of the study. He said: ‘This is one of the first studies – and the largest that we know of to date – to associate head and neck cancer with cannabis use.
‘The detection of this risk factor is important because head and neck cancer may be preventable once people know which behaviours increase their risk.’
The researchers put together 20 years of data through a health research network of 64 health care organisations that accounted for more than 90 million individuals.
‘Cannabis worse than tobacco’
The team also suggested that smoking cannabis could even be worse than smoking tobacco.
‘Cannabis smoking is typically unfiltered and involves deeper inhalation compared to tobacco,’ Kokot added. ‘Additionally, cannabis burns at a higher temperature than tobacco, increasing the risk of cancer-causing inflammation.’
The team called for further research examining the link between cannabis and head and neck cancer.
They hope the study will help people make more informed choices, and raise awareness about the link between head and neck cancer and cannabis use.
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