Sativex for Treatment of Chemotherapy Induced Neuropathic Pain

Summary

Chemotherapy is often used to treat cancer and in many cases can cure it or extend life. Unfortunately many of the chemotherapeutic agents used in treating cancer can cause nerve damage, resulting in severe pain involving the extremities. This "neuropathic" pain causes significant suffering in cancer survivors and may also limit the amount of chemotherapy patients are able to tolerate in attempting to treat the cancer. There is evidence that cannabinoids can suppress chemotherapy evoked neuropathy in animal models, in some cases better than morphine. This study proposes to examine the effect of a cannabinoid extract (Sativex) in treatment of neuropathic pain caused by chemotherapy.

Timeline

Start

2010-06

Primary completion

2012-12

Completion

2013-03

Publications

• Results Lynch ME, Cesar-Rittenberg P, Hohmann AG. A double-blind, placebo-controlled, crossover pilot trial with extension using an oral mucosal cannabinoid extract for treatment of chemotherapy-induced neuropathic pain. J Pain Symptom Manage. 2014 Jan;47(1):166-73. doi: 10.1016/j.jpainsymman.2013.02.018. Epub 2013 Jun 4.

Drugs

Indications