The importance of medical cannabis for solving the problem of providing analgesia to palliative patients in Ukraine

Abstract

One of the ways to solve the problem of pain relief for palliative patients in Ukraine is to expand the arsenal of painkillers through the use of medical cannabis. In many palliative di­seases, cannabis is able to alleviate other symptoms that accompany patients with incurable diseases at the end of their lives: nausea, lack of appetite, seizures, anxiety, depression. The procedure for the legalization of medical cannabis in Ukraine is coming to an end, which is a timely decision of the legislators and the government. Before the full-scale medical cannabis war, 2.3 million patients were needed. Since its inception, this need has increased to 5.5–6 million. The Ukrainian agricultural market and the pharmaceutical industry will eventually be able not only to provide the country with the necessary amount of plant raw materials for the production of medicines and other cannabis products, but also to earn profits from exports, providing part of the growing demand for cannabis in Europe in other countries of the world. But this will require good conditions for investors and a consistent state policy in the adoption of by-laws and the practical implementation of already adopted laws. The medical effects of herbal cannabis and preparations containing it depend on the content of the narcotic TetraHydroCannabiol (THC) and the non-narcotic CanaBiDiol (CBD). Consumer preferences for recreational cannabis are gradually flooding the market with high-THC, low-CBD herbal cannabis, which increases the risk of faster addiction, the frequency and severity of cannabis side effects such as psychotic disorders and cardiovascular crises. Ukraine needs to be prepared for the increase in the use of illicit recreational cannabis along with the increase in the use of medical cannabis, including among children and adolescents, and to counter these phenomena. But even despite these risks, significant positive medical and social consequences can be expected from the legalization of medical cannabis for palliative patients and war victims with post-traumatic stress disorders. Keywords: chronic pain, hospices, narcotic painkillers, non-narcotic painkillers, PTSD.