Welcome to Senior Cannabis Digest. This week we look at the support for medical cannabis among healthcare professionals, using cannabis to treat lower back pain, treating arthritis with CBD and more. Enjoy.
Notable Numbers
Top takeaway: A new survey of healthcare professionals found broad support for the use of medical cannabis.
This week’s notable number is 87 percent. In a recent survey of healthcare professionals published in the Journal of Cannabis Research, 87 percent of those polled said they believe cannabis has therapeutic promise.
The same survey also revealed that eighty-nine percent of respondents said they had patients who use cannabis, ninety-five percent said they support legal medical cannabis use, and 74 percent said they would be open to recommending medical cannabis to patients.
According to Noel Abbott, reporting for Ganjapreneur, the most commonly-cited concerns around clinical cannabis use included a lack of trained providers, possible patient exploitation, recreational misuse, and psychosis risk. Greater openness to clinical cannabis use was associated with higher self-rated knowledge, younger age, professional role, and fewer concerns.
Abbott also noted that the authors of the study said their findings point to the need for structured training on cannabis pharmacology, dosing, contraindications, and legal and ethical considerations, as well as better systems for monitoring cannabis use in patient care.
Said NORML Deputy Director Paul Armentano in a comment about the findings, “The use and efficacy of medical cannabis is now widely accepted among healthcare professionals.”
Armentano added, “As more physicians, nurses, and others integrate medical cannabis into their clinical practices, it is vital that medical associations, institutions, and educational curricula similarly incorporate and embrace cannabis as a mainstream and established therapeutic option for patients.”
To learn more, we urge you to read the article by Noel Abbott in the July 9, 2026 issue of Ganjapreneur.com. Noel Abbott is the cofounder and CEO of Ganjapreneur.
ganjapreneur.com/85-of-u-s-healthcare-professionals-believe-cannabis-has-medical-utility/?
The Shape of Things to Come
Top takeaway: New York is about to launch a cannabis education program for healthcare professionals.
There’s helpful news for healthcare providers in New York who want to learn more about cannabis. New York cannabis regulators have launched the state’s new Center of Excellence for Cannabis Care and Health Equity, which aims to educate healthcare providers, public health professionals, dispensary workers, and other others about cannabis science, medical cannabis, consumer health, and health equity.
According to TG Branfalt, reporting for Ganjapreneur, the website of the state’s Office of Cannabis Management describes the center as educating “healthcare providers and public health professionals about cannabis so they can better serve patients and support systems that protect and promote health.”
Branfalt notes that the University at Albany and Albany Medical Center are supporting the initiative. SUNY Upstate Medical University, Stony Brook Medicine, University of Rochester Medical Center, New York Institute of Technology College of Osteopathic Medicine, CUNY School of Public Health, and New York State Office of Mental Health are also involved in the program.
Said John Kagia, Office of Cannabis Management (OCM) executive director, “Our approach (to legalizing cannabis) was about more than creating a new market. It’s always been about building a framework rooted in public health, safety, education and equity.”
The agency he helms has also issued a request for proposals from qualified persons and/or entities to design, develop, and deliver online asynchronous training on the topics of the endocannabinoid system, medical cannabis, cannabis science, cannabis consumer health, and cannabis health equity.
The training, according to Branfalt, is intended for medical practitioners and dispensary workers who are involved in or seeking to become involved in the state’s medical cannabis program as well as community-based organizations, state and local officials, and other individuals or organizations interested in medical cannabis.
Branfalt does an excellent job of reporting on an initiative that’s likely to set a standard for other states to follow. To learn more, we encourage you to read his article in the July 2, 2026 issue of Ganjapreneur.com.
ganjapreneur.com/new-york-launches-program-to-educate-doctors-about-cannabis/?
Cannabis and Pain Management
Top takeaway: Medical cannabis can offer relief to those with chronic lower back pain.
According to a new study by Israeli researchers, individuals with chronic lower back pain who don’t respond to traditional therapies – such as opioids – experience “large, sustained, and statistically robust improvements” when they switch to treating the condition with inhaled cannabis.
So says Tom Angell, writing for Marijuana Moment. According to Angell, when researchers at Rabin Medical Center in Israel looked at longitudinal data from 241 patients with treatment-resistant lower back pain from 2020 to 2025, they found that those who used medical cannabis reported “markedly and durably” improved pain symptoms.
In addition, the authors of the study reported that improvement was accompanied by the near-total displacement of opioids, NSAIDs, antidepressants and gabapentinoids.
Angell notes that the researchers involved in the study, which was published in the journal Biomedicines, said they chose to explore the efficacy of inhaled or vaporized marijuana “because of its rapid onset, on-demand titratability, and patient preference.”
The THC concentration in the cannabis used in the study ranged from 4 to 22 percent, while CBD concentration ranged from 2 to 22 percent.
The researchers concluded that medical cannabis should be considered as “a potentially clinically meaningful, opioid-sparing option in patients who have failed multi-modal conventional therapy, pending confirmation in randomized comparative trials.”
The research team also stressed that, while promising, the study should be followed up with “randomized comparative trials of inhaled cannabis versus continued multi-modal therapy” to ensure that “causal claims can be made.”
In his article, Angell also cites a recent study of 3,500 patients that found that using medical marijuana appears to help people reduce the use of other medications – including opioids, sleeping aids and antidepressants – while experiencing far fewer negative side effects after switching to cannabis from prescription drugs.
To learn more, we urge you to read Tom Angell’s article in the June 30, 2026 issue of Marijuana Moment.net.
CBD and Arthritis Pain
Top takeaway: Researchers believe CBD shows promise as an effective way to treat arthritis pain.
There may be hopeful news for individuals who suffer from arthritis – a degenerative disease that causes inflammation of the joints and chronic pain in the affected areas.
Experts say about 1 in 4 adults in the U.S. suffer from arthritis, making it a common condition that can lead to significant disability and impact daily activities.
Recently, a literature review conducted by researchers affiliated with Montfort University in Thailand found evidence that suggests a treatment plan that includes CBD may offer some relief from the pain associated with the condition.
As stated in the review, cannabidiol (CBD) is a naturally occurring compound, often studied for its analgesic effect with no psychoactive property and remarkable safety profile when compared to traditional treatments.
The review compiled literature to identify preclinical and clinical studies on CBD, arthritis, and the effects of CBD in arthritis. The literature search criteria included clinical trials, animal trials, animal studies, and peer-reviewed research related to arthritic pain and CBD between 2000 and 2025.
Based on their findings, the researchers believe that there is enough evidence to conclude that CBD can alleviate arthritic pain in levels comparable to other types of medications with low to no detrimental side effects.
However, they also believe that further controlled clinical trials investigating effective dosage, long-term treatment and safety, are needed to establish standards in the treatment of arthritis.
To learn more, we suggest reading the article that appeared in the June 12, 2026 issue of the journal Authorea. Simply click on the link that follows.
https://www.authorea.com/doi/full/10.22541/authorea.15004664/v1
Senior Cannabis Digest is compiled and edited by Joe Kohut and John Kohut. You can reach them at joe.kohut@gmail.com and at 347-528-8753.