LATEBREAKER
Substance Use
The role of depression on the association between preventative cancer screening and use of marijuana: results from a national level study S. Cristina Oancea* S. Cristina Oancea Cassidy Johnson
Introduction: This study investigates if cancer screening influences marijuana use in US adults. Understanding this association is vital for healthcare decision-making and public health policy, since currently 50% of US states have ratified legislation to allow recreational marijuana use.
Methods: Testing the association between a history of screening for cancer (HSC) and use of marijuana was performed on the combined data from the 2016, 2018, 2020, and 2022 version of the Behavioral Risk Factors Surveillance System (BRFSS) study. This association was investigated using weighted and adjusted logistic regression models on multiple sex- and age-based groups chosen according to cancer screening recommendations. Individuals previously diagnosed with cancer and pregnant women were excluded from the study. Confounders were selected based on previous literature and included in the analyses after a thorough evaluation via directed acyclic graphs (DAG). The effect modifying role of depression was tested.
Results: Compared to their counterparts with a HSC, the weighted and adjusted odds (WAO) of using marijuana among individuals without a HSC were significantly greater in: depressed married 1.71 (95%CI:1.14, 2.56) and separated, divorced and widowed 1.43 (95%CI:1.06, 1.92) women when screening for cervical cancer; depressed women 2.31 (95%CI:1.32, 4.05) when screening for breast cancer; and depressed males 2.08 (95%CI:1.40, 3.08) when screening for prostate cancer . No notable association was detected between colorectal HSC and use of marijuana in either males or females.
Conclusion: When compared to individuals with a HSC, their counterparts with no HSC have significantly greater odds of using marijuana, especially if they are depressed. Regarding the use of marijuana, particularly among depressed individuals, focused interventions are needed, and personal health behaviors such as screening for cancer should be encouraged.