ANANDA Scientific and Chronic Pain
Chronic pain is an enormous worldwide problem. About 20% of adults suffer from it and 10% are newly diagnosed each year. Chronic pain currently impacts 116,000 Americans, more than 100 million people in China, 55 million in Europe and 61 million in India. The market for pain-relieving medicine is understandably huge, and with its growth is being significantly driven by aging world demographics.
The market for pain-relieving medicines exceeded $20 billion in the United States and $50 billion worldwide in 2011 – and has been growing at 4% per year for a long time.
Opioids accounted for about $9 billion of the $20 billion United States market in 2011, and it continues to dominate as medicine for pain management. The large market share held by opioids is unfortunately been accompanied by an epidemic of overdose deaths, with prescription opioid mortalities in the US now exceeding the number of people dying from heroin and cocaine combined. There were about 16,000 unintentional opioid deaths in 2013. Opioids are also responsible for almost 500,000 emergency room hospital visits each year. In other words, the consequences of opioid use are a public health nightmare. Furthermore, there is a collective cultural fear of opioids in China rooted in the Opium Wars during the 1800s that led to rampant addiction nationwide. Now, pain patients are not offered or refuse opioids. They instead suffer because effective, non- addictive alternatives are not available.
There is a great unmet need for effective therapeutics with minimal abuse potential. In that regard, non-psychoactive and non-addictive cannabidiol (CBD) seems effective and safe. Consequently, ANANDA Scientific has arranged for clinical studies of CBD and pain management at two major Israeli hospitals. CBD as an analgesic will also be pursued in China, where it is a cultural and regulatory fit. Indeed, the Traditional Chinese Medicine Pharmacopeia shows it was used for pain relief over 1,700 years ago.
The market share held by opioids is unfortunately been accompanied by an epidemic of overdose deaths, with prescription opioid mortalities in the US now exceeding the number of people dying from heroin and cocaine combined. There were about 16,000 unintentional opioid deaths in 2013. Opioids are also responsible for almost 500,000 emergency room hospital visits each year. In other words, the consequences of opioid use are a public health nightmare. Furthermore, there is a collective cultural fear of opioids in China rooted in the Opium Wars during the 1800s that led to rampant addiction nationwide. Now, pain patients are not offered or refuse opioids. They instead suffer because effective, non–addictive alternatives are not available.