Chronic pain affects more than 50 million adults in the U.S. Upwards of 9 out of 10 cancer patients suffer from pain, with oral cancer ranked consistently as one of the most painful cancers. This chronic pain management represents a major socioeconomic and clinical challenge because the side effects of existing treatments--mainly prescribing opioids--greatly limit their effectiveness, especially over time.

Alternatives to opioid treatment are found in synthetic and naturally occurring cannabinoids (CBs) which have demonstrated effectiveness in numerous chronic inflammatory and neuropathic disorders in both human and animal models. However, major impediments to the widespread use of CB-based therapies are their psychotropic side-effects, mediated by the activation of central nervous system (CNS) CB1 receptors (CB1Rs).

In other words, cannabis-based drugs work wonders to alleviate chronic pain for patients, but up until now they have come with undesirable psychotropic side effects--patients "get high."

"We have developed a novel class of...