Cannabis can kill cancer cells and helps shrink one of the most serious types of brain tumour , new advice reveals . Cannabis can kill cancer cells and shrink one of the most serious types of brain tumours , new advice reveals . The National Institute on Drug Abuse in the US has admitted , in its revised publication on marijuana , that the drug offers benefits to some cancer patients . The report states : 'Recent animal studies have shown that marijuana extracts may help kill certain cancer cells and reduce the size of others . 'Evidence from one animal study suggests that extracts from whole-plant marijuana can slow the growth of cancer cells from one of the most serious types of brain tumours . 'Research in mice showed that these extracts , when used with radiation , increased the cancer-killing effects of the radiation . ' The term medicinal marijuana refers to using the whole unprocessed plant or its basic extracts to treat a disease or symptom . Currently the drug is not recognised by the US Food and Drug Administration ( FDA ) as a medicine . However , studies of the chemicals in marijuana - cannabinoids - has led the FDA to approve two medications that contain cannabinoid chemicals . Currently two cannabinoids , of around 100 , are of medical interest - THC and CBD . THC increases appetite and reduces nausea . It may also decrease pain , inflammation and muscle control problems . CBD is a cannabinoid that does not affect the mind or behaviour . It is thought to be useful in minimising pain and inflammation , controlling epileptic seizures and possibly treating mental illness and addictions . In the UK , THC is the active ingredient in the prescribed drug Sativex . It is currently only licensed to treat and relive the pain of muscle spasms in MS patients . Scroll down for video . The National Institute on Drug Abuse in the US has admitted , in its revised publication on marijuana , that the drug offers benefits to some cancer patients , including those suffering some brain tumours , pictured . Scientists are also conducting clinical trials and preclinical studies into the effects of marijuana on : . The new advice from the National Institute on Drug Abuse comes as a group of senators put pressure on the US federal government to recognise the medicinal value of the drug . Medication containing cannabinoids , from marijuana , is licensed to treat MS - pictured on a brain scan - patients in both the US and UK . The Compassionate Access , Research Expansion and Respect States Act was introduced in March . It proposes moving cannabis from a schedule I to a schedule II drug , recognising it has some medicinal value . The proposed bill does not , however , legalise marijuana in all states , but permits states to set their own policies , the Daily Caller reported . 'It couldn ’ t be any clearer that marijuana has medical value , ' Tom Angell , chairman of the Marijuana Majority , told The Daily Caller . 'When even NIDA and the surgeon general are acknowledging that marijuana can help people who are suffering , it is time for the Obama administration to reschedule the drug . 'The attorney general can initiate that process today , and there ’ s no reason for him not to , especially when polling shows that such a huge majority of Americans supports medical marijuana . ' Twenty-three states in the US currently have laws legalising the use of marijuana in some form . Four states - Colorado , Alaska , Oregon and Washington - have legalised the drug for both medicinal and recreational use . Meanwhile , California , Nevada , Arizona , New Mexico , Montana , Minnesota , Michigan , Illinois , New York , New Jersey , Delaware , Maryland , Connecticut , Rhode Island , Massachusetts , Vermont , New Hampshire , Hawaii and Maine have laws allowing people to use the drug for medicinal purposes .
FDA admits cannabis has medicinal benefits . US guidance states drug can help kill some cancer cells and shrink others . Cannabinoids - chemicals in marijuana - currently used in medication to treat MS patients in both the US and UK . Autoimmune diseases , including HIV and AIDS , multiple sclerosis and Alzheimer 's disease . Inflammation . Pain . Seizures . Substance use disorders . Mental disorders .