“ Modern research suggests that cannabis is a valuable aid in the treatment of a wide range of clinical applications. These include pain relief -- particularly of neuropathic pain (pain from nerve damage) -- nausea, spasticity, glaucoma, and movement disorders. Marijuana is also a powerful appetite stimulant, specifically for patients suffering from HIV, the AIDS wasting syndrome, or dementia. Emerging research suggests that marijuana's medicinal properties may protect the body against some types of malignant tumors and are neuroprotective. ”

“A 1999 study commissioned by the White House and conducted by the Institute of Medicine recognizes the role that cannabis can play in treating chronic pain. ‘After nausea and vomiting, chronic pain was the condition cited most often to the IOM study team as a medicinal use for marijuana.’[46]

The study found that "basic biology indicates a role for cannabinoids in pain and control of movement, which is consistent with a possible therapeutic role in these areas. The evidence is relatively strong for the treatment of pain and intriguingly, although less well established, for movement disorder." According to the report, a number of brain areas that have an established role in sensing and processing pain respond to the analgesic effect of cannabis, such that cannabinoids have been used successfully to treat cancer pain, which is often resistant to treatment with opiates.

The Report further notes that cannabinoids serve as an anti-inflammatory agent, and so have therapeutic potential in preventing and reducing pain caused by the swelling of body tissues (such as arthritis).”