Weeks ago I watched and wrote up a post about the 2010 film House of Numbers... now.. I've finally caught the other controversial film in 2010... What If Cannabis Cured Cancer?

My first response to the film would be that despite its title.. the film was disappointing in that there wasn't much in-depth information or interviews as to how cannabis cured cancer... there was lots of general comments, but none in depth.. instead, the film focused on the fact that cannabis should be made legal and more research should be done on it...

It is true that when you take direct comparison on the PubMed database, we have 2.4 million papers on cancer, 13k papers on cannabinoid, but only 760 papers on the effects of cannabinoids on cancer... but still that number is substantial... with papers being as recent as Jan 19 2011.. so yeah, there is a surge in recent research into this field.

.... If you wanna read on about my review of the movie Click here ^^x...

To understand more about the arguments on the use of Cannabis, one has to understand more about the effects of Cannabis in the body.. the film does touch briefly on this, as I will try to explain here.
Messages from the brain to the rest of the body is passed through the nervous system, from 1 neuron to another through the release of neurotransmitters. The more excitatory neurotransmitters released, the larger the reaction. Naturally, we have a group of molecules called endocannabinoids, that negatively feedbacks on this process, by binding to the cannabinoid receptors, CB1 and CB2, and restricting the amount of neurotransmitters released.

The active ingredients of cannabis, like Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), mimic these naturally-occurring endocannabinoids and binds to CB1 and CB2. These reduces the amount of neurotransmitters released, and results in a decreased in sensory activity, thus the delayed responses and "stoning" effect.

In addition, cannabinoid receptors are present on GABA-inhibitory neurons, which inhibits dopamine release. THC is able to bind to these receptors and inhibit the GABA-inhibitory neurons, which in turn, removes the inhibition on dopamine release. This results in increased dopamine, and you get the "high".

The problem with cannabis, is that you have you have multiple forms of different cannabinoids within it... thus taking cannabis as it is, might have mixed results... an example is that THC, the main psychoactive substance in Cannabis, may worsen Schizophrenic cases, but CBD, another active ingredient in Cannabis, is actually an effective antipsychotic drug... so yes, there is an actual need to isolate and identify the individual cannabinoid for medical use.
So are known benefits of cannabis? Yes. It has been shown that cannabis improves appetite, reduce nausea and vomiting, and alleviate moderate neuropathic pain... symptoms experienced by cancer or AIDS patients on medication... and there was even a CB1 receptor blocker, Romonabant, that was targeted at appetite, before it was withdrawn due safety reasons.

Extensive research into cannabinoids have also shown that it has anti-cancer properties... and even has immunosuppresive qualities that could treat type II diabetes.. however, it is a holistic effect... treatment with THC can reduce cancer, but is psychoactive and immunosuppresive... so you might not die of cancer, but instead of the common cold.

So, my take is that research should still continue on cannabis, but it shouldn't be legalised... taken as it is, cannabis may help reduce the symptoms of cancer treatment, and even the cancer itself, but unsupervised, the patient might become psychotic and become a danger to the public and him/herself... the long term solution would be genetically modifying the plant, so that it only produces the cannabinoid of choice.. preferably non-psychoactive ones... only then, will it be safe for the public to start growing them legally in their backyard... at present, medicinal use of cannabis should be under a doctor's supervision and observation.

That being said, one should still avoid smoking the traditional rolled-up joints even for medicinal cannabis, as the incomplete burning process still produces carbon monoxide and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons(PAHs), which is carcinogenic. Instead, use a vaporizer or a "bong" for a cleaner burn.