How effective, in reality, is medical marijuana in healing symptoms and controlling pain?

Basically what it comes down to is that medical marijuana has been reported to aid in pain and decreased appetite for anything from cancer to glaucoma, however, not enough scientific research has been done to discern whether this drug is actually helping or if patients just believe it is. For instance, legislators in Illinois relied heavily on personal testimonies and while sometimes these are extremely convincing and inspiring, the chairman of the Institute on Global Drug Policy, Dr. Eric Voth, stated “relying on anecdotal evidence is dangerous because other factors could influence why patients start to feel better” (Ellen Jean Hirst, 2013). In other words, are patients simply feeling better because they’re high on the drug or because it is chemically aiding their body. In reality, research has found that smoking marijuana, even for medical purposes, inhaling tar and other carcinogens actually increase the risk for cancer. Voth believes the cons of smoking medical marijuana may in fact outweigh the pros.

References (retrieved October 27, 2013):

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/ct-met-medical-marijuana-science-20131027,0,7023950.story?page=2

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