Dr Ross Walker may be one of the key players at MGC Pharma (ASX:MXC) – but he wasn’t always singing from the medical cannabis songsheet.

Reputed in Australia thanks to his media work, as little as 18 months ago he describes himself as “ignorant” of the benefits of medical cannabis.

He’s currently serving as a non-executive director at MXC – so it’s safe to say he’s seen the light.

MXC is currently pursuing a way to alleviate the pain of those suffering epilepsy using a cannabinoid (CBD)-based solution.

It is early stages yet and this is a young stock, so if considering your investment options please seek professional financial advice.

Medlab is all set to give cannabis Australia human trials a boost as it has launched a $5.36 million equity raising. The cash will be mainly used for accelerating a medicinal cannabis human trial program at a leading Australian oncology research hospital. The marijuana-based pain management therapy will combine two cannabis compounds THC (tetrahydrocannabinol) and CBD (cannabidiol).

Medlab’s shares last traded at 42 cents, way ahead of the year low of 16 cents. The 1-for-9 rights issue is at 30 cents a share, writes Business Insider Australia.

JUMPING for joy might seem cliche, but pulling off the simple movement last week was a huge achievement for 11-year-old Jai Whitelaw. 

The Eatons Hill youngster was once plagued by epilepsy so severe he endured one seizure ever 2.8 minutes.

On July 3, he celebrated being seizure-free for a year.

Mum, Michelle Whitelaw, who puts the transformation down to the medicinal cannabis she has been administering to him since December 2014, says the improvement in Jai’s health has also allowed him to tick off a laundry list of “firsts”.

“ ... he can brush his teeth, he can toilet, he can tell me when he needs the toilet and he can at times tell me when he’s hungry and thirsty. He couldn’t do that before,” she said.

“He wasn’t able to run, jump.

Fifteen-year-old Ellie the staffy has a new spring in her step thanks to a daily dose of cannabis oil under her tongue.

Old age had started to catch up with Ellie, the faithful companion of Bellambi resident Paul Lawrence; she was suffering from arthritis and glaucoma, had lost her appetite and was experiencing fitful sleep.

For Mr Lawrence, a cancer survivor who two years ago ditched legal painkillers in preference of medicinal cannabis, the remedy was obvious.

A Bangalow-based company which is now the largest exporter of hemp foods in the southern hemisphere is wondering when its products will finally be recognised as food in Australia.

Hemp Foods Australia chief executive Paul Benhaim recently met with the First Lady of Japan Akie Abe at a hemp forum in Kyoto and discovered that she was a great supporter of the industry.

However, while Japan is importing huge amounts of hemp from Hemp Foods Australia, the products are still not recognised as food in Australias due to legislation against the consumption of hemp.

A bemused police force took to social media after receiving a bizarre call from a man whose father burned his 'prized' cannabis plant collection.

He called the Northern Territory Police after an altercation with his relative, who set fire to the fruits of his labour. 

The man was, according to the police force, "indignant and enraged" and felt the incident was "wrong".

Officers questioned whether he was aware that possession of cannabis was unlawful and he could be liable to prosecution.

With its “Stay True to You” campaign released today, Oregon’s state health agency has done what few nonprofits and government agencies have ever done: created a youth cannabis prevention campaign that’s not entirely embarrassing. 

The $4 million campaign, funded by state cannabis tax revenue, uses a combination of adult testimonials, facts about teen brain development, and warnings that younger siblings will emulate their older brothers and sisters. You can watch a couple examples here and here. 

One of the world’s first large, controlled trials of cannabis for melanoma launches in Australia.

Marijuana is being called in to fight one of the world’s deadliest, scariest killers — a type of cancer caused by your next summer vacation.

Researchers at the University of Canberra have announced a $1 million research project with Israel-based Cann Pharmaceutical to see if the compounds in pot kill live cancer cells in humans as well as they do inside test tubes and mice in the labs. 

NSW children suffering severe, debilitating and treatment-resistant epilepsy will soon be able to access medicinal cannabis as part of an Australian-first clinical trial.

The experimental, cannabis-based Epidiolex drug will be delivered through the Sydney Children's Hospital to an initial group of 40 NSW families in need, with the hope of expanding the trial to hundreds within the next 12 months.

"This is a day we give hope to some of the sickest kids in NSW," Mike Baird told reporters in Sydney on Tuesday.

The NSW Premier said while the drug was still in the final stages of development across the world, it was beginning to yield staggering results where other forms of treatment had failed.

University of Canberra researchers will be collaborating with a pharmaceutical company to test the effectiveness of medical marijuana in treating melanoma. Israel-based Cann Pharmaceutical will be providing specific medical-grade strains of cannabis with the university announcing a $1 million deal with the company. The cannabis strains will be administered to patients with current standard of care for melanoma sufferers. Clinical trials are set to begin in the ACT next year.