Italy’s Health Ministry has published the definitive “all you wanted to know about” guide to medical cannabis.

It is targeted to physicians who can prescribe it and to pharmacists who can sell it. In addition, it offers information about precise dosing, administration, special warnings, possible drug interactions and side effects, and overdose. The brochure adds that “medical use” “does not exactly mean that it is a medical therapy, but rather, a treatment of symptoms, offered to support other standard treatments” and it can be used as/for:

On Tuesday we reported on the newest study into the relationship between cannabis and pharmaceutical medication, after researchers from the University of British Columbia and the University of Victoria found that patients suffering from chronic pain and mental health issues were ditching their traditional opioid-based medications in favour of cannabis.

Cultivation In a landmark decision, the Lower House of the Dutch parliament voted last week in favour of adding cannabis cultivation to its famous tolerance policy. A move that would decriminalize the supply aspect of the coffeeshops.

This new Dutch cannabis cultivation bill would exempt professional growers from punishment, creating a closed system from the production to the consumption of cannabis. Not legalized, not regulated but tolerated under government control.

But who is going to supply coffeeshops? Big state-controlled companies like Bedrocan?

What about growers who are being criminalized because of the illegality of the plant? Are they going to be allowed to grow and become players in the new cannabis market?

The medicinal value of the cannabis plant is well-known and consistently under-valued by mainstream medicine. However, it seems that the medical industry is finally catching up and is beginning to accept that yes, a plant can indeed be medicine. Thousands of studies have demonstrated the plant’s clear medicinal value in a variety of conditions. Recognition of the plant’s benefits is continuing to garner steam, so much so that we may soon see it popping up for a number of uses. In fact, cannabis-laced chewing gum may even be on the market soon.

The Dutch lower house of parliament has narrowly voted to approve the cultivation of cannabis. 

The bill would exempt professional growers working within certain conditions from punishment.

But it is not yet law, as it must also get majority support from the Senate.

Buying small amounts of cannabis at so-called coffee shops has long been tolerated in the Netherlands, but cultivating and selling it to the coffee shops is illegal.

Coffee shops often fall back on supplies from criminal networks.

Cannabis extracts were used for therapeutic and ritual purposes since prehistoric ages. What's next with THC, CBD and terpenes oil, wax and dabs?

The global medical marijuana market is expected to reach a value of USD 55.8 billion by 2025, according to a new report by Grand View Research, Inc. It has been identified that, in 2016, Washington D.C. along with 28 states have legalized marijuana for medical uses. In 2016, states such as Arkansas, Florida, North Dakota, Ohio, and Pennsylvania were approved to use the drug in medical applications such as chemotherapies and pain management. The growing number of states and countries getting approval for using it in therapeutic applications is one of the crucial factors driving the demand over the coming few years.

Col Antonio Medica is a state-approved drug baron. At the dauntingly named Military Pharmaceutical Plant in Florence, the colonel grows 100kg (220lb) of cannabis a year.

The crop itself is guarded in the depths of the plant by a series of locked doors. All visitors must wear protective clothing and face masks. 

Just inside a final heavy door, a line of tape on the ground warns visitors not to go in any further. Beyond the line, several dozen rows of cannabis plants are flanked by lamps and fans. 

Italy's logic is simple: in this country, medical marijuana is legal. It is prescribed for pain relief to patients with cancer or multiple sclerosis. 

Cannabics Pharmaceuticals Inc. (CNBX) today announced it will begin providing personalized cannabinoid anti-tumor tests for cancer patients. The diagnostic tests are based on liquid biopsies of patients suffering from any kind of cancer. The test uses CTC technology that collects cancer cells from patients' blood samples, and tests their sensitivity to cannabinoid compounds alongside conventional chemotherapy medicine.

Epilepsy Hospital Filadelfia, in the Danish town of Dianalund, has begun treating patients with medicinal cannabis. This is only part of Denmark's new pilot project to estimate the benefits of the use of medicinal cannabis by certain types of patients.

Although marijuana is not yet the doctor's preferred choice in Denmark, whose hospitals rather prefer conservative treatment, a pilot project to estimate the positive effects of cannabis was approved of in November 2016. During the trial period for the use of raw, unprocessed cannabis, about 1,500 patients are looking forward for a pain-relieving effect.