Brazil approves home cultivation of medicinal marijuana for pain relief

Three Brazilian patients have been granted permission by a court to cultivate marijuana for medicinal purposes. It is likely that this approval will soon be implemented all over the country.

The nation's Superior Court of Justice came to the unanimous conclusion that patients should be allowed to produce cannabis as well as extract its oil in order to treat their own chronic pain. The medical use of products derived from marijuana is currently restricted in Brazil to only allow for the importation of those items.

Because the Brazilian Ministry of Health has not yet enacted regulations on the cultivation of cannabis at home for therapeutic purposes. Those who engage in this practice without legal permissions run the danger of being arrested.

The judge who presided over the case explained that the court had to intervene since the administration had not taken a scientific stance on the matter.