The "medical" bit of medical marijuana may be legitimate after all: Turns out a component of cannabis fights cancer, according to research.



Scientists at California Pacific Medical Center found that cannabidiol, or CBD, has the ability to "turn off" the DNA that causes "breast and other types of cancers" to metastasize, according to the San Francisco Chronicle.



"If this plant were discovered in the Amazon today, scientists would be falling all over each other to be the first to bring it to market," said Dr. Donald Abrams, chief of oncology at the University of California San Francisco, which has also found science behind marijuana's efficacy.



The drug "has been shown to reduce pain and nausea" in cancer patients, the newspaper reported. AIDS patients also swear by cannabis for its ability to allow them to eat, sleep and otherwise function.



Turns out that cannabidiol has none of the psychotropic effects of marijuana as a whole, according to the newspaper. The researchers hope to move to clinical trials on humans soon.



Cancer cells exposed to cannabidiol lost their abilities to metastasize, according to the newspaper.