By Loren DeVito, PhD, Staff Writer for Terpenes and Testing Magazine
In 2003, a Canadian man named Rick Simpson was diagnosed with basal cell carcinoma, a type of skin cancer. After coming across a paper published in 1975 describing the effects of cannabis on impeding tumor growth, Rick came up with an idea. [1]
Rick decided he would try to use cannabis to treat his skin cancer. He created a potent cannabis oil consisting of 90% tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) that he used to treat his cancer topically. He applied the oil to the cancerous lesions and covered them with a bandage for several days. What happened next made Rick a cannabis hero – and a marked man by the authorities.
When Rick removed the bandages – as the story goes – the lesions were gone. Following this shocking result, Rick became a cannabis evangelist, fully convinced of the cancer-fighting power of cannabis. To recreate theses effects and help others, he developed and distributed this oil – now called Rick Simpson oil, or RSO – for free to thousands of people.
But, his life became complicated due to the nature of this illicit treatment.
Not only did Rick face backlash from the medical community who refuted his…