Cannabis Health Radio Podcast

In this special episode, Robin Swan sits down with Ian Jessop to reflect on the journey of Cannabis Health Radio — how it began, the remarkable stories that have inspired listeners around the world, the legacy of co-host Corrie Yelland, and the people who made it all possible. Together, they look back on nearly a decade of sharing stories of hope and healing while looking ahead to the next chapter...

John Prinz shares his story of replacing 1,100 mg/day OxyContin with medical cannabis, positioning him as an early "patient zero" in opioid-to-cannabis transition. A 1992 workplace injury at Simpson Paper in Anderson, CA led to five spinal surgeries, hardware implantation, and a spinal cord injury diagnosis, setting the foundation for extreme opioid dependency. At peak dosage around 2004–2005, Joh...

Chronic pain originated from genetic degenerative disc disease after the birth of her second child, leading to muscle spasms, failed artificial disc implant (FDA trial), spinal fusion, and permanent nerve damage in both legs. At peak pharmaceutical use, Shelley was on approximately seven medications — including pain, antidepressant, anxiety, insomnia, nausea, and panic medications — with five take...

  Ian Jessop interviews William Angolia about his 1985 construction site accident, subsequent chronic migraines and blindness, and his recovery through cannabis use. A falling sprinkler pipe caused blunt force trauma, a detached retina, permanent blindness in the right eye, and daily debilitating migraines that left William bedridden and unable to work for three years. Prescribed pharmaceuticals,...

  Purpose of the episode: Jeff Krajnak, a combat veteran, shares how medical cannabis helped him reduce opioid dependency and how THC metabolite laws led to criminal charges despite no impairment. Military service with the Navy Seabees and SEAL teams in Iraq and Afghanistan left Jeff with severe PTSD, fibromyalgia, and ankylosing spondylitis, resulting in a medical discharge in December 2013. Post...

Connor McCrossan and his mother Tammy share their experience with Connor's brain tumour diagnosis, treatment decisions, and recovery — with a focus on cannabis as a therapeutic alternative. Connor began experiencing minor headaches and fatigue in late 2023 before travelling to Thailand in January 2024, initially managing symptoms with paracetamol without informing anyone. Symptoms worsened signifi...

Cannabis Health Radio podcast episode exploring how cannabis helped Miranda May process grief after losing her husband, and how she now helps others through loss. Miranda's husband Lance died in a motorcycle accident in 2009, one year into their marriage — leaving her widowed at 27 while he was 36. Grief compounded by prior trauma: parents' divorce at age 5, abandonment issues, and a second marria...

Purpose of the conversation: Ian Jessop continues his interview with Robin Swan of Swan Apothecary, covering product safety, scams in the cannabis market, success stories, and how cannabis supports cancer treatment. "Backyard alchemists" defined as home cannabis producers ranging from passionate plant medicine enthusiasts to dangerous unregulated sellers; once selling to hundreds online, safe hand...

Key Points   Cannabis Health Radio podcast interview with Robin Swan of Swan Apothecary, exploring cannabis medicine's evolution, therapeutic applications, and patient guidance. Over 20 years, cannabis shifted from stigmatized to mainstream medicine — doctors who once feared calling Robin now send referrals from around the world. Key breakthroughs were driven by public advocacy, Rick Simpson's 200...

Purpose of the episode: Ian Jessop interviews Slavka Geary, a UK-based stage 4 HER2-positive breast cancer patient now in remission, about her use of natural therapies and cannabis oil alongside partial conventional treatment. 00:37 Originally diagnosed at stage 2 in 2021, Slavka was restaged to stage 4 metastatic after a CT scan found cancer spread to her lungs within six months, with doctors giv...

  Lynn's oncologist, initially dismissive of cannabis oil, shifted his position after her results — telling her "keep doing what you're doing" and suggesting they had considered a misdiagnosis before confirming the original diagnosis was correct. Diagnosed at 44 with glioblastoma multiforme and given 6–18 months to live, Lynn is now approaching 57 — a remarkable survival given the ~17% two-year su...

  Diagnosed at 34 as a highly active police officer with above-average vision and hand-eye coordination, Jason's condition was especially rare as it typically affects the elderly, organ transplant recipients, or those with AIDS/HIV. Cancer spread to the optic nerve destroyed one eye, which was removed via evisceration last year; a hand-painted prosthetic now tracks the remaining eye, and Jason rep...

After one round of chemotherapy for acute myeloid leukemia, doctors told 74 year old Ned Allen of Ireland that he had 8 months to live so he went home to die. But his son, Robbie, had a different idea and told his father about cannabis oil. Using cannabis oil in suppository form, a change in diet and supportive supplements his father began to quickly recover. Four months later, doctors could find...

Kat Bago of Tennessee was just 30 years old, working in hospitals, raising a young family—when chronic pain began to dismantle her life piece by piece. After years of searching, she was diagnosed with congenital spinal stenosis. She underwent major spinal surgeries, and put on opioids which she said made her feel like a zombie. When she began taking cannabis it was a life-changing decision. This i...

  Cannabis has been rescheduled from Schedule I to Schedule III drug status, allowing more research and testing while reducing social media restrictions on cannabis information sharing. Geri shared that she takes absolutely no pharmaceuticals at age 68 and believes hormone replacement therapy caused her triple positive breast cancer that was 100% estrogen and progesterone driven. Geri's husband wa...

After experiencing stomach discomfort in 2022, Bob Jansen of Iowa soon discovered he had pancreatic cancer. He underwent surgery, 12 rounds of chemotherapy but it was cannabis oil suppositories that Bob believes was pivotal in his getting the "all clear" only a few months later. In this episode, Bob and his wife Tami share what helped him beat the odds, how cannabis played a role in his healing, a...

Keith Petty believes he would likely be dead from alcohol consumption if cannabis had not entered his life, as he consumed alcohol daily for years and engaged in destructive occasional drinking. Childhood trauma began early for Keith with his mother's incarceration and substance abuse problems, his grandparents' divorce when he was six or seven, and eventual placement in foster care at age 13 due...

  Symptoms leading to diagnosis included progressively worsening headaches, tinnitus with pulsing in ears, dizziness, and immense head pressure during treadmill training that prompted an emergency eye exam revealing severe optic nerve bleeding. Surgery on November 1st, 2022 successfully removed 60 to 70% of the brain tumor, with the surgeon surprised Nathan didn't have a speech impediment given th...

  Goldstein's frustration with the medical system included long patient wait times of four to eight hours in emergency rooms and having to argue with insurance companies about necessary patient transfers to higher acuity facilities. A friend's breast cancer diagnosis and chemotherapy struggles prompted Goldstein to research cannabis in 2008, leading her to discover the endocannabinoid system and e...

  Mary Ellen began using cannabis at age 18 to manage PTSD symptoms from her brother's death by methadone addiction when she was eight, finding that cannabis smoothed out her restlessness, depression, and agitation. Stopping cannabis use in her late twenties led to everything going haywire in Mary Ellen's life, including doctor shopping for opiates, fibromyalgia diagnosis, postpartum depression, a...

  Robb experienced extreme fatigue, weakness, and dangerous bleeding episodes due to his condition, which required him to take up to 16 different medications daily including high-dose steroids and undergo multiple blood transfusions. Medical treatments included experimental procedures and a splenectomy, but doctors eventually told Robb his options were running out and suggested either an expensive...

  Sasha Carr was raised by her father alone after her mother left when she was a baby, creating a unique upbringing where a 20-year-old male raised a female child. Her father was raised in an abusive, emotionless household which influenced how he raised Sasha, training her not to show emotion and lacking compassion in their relationship. After her father died of colon cancer in 2016, Sasha entered...

Lindsay Gustafson was just 38 years old when she was diagnosed with Stage 2 triple-negative breast cancer, one of the most aggressive and difficult-to-treat forms of the disease. For two years, she endured conventional treatment. Then, in June 2024, everything changed. Scans revealed the cancer had spread to her lung, escalating her diagnosis to Stage 4. That moment marked a turning point, leading...

  Lynette experienced severe symptoms before diagnosis including inability to walk short distances without collapsing, constant coughing that prevented speaking, and extreme fatigue that made basic activities impossible. Medical professionals initially prescribed antibiotics three times before ordering urgent X-rays and MRI scans, which led to immediate referral to a lung cancer specialist and hos...

  JR Richardson expressed overwhelming disbelief at his cancer-free diagnosis, stating he had been mentally prepared to die and was still recalibrating his mindset about surviving for his two children aged 15 and 17. Medical misdiagnoses occurred from 2018-2021 when JR's symptoms including pressure in his taint area were attributed to a fistula, fissure, and prostatitis rather than recognizing his...