Smoking lots of marijuana lowers risk for bladder cancer, doctor says

A new study that spanned 11 years found that smoking marijuana may lower the chances of getting bladder cancer.

The study’s not been peer-reviewed yet, USA Today reported. It involved 83,000 men who smoked marijuana, cigarettes or both, Raw Story reported.

The findings, presented at the American Urological Association, found that men who smoked cigarettes increased their risks of bladder cancer, but that men who smoked marijuana only actually decreased their risks, Raw Story reported. Further, the study found that men who smoked both still have a higher chance of bladder cancer, but it was still a lower chance than those who smoked only cigarettes, Raw Story said.

“Cannabis use only was associated with a 45 percent reduction in bladder cancer incidence, and tobacco use only was associated with a 52 percent increase in bladder cancer,” the study’s author, Dr. Anil Thomas, said, Raw Story reported.

And smoking a lot of marijuana brought the greatest positive results.

Those who smoked marijuana more than 500 times a year had even less risk of bladder cancer than those who smoked the drug only once in a while, Raw Story reported.