44-year-old singer Melissa Etheridge says she smoked medicinal marijuana to help fight the side effects of chemotheraphy during her strenuous treatment for breast cancer.

Etheridge was diagnosed over a year ago, but is now cancer-free, according to the Associated Press.

In an interview to air Sunday on “Dateline NBC” (7 p.m. EDT), Etheridge says, “Instead of taking five or six of the prescriptions, I decided to go a natural route and smoke marijuana.”

The singer reveals she smoked medicinal marijuana every day for her pain and symptoms and, “the minute I didn’t feel it, I stopped.”

When asked how her doctors reacted to her decision, Etheridge says, ” Every single one was, ‘Oh, yeah. That’s the best help for the effects of chemotheraphy’.”

It is legal to use marijuana with a doctor’s recommendation in California and nine other states, yet is is against federal law.

When asked if she was worried about federal prosecution, Etheridge stated, ” No,I didnt’t worry. But it was worth it.”

Her recently released greatest hits album, “The Road Less Traveled,” included the new song, “I Run for Life,” which she dedicated to the fight against breast cancer.






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