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Medical marijuana, legal in California, may be helping actor Patrick Swayze, star of the popular movies Dirty Dancing and Ghost, regain his appetite and put on some much needed pounds, a family insider reports. Swayze, 56, has been battling deadly pancreatic cancer for the last 20 months with aggressive chemotherapy and radiotherapy, which causes nausea, vomiting and anxiety.

Appearing more robust and healthier, recent pictures show Swayze looking reminiscent of the Sexiest Man Alive of 1991, a title he won due in part to his chiseled dancer’s body. The family insider says Patrick claims he feels more “normal than he has in months.” The photos show him sporting sideburns and a goatee, rare for a patient undergoing this type of treatment, which usually results in total hair loss.

The insider says Swayze and brother Donnie smoke marijuana at the treatment center of the Cedars-Sinai Medical Center almost every day.

California legalized medical marijuana in 1996 when voters passed Proposition 215, the Compassionate Use Act. Prop 215 allows doctors to prescribe marijuana to seriously ill residents of the state. The Act also protects doctors against professional or legal sanctions for recommending the use of the drug. Voters in five other states including Alaska and Oregon have legalized the use of marijuana for medical purposes.

Cannabis, the scientific term for marijuana, can provide relief for many conditions including insomnia, depression, chronic pain, cancer, appetite disorders, anxiety, severe nausea, and many other serious illnesses.

Swayze vows to continue his fight against cancer and in January of 2009 claimed to Barbara Walters that he is “kicking it.” He has been writing his autobiography with the help of his wife of 34 years, Lisa Niemi. The memoir, produced by Atria Books, is set to be released in the fall of 2009.