Hard-hearted cops in America seized a terminally-ill cancer patient because he had been using marijuana extracts to ease his pain.

Police in Kansas arrested 69-year-old Greg Bertz for drug possession in his room at Hays Medical Center on 16th December.

They seized a vape kit and edible paste containing tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) – the principal psychoactive constituent of cannabis – from his room.

They notified him he must attend a court hearing on 2nd January, even though he is bed-ridden with terminal cancer and cannot even stand unassisted.

Greg has been hospitalised for about three weeks. During that time, he has been vaping and eating bread with THC paste on for pain relief.

He told a friend he had got the green light from a medic, who had told him he could do anything he wanted to relieve his symptoms.

However, a staff member at the hospital had caught him using his vaping device and denounced him.

The three officers who visited him explained to him that the device was a fire safety hazard, given the hospital room is provisioned with oxygen.

Greg told a friend he would try to contact prosecutors to see if they would delay the hearing so that he will be dead by the time it arrives.

Kansas is one of only three US states that fully ban marijuana for medical purposes. The others are Nebraska and Idaho.