Olivia Newton-John will champion the use of medicinal cannabis when she is in Australia this week to raise money for her wellness and research centre.

“I will do what I can to encourage it. It’s an important part of treatment, and it should be available,” the singer, who announced a second battle with breast cancer in May, told News Corp Australia.

Newton-John said the drug – which is legal in her home state of California – helped her during her second fight against cancer.

“I use medicinal cannabis, which is really important for pain and healing,” she said.

“It’s a plant that has been maligned for so long, and has so many abilities to heal.”

The singer announced a second battle with breast cancer in May. Photo: Getty

The government has provided a pathway for the prescription of medical cannabis, but the process has been described as “somewhat complicated”.

To date, fewer than 150 patients in Australia have access to medical cannabis, while the industry is still navigating the regulations around cultivation licensing.

Newton-John will be in Melbourne this week for a gala dinner for the world-leading Olivia Newton-John Cancer Wellness and Research Centre in Melbourne which she set up following her initial battle 25 years ago.

The 68-year-old announced on her Facebook page in May that back pain she had been experiencing turned out to be breast cancer that has metastasised to the sacrum, a bone in her lower back.

In addition to natural wellness therapies, Newton-John has undergone a short course of photon radiation therapy.

“I decided on my direction of therapies after consultation with my doctors and natural therapists and the medical team at my Olivia Newton-John Cancer Wellness and Research Centre in Melbourne, Australia,” Newton-John wrote on Facebook.