The purpose of the Center for Medicinal Cannabis Research is to coordinate rigorous scientific studies to assess the safety and efficacy of cannabis and cannabis compounds for treating medical conditions.
2017 National Academies Report
CMCR Legislative Report
2000 IOM Report
1999 IOM Report
The Center for Medicinal Cannabis Research (CMCR) is seeking to fund primary and pilot cannabis-related studies that further enhance the understanding of the efficacy and adverse effects of cannabis and cannabinoids as pharmacological agents for the treatment of medical and psychiatric disorders, and their potential public health impacts. More information about this funding opportunity, including application instructions and important dates can be found in the request for applications (RFA).
Brooke Staggs, Orange County Register, May 8, 2019
Nearly three years after the Drug Enforcement Agency announced it would end a monopoly on who can grow cannabis for legally sanctioned research, there’s still only one federally authorized cannabis cultivator in the United States.
And the limited supply of research cannabis is hampering the speed, quality and range of studies that scientists can conduct on the potential medical benefits, or harms, of marijuana — even as demand for reliable cannabis research soars.
“It is politics and not science that is interrupting the conduct of this research,” said John Hudak, a fellow at the nonprofit Brookings Institution who specializes in marijuana policy. “And that is not something that Americans should stand for.”
Felice J. Freyer, Boston Globe, April 30, 2019
An investor in the cannabis industry has donated $9 million to Harvard and MIT to study the drug’s health effects, in what the institutions describe as the largest private gift to support marijuana research in the United States.
The Broderick Fund for Phytocannabinoid Research, announced Tuesday morning, will be shared equally by Harvard Medical School and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, with the goal of filling vast gaps in the understanding of how marijuana affects the brain and behavior.
“The lack of basic science research enables people to make claims in a vacuum that are either anecdotal or based on old science,” said the donor, Charles R. “Bob” Broderick, an alumnus of both universities. “For generations we haven’t been able to study this thing for various sorts of societal reasons. That should end now, as well as the prohibitions that are falling around the world.”
Marty Munson, Men's Health, April 3, 2019
CVS and Walgreens announced they’re going to sell products containing CBD, best known as the component of marijuana that won’t make you high, in certain stores. CVS is currently selling CBD topicals—creams, sprays, and lotions—in eight states. Walgreens announced its intention to sell CBD products days later, but “isn’t sharing additional details at this time,” according to a spokesperson.
If CBD hadn’t already reached fever pitch, with products like CBD-containing gummies, beer, coffee, eye creams, and even (no kidding) suppositories flooding the market, this announcement legitimizes the compound further.
But market share and the veneer of legitimacy doesn’t mean there’s a lot of clarity around the stuff. Here’s what to know about CBD before you buy:
Eli Rosenberg, Washington Post, March 19, 2019
There is CBD beer, and CBD coffee, and CBD gummies and soda, skin care, oils and drops. And now the cannabis-derived product is appearing in jelly beans — designed by the man who created Jelly Belly candies.
The product, a mash-up of an “adult” chemical compound — CBD — and a staple of American childhoods, has been so popular that the company that created it, Spectrum Confections, helmed by Jelly Belly inventor David Klein, sold out after a spate of press coverage over the past week.
“Jelly Belly creator debuts cannabis-infused jelly beans: Toasted marshmallow, mango and more,” USA Today wrote.
Igor Grant, MD
Marijuana as Medicine: Can We See Past the Smoke?
North American Cannabis Summit presentation January 2019 (PDF)
Igor Grant, MD
Introduction/Overview
CMCR Symposium, June 2018
Daniele Piomelli, MD, PhD, PharmD
The health impact of cannabis
CMCR Symposium, June 2018
Ziva Cooper, PhD
Therapeutic potential of cannabis for pain alone and as an adjunct to opioids
CMCR Symposium, June 2018
Iain McGregor, PhD
Medicinal cannabis research down under: Introducing the Lambert Initiative for Cannabinoid Therapeutics
CMCR Symposium, June 2018
Thomas Marcotte, PhD
Cannabis and public safety: The challenge of cannabis-impaired driving
CMCR Symposium, June 2018
Ryan Vandrey, PhD
What's in real-world cannabis?
CMCR Symposium, June 2018