A recent FDA blog highlights the agency's extensive experience in cannabis research and its role in supporting the development of future cannabis drugs. The FDA's exploration of cannabis spans over 50 years, during which it has reviewed over 800 investigational new drug applications (INDs) and pre-INDs related to cannabis and cannabis-derived products (CCDPs).
The Office of the Center Director, Center for Drug Evaluation and Research's (CDER) public health advisory Cassandra L. Taylor, and Office of Executive Programs project manager Schuyler Pruyn share that the clinical trials under the majority of CCDP INDs focus on four therapeutic areas:
Addiction and pain medicine
Neurology
Immunology and inflammation
Psychiatry
We are in exciting era of cannabis research and as we anticipate a surge in INDs for cannabis-derived products, we must ensure consumers have access to safe, effective, and beneficial treatments. As Taylor and Pruyn state, "the agency will continue to support sound, scientifically based research into the therapeutic uses of CCDPs and will work with companies interested in bringing safe, effective, and quality drugs to market through our drug development and approval process."
Cannabis Consumer Watch members share in this goal of advocating for safe, effective, and quality cannabis drugs. To get there, we must incentivize more thorough research, and ensure products are evaluated through the FDA's proven approval process.
Read the full blog from FDA here.