Cannabis Research Quality Guidance

FDA has published a draft guidance, Cannabis and Cannabis-Derived Compounds: Quality Considerations for Clinical Research, outlining the agency’s current thinking on several topics relevant to clinical research related to the development of drugs containing cannabis or cannabis-derived compounds. The document does not address the development of fully synthetic versions of substances that occur in cannabis, sometimes known as cannabis-related compounds, that are regulated like other fully synthetic drugs.

The guidance is intended to provide clarity about a provision in the 2018 farm bill that changed the way cannabis is treated under the Controlled Substances Act. It also introduces key FDA regulatory concepts to stakeholders who may be less familiar with FDA or its authorities than other drug developers.

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