Is There a Pill to Help You Quit Cannabis? The Cochrane Review Says Not Yet
The most comprehensive review of medications for cannabis use disorder found no pharmacotherapy with strong evidence for promoting abstinence or reliably reducing withdrawal symptoms.
Quick Facts
What This Study Found
This is the gold standard of evidence synthesis: a Cochrane systematic review, now in its second update since 2014. The question is simple—is there a medication that helps people quit cannabis or reduces withdrawal? The answer, despite years of additional research, remains: not yet.
The review searched for randomized controlled trials comparing medications to placebo, other medications, or no pharmacotherapy for treating cannabis dependence. The critical outcomes were: abstinence at end of treatment, withdrawal intensity including craving, adverse events, and severe adverse events.
Multiple medication classes have been tested over the years—antidepressants, anxiolytics, mood stabilizers, cannabinoid agonists (like dronabinol and nabilone), N-acetylcysteine, gabapentin, and others. None has emerged with strong, consistent evidence for promoting cannabis abstinence or meaningfully reducing withdrawal symptoms across trials.
This doesn't mean no medication will ever work—it means the evidence to date hasn't identified one. Some agents showed promise in individual trials but failed to replicate, or showed modest effects on secondary outcomes without achieving the primary goal of abstinence.
The practical implication is that psychosocial treatments (cognitive-behavioral therapy, motivational enhancement, contingency management) remain the first-line approach for cannabis use disorder, without a pharmacological adjunct that's proven to help.
Key Numbers
Cochrane Review, second update since 2014. Searched through May 2024. Critical outcomes: abstinence, withdrawal intensity, adverse events. No medication showed strong evidence for abstinence or consistent withdrawal relief.
How They Did This
Cochrane systematic review (second update, originally published 2014). Searched CENTRAL, MEDLINE, Embase, and PsycINFO through May 2024. Included RCTs and quasi-RCTs of medications for cannabis withdrawal and/or cessation/reduction vs. other medications, placebo, or no medication in cannabis-dependent participants.
Why This Research Matters
Cannabis use disorder affects a meaningful minority of cannabis users, and the absence of approved pharmacotherapy is a significant gap. Alcohol has naltrexone and acamprosate; nicotine has varenicline and NRT; opioids have buprenorphine and methadone. Cannabis has nothing. This Cochrane review confirms that gap and provides a rigorous benchmark for evaluating future candidates.
The Bigger Picture
This is the pharmacotherapy counterpart to the behavioral evidence. RTHC-00154 and RTHC-00156 showed that behavioral interventions (varenicline, text-based support) can help with co-occurring nicotine/cannabis use. RTHC-00157 tested integrated therapy for PTSD + CUD. RTHC-00176 explored app-based vs. face-to-face cessation. All of these are psychosocial or behavioral—because no medication has proven effective for cannabis specifically. The search continues, but for now, therapy is the evidence-based approach.
What This Study Doesn't Tell Us
A null result from a systematic review doesn't prove no medication can work—it means none tested so far has shown consistent efficacy. Some trials may have been underpowered. Cannabis use disorder severity varies widely, and some medications might work for specific subgroups. The search through May 2024 means very recent trials may not be included.
Questions This Raises
- ?Will any of the medications showing early promise in individual trials prove effective in larger replications?
- ?Could combinations of medications work where single agents haven't?
- ?Should research focus on withdrawal-specific medications (making quitting more comfortable) rather than abstinence-promoting ones?
Trust & Context
- Key Stat:
- Evidence Grade:
- Cochrane systematic review—the highest level of evidence synthesis. The null finding is itself strong evidence of the absence of proven pharmacotherapy.
- Study Age:
- Published in 2025, second update of a review first published in 2014, with searches through May 2024.
- Original Title:
- Pharmacotherapies for cannabis use disorder.
- Published In:
- The Cochrane database of systematic reviews, 9(9), CD008940 (2025) — The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews is a highly respected source for systematic reviews in healthcare.
- Authors:
- Spiga, Francesca(2), Parkhouse, Thomas, Tang, Victor M(2), Savović, Jelena, Le Foll, Bernard, Nielsen, Suzanne
- Funding:
- Received funding from the National Institute for Health and Care Research.
- Database ID:
- RTHC-07707
Evidence Hierarchy
Analyzes all available research on a topic using a structured method.
What do these levels mean? →Read More on RethinkTHC
- 30-days-without-weed
- 420-sober-survival-guide
- 6-months-sober-weed-what-to-expect
- 90-days-no-weed
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- caffeine-weed-withdrawal
- cannabinoid-hyperemesis-syndrome
- cannabis-relapse-cycle-pattern
- cannabis-withdrawal-complete-guide
- cannabis-withdrawal-severity-levels-mild-moderate-severe
- cannabis-withdrawal-syndrome
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- cannabis-withdrawal-vs-alcohol-nicotine-opioid-comparison
- cold-turkey-vs-taper-quit-weed
- creativity-without-weed-quitting-artist-musician
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- emotional-after-quitting-weed-crying
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- first-week-quitting-weed
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- journaling-weed-withdrawal
- leaving-stoner-culture-identity
- marijuana-anonymous-SMART-recovery-compare
- marijuana-withdrawal-symptoms
- meditation-mindfulness-weed-withdrawal
- money-saved-quitting-weed-calculator
- night-sweats-quitting-weed-withdrawal
- one-year-sober-weed
- partner-still-smokes-weed
- partner-still-smokes-weed-quitting
- paws-cannabis-post-acute-withdrawal
- pink-cloud-sobriety-cannabis
- quit-weed-cold-turkey
- quit-weed-or-cut-back-which-is-better
- quit-weed-regret-went-back
- quitting-weed-20s
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- quitting-weed-creativity
- quitting-weed-during-crisis-divorce-job-loss
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- quitting-weed-grief-loss-coping
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- quitting-weed-triggers-environment
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- relapsed-smoking-weed-what-to-do
- relapsed-weed
- should-i-quit-weed
- sober-music-festival-concert-without-weed
- supplements-weed-withdrawal
- telling-friends-quitting-weed
- weed-cravings
- weed-depersonalization-derealization
- weed-paws-withdrawal
- weed-relapse-prevention-plan
- weed-relapse-why-it-happens
- weed-ritual-replacement
- weed-ruined-relationships
- weed-social-media-triggers-quit
- weed-withdrawal-anger
- weed-withdrawal-brain-fog
- weed-withdrawal-chest-tightness-heart-palpitations
- weed-withdrawal-crying-emotional
- weed-withdrawal-depression
- weed-withdrawal-headaches
- weed-withdrawal-irritability
- weed-withdrawal-men
- weed-withdrawal-mood-swings
- weed-withdrawal-nausea
- weed-withdrawal-night-sweats
- weed-withdrawal-no-appetite
- weed-withdrawal-sweating-detox
- weed-withdrawal-timeline
- weed-withdrawal-vs-alcohol
- weed-withdrawal-women
- what-happens-when-you-stop-smoking-weed
- best-apps-quitting-weed-review
- best-apps-quit-weed-2026
- weed-withdrawal-tracker
- best-books-quitting-weed-cannabis-recovery
- cannabis-recovery-community-support-group-compare
- quitting-weed-journal-prompts-guided
- support-groups-quit-weed
- thc-and-weightlifting-muscle-growth-recovery
- cannabis-recovery-devotional-30-days-scripture
- celebrate-recovery-vs-marijuana-anonymous
- night-sweats-after-quitting-weed
Cite This Study
https://rethinkthc.com/research/RTHC-07707APA
Spiga, Francesca; Parkhouse, Thomas; Tang, Victor M; Savović, Jelena; Le Foll, Bernard; Nielsen, Suzanne. (2025). Pharmacotherapies for cannabis use disorder.. The Cochrane database of systematic reviews, 9(9), CD008940. https://doi.org/10.1002/14651858.CD008940.pub4
MLA
Spiga, Francesca, et al. "Pharmacotherapies for cannabis use disorder.." The Cochrane database of systematic reviews, 2025. https://doi.org/10.1002/14651858.CD008940.pub4
RethinkTHC
RethinkTHC Research Database. "Pharmacotherapies for cannabis use disorder." RTHC-07707. Retrieved from https://rethinkthc.com/research/spiga-2025-pharmacotherapies-for-cannabis-use
Access the Original Study
Study data sourced from PubMed, a service of the U.S. National Library of Medicine, National Institutes of Health.
This study breakdown was produced by the RethinkTHC research team. We analyze and report published research findings without making health recommendations. All interpretations are based solely on the published abstract and study data.