Cannabis Quitting Research

Varenicline for cannabis use disorder: A randomized controlled trial.

McRae-Clark, Aimee L · 2026

Varenicline did not reduce cannabis use sessions overall during weeks 6-12.

Rural and Urban Variation in Mobile Health Substance Use Disorder Treatment Mechanisms and Efficacy.

Mennis, Jeremy · 2026

The PNC-txt mobile health intervention reduced cannabis use at 6 months by increasing readiness to change and protective behavioral strategies at 1 month.

Cannabis Co-Use and Endocannabinoid System Modulation in Tobacco Use Disorder: A Translational Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

P A Costa, Gabriel · 2026

Meta-analysis of 18 observational studies (N=229,630) found cannabis use was associated with 35% lower odds of quitting tobacco (OR=0.65).

Effectiveness of cognitive behavioral therapy for harmful cannabis use: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Ullah, Safat · 2026

CBT did not significantly reduce cannabis use frequency at short-term (effect=0.12, p=0.10), medium-term (effect=-0.03, p=0.75), or long-term (effect=0.01, p=0.91) follow-ups compared to control conditions.

N-acetylcysteine for youth cannabis use disorder: randomized controlled trial main findings.

Gray, Kevin M · 2025

In a double-blind RCT of 192 treatment-seeking youth (ages 14-21) with CUD, N-acetylcysteine 1200 mg twice daily for 12 weeks showed no advantage over placebo on any cannabis use outcome.

Effectiveness and safety of psychosocial interventions for the treatment of cannabis use disorder: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Halicka, Monika · 2025

Across 22 RCTs with 3,304 participants, MET-CBT significantly increased point abstinence (OR=18.27) and continuous abstinence (OR=2.72) compared to inactive/non-specific comparators.

Selective Personality-Targeted Intervention and the Escalation of Substance Use During Adolescence: A Secondary Analysis of A Cluster-Randomized Clinical Trial.

Lynch, Samantha J · 2025

Students receiving PreVenture, a brief personality-targeted cognitive-behavioral intervention, showed slower increases in cannabis use (OR=0.75), tobacco smoking (OR=0.79), alcohol use (OR=0.92), and illicit polysubstance use (OR=0.56) over 4 years compared to controls.

Treatment demand for cannabis use problems: analyses of routine data from 30 European countries.

Manthey, Jakob · 2025

The cannabis-attributable treatment fraction rose from 29.4% in 2013 to 37.1% in 2020 across 20 European countries.

Disparities in Treatment Outcomes for Cannabis Use Disorder Among Adolescents.

Miranda, Helena · 2025

Of 40,054 adolescents with CUD, only 36.8% completed treatment.

Efficacy of cannabidiol alone or in combination with Δ-9-tetrahydrocannabinol for the management of substance use disorders: An umbrella review of the evidence.

Redonnet, Bertrand · 2025

From 22 systematic reviews (5 with meta-analysis), CBD monotherapy does not appear efficacious for treating substance use disorders including cannabis, tobacco, alcohol, and opioid use.

Cannabis use and trauma-focused treatment for co-occurring posttraumatic stress disorder and substance use disorders: A meta-analysis of individual patient data.

Hill, Melanie L · 2024

A common clinical concern is that cannabis use might interfere with PTSD treatment — either by numbing emotions needed for therapeutic processing or by signaling lower motivation for change.

Associations between cannabis policies and state-level specialty cannabis use disorder treatment in the United States, 2004-2019.

Mauro, Pia M · 2024

CUD treatment decreased 2.15 points after MCL with dispensaries (2004-2014).

Association of Cannabis Use Reduction With Improved Functional Outcomes: An Exploratory Aggregated Analysis From Seven Cannabis Use Disorder Treatment Trials to Extract Data-Driven Cannabis Reduction Metrics.

McClure, Erin A · 2024

In 920 participants across 7 CUD trials, reductions in use were associated with improvements in cannabis-related problems, clinician ratings, and sleep.

Cannabis legalization and changes in cannabis and tobacco/nicotine use and co-use in a national cohort of U.S. adults during 2017-2021.

Pravosud, Vira · 2024

Cannabis use increased 3.3% from 2017-2021 while tobacco/nicotine use declined 1.9%.

Monitoring adherence and abstinence of cannabis use disorder patients: Profile identification and relationship with long-term treatment outcomes.

Dacosta-Sánchez, Daniel · 2023

Latent profile analysis of 2,055 CUD outpatients revealed three groups: moderate abstinence/moderate adherence (n=997), high abstinence/moderate adherence (n=613), and high abstinence/high adherence (n=445).

Longitudinal effects of cannabis use on attentional processes in patients with first episode of psychosis.

Setién-Suero, Esther · 2022

Over 3 years, attention improved most in FEP patients who never used cannabis (n=238), followed by ex-users (n=105) and persistent users (n=43).

Prevalence of cannabis withdrawal symptoms among people with regular or dependent use of cannabinoids: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Bahji, Anees · 2020

This was the first meta-analysis to estimate how common cannabis withdrawal syndrome actually is.

Cannabidiol for the treatment of cannabis use disorder: a phase 2a, double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomised, adaptive Bayesian trial.

Freeman, Tom P · 2020

CBD 400mg reduced urinary THC metabolites by 94 ng/mL and increased abstinent days by 0.48 per week compared to placebo.

Increasing Depression and Substance Use Among Former Smokers in the United States, 2002-2016.

Cheslack-Postava, Keely · 2019

Among former smokers, past-year marijuana use rose from 5.35% to 10.09% (2002-2016), depression increased from 4.88% to 6.04% (2005-2016), and binge alcohol use rose from 17.22% to 22.33% (2002-2016).

Change in alcohol and other drug use during five years of continuous opioid substitution treatment.

Eastwood, Brian · 2019

Continued high-level heroin use during OST predicted continued high-level crack cocaine use (RRR 58.7), continued high-level alcohol use (RRR 1.2), and increasing unspecified drug use (RRR 1.7), but was associated with less high-and-increasing cannabis use (RRR 0.5)..

Coming off cannabis: a cognitive and magnetic resonance imaging study in patients with multiple sclerosis.

Feinstein, Anthony · 2019

After 28 days of abstinence, the withdrawal group performed significantly better on every cognitive measure (P < 0.0001 for all) compared to the continuation group.

Stopping cannabis use benefits outcome in psychosis: findings from 10-year follow-up study in the PAFIP-cohort.

Setién-Suero, E · 2019

Persistent cannabis users had more severe symptoms (BPRS: p < .001; SAPS: p = .002) and poorer functioning (DAS: p = .048; GAF: p = .033) at 10 years compared to ex-users and never-users.

Evidence-based Treatment Options in Cannabis Dependency.

Walther, Lisa · 2016

This evidence-based review of treatment options for cannabis dependence found psychotherapy to be the most effective approach, with all psychotherapeutic interventions supported at evidence level Ia (the highest). Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) combined with other techniques showed moderate to large effects (Cohen's d = 0.53-0.9) on cannabis consumption, psychosocial functioning, and dependence severity.

Nabiximols as an agonist replacement therapy during cannabis withdrawal: a randomized clinical trial.

Allsop, David J · 2014

In a double-blind clinical trial, 51 cannabis-dependent treatment seekers received either nabiximols (up to 86.4 mg THC and 80 mg CBD daily) or placebo during a 9-day inpatient admission, followed by 28 days of outpatient follow-up.

The efficacy of an opportunistic cognitive behavioral intervention package (OCB) on substance use and comorbid suicide risk: a multisite randomized controlled trial.

Morley, Kirsten C · 2014

Over 6 months, there were no completed suicides and only 2 suicide attempts among 185 participants, which is a positive outcome regardless of treatment group.

Is cannabis legalization associated with treatment completion? A study of pregnant women admitted for cannabis use in substance use treatment facilities, 2020-2022.

Carandang, Rogie Royce · 2026

This is the first large-scale study to examine whether cannabis legalization affects treatment completion among pregnant women—a uniquely vulnerable population where treatment success has direct consequences for two patients. Using the Treatment Episode Data Set-Discharge (national treatment data from 2020–2022), the researchers analyzed 13,088 pregnant women admitted for cannabis use across states with different legal frameworks: fully legalized, medical only, or illegal. The finding was stark: pregnant women in states with full legalization had an adjusted odds ratio of 0.33 for treatment completion compared to illegal states—meaning 67% lower odds of completing treatment.

Effectiveness and clinical predictors of a virtual based combined cognitive behavioral and motivational enhancement group therapy for adults with cannabis use disorder.

Mehta, Dhvani D · 2026

Among the 79 participants who completed the program (68% retention), significant reductions were observed in cannabis use frequency, quantity, craving, depression (PHQ-9), and anxiety (GAD-7).

Tailored psychotherapy and AI-enhanced contingency management for co-occurring disorders in cannabis use disorder: a systematic review.

Mishra, Sidharth · 2026

Integrated cognitive-behavioral therapies improved psychiatric symptoms and reduced cannabis use, particularly for co-occurring depression and PTSD.

Glucagon-like peptide 1 receptor agonists in substance use disorders: A systematic review of ClinicalTrials.Gov.

Patil, Shruti · 2026

A systematic review of ClinicalTrials.gov found 33 trials testing GLP-1 receptor agonists for substance use disorders: alcohol (n=15), nicotine/tobacco (n=9), cocaine (n=4), opioid (n=4), and methamphetamine (n=1).

Evidence-based therapist guided introduction to online heavy cannabis use treatment in Canadian adults: a Randomized Controlled Trial (RCT).

Rysen, Karli K · 2026

All participants reduced cannabis consumption frequency and problems at end of treatment (6 weeks) and follow-up (10 weeks).

Consumption patterns and withdrawal symptoms in dual cannabis-tobacco users in Spain: Cross-sectional study.

Saura, Judith · 2026

This cross-sectional study of 94 participants entering cannabis use disorder treatment in Catalonia, Spain, documented the deeply intertwined nature of cannabis and tobacco use in a European context where mixing the two substances in "spliffs" is the dominant consumption method. Daily tobacco use was reported by 91.5% of participants, with a mean Fagerström nicotine dependence score of 4.2 out of 10 (moderate dependence).

Evidence-based consensus guidelines for the pharmacological management of substance dependence: Recommendations from the British Association for Psychopharmacology.

Sinclair, Julia Ma · 2026

The British Association for Psychopharmacology convened international experts to produce evidence-based consensus guidelines for the pharmacological management of substance dependence across all major drug classes. For cannabis and synthetic cannabinoid dependence, the guidelines revealed a stark gap: no medications have received regulatory approval for treatment.

Early Substance Use Initiation Is Associated With Difficulty Quitting Among American Indian and Non-American Indian Youth: A Potential Marker of Later Dependence?

Swaim, Randall C · 2026

American Indian youth were more likely than non-AI youth to initiate cigarette and cannabis use from ages 10-14, with similar rates from 15 onward.

Household cannabis cessation and adolescent mental health outcomes in a prospective cohort study.

Wang, Ming · 2026

Using longitudinal data from the ABCD Study, researchers identified adolescents (ages 10–13) living in households where someone used cannabis, then tracked what happened to the teens' mental health when household members stopped. After propensity score matching to control for demographic and psychological differences, household cannabis cessation was associated with improvements in adolescents' internalizing problems (anxiety, depression), externalizing problems (conduct, aggression), and psychotic-like experiences. The study went further to identify potential pathways.

Effect of mobile-based ecological momentary motivational enhancement therapy on cannabis use temptation and dependence severity among Iranian young adults with cannabis use disorder: A randomized clinical trial.

Darharaj, Mohammad · 2025

Ecological momentary motivational enhancement therapy (EM-MET) was associated with greater reductions in cannabis temptation (Partial eta-squared = 0.35, P < 0.001) and dependence severity (Partial eta-squared = 0.24, P < 0.001) compared to standard motivational enhancement therapy alone..

Predictors of effective therapy among individuals with Cannabis Use Disorder: a review of the literature.

Feingold, Daniel · 2025

Specific mediators: treatment duration, motivation to change, coping skills, self-efficacy, multi-component integration.

Cannabis Use and Nicotine Vaping Cessation Outcomes: A Secondary Analysis of a Randomized Clinical Trial.

Gilman, Jodi M · 2025

This secondary analysis followed 192 young people (ages 16–25) enrolled in a nicotine vaping cessation trial that tested varenicline against placebo and an enhanced usual care texting program.

Dual abstinence from nicotine vaping and cannabis use among young people: secondary analyses from two U.S.-based randomized controlled trials of vaping cessation.

Graham, Amanda L · 2025

This analysis drew from two large text-message-based vaping cessation trials—one for adolescents and one for young adults.

An Analysis of 16-Year Trends in Cannabis Use Disorder Treatment: Predictors, Barriers, and Utilization Patterns.

Graves, Brian D · 2025

Across three national survey time points (2003, 2011, 2019), CUD treatment utilization decreased while most individuals meeting diagnostic criteria did not receive treatment.

Wisconsin Young Adults' Attitudes, Beliefs, Motivations, and Behaviors Surrounding E-Cigarette Use and Cessation.

Kaye, Jesse T · 2025

This survey of 480 Wisconsin residents ages 18–24 who vaped nicotine reveals a population that is motivated to quit but deeply divided on how. The headline: 80% wanted support to quit vaping.

Back on track: Feasibility and efficacy randomized trial of a two-week online self-guided intervention for cannabis use reduction.

Kroon, E · 2025

The MCII group achieved objective reduction goals at 69%, vs.

Change in Cigarette, Other Tobacco Product, and Cannabis Use Among Individuals Who Used or Did Not Use Cannabis During a Smoking Cessation Trial.

Lambart, Leah M · 2025

47.2% of participants were cigarette-cannabis dual users.

Brief mindfulness intervention for adults with cannabis use disorder: A randomised clinical trial.

Lorenzetti, Valentina · 2025

There were no significant intervention-by-time effects on the primary outcome of cannabis use frequency, nor on secondary outcomes including quantity, cravings, relaxation, or mindfulness scores.

Young Adults Advancing Through the Stages of Change: A Mediational Analysis of Cannabis Use Disorder Treatment.

Mason, Michael J · 2025

Mediation analysis showed that PNC-txt participants who reached the Action/Maintenance stage by 1 month had 50% lower odds of the highest THC metabolite level (300 ng/ml) and reported 4 fewer days of cannabis use in the past 30 days at 6 months, compared to controls..

Text message-delivered cannabis use disorder treatment with young adults: A large randomized clinical trial.

Mason, Michael J · 2025

No significant direct treatment effects on cannabis use were found between PNC-txt and control.

Detecting cannabis use reduction through biochemical verification of urinary cannabinoids: An aggregated analysis of cannabis use disorder treatment trials examining average reductions and individual cut-points.

McClure, Erin A · 2025

Participants self-reporting cannabis use reduction had significantly lower urinary cannabinoids compared to non-reducers (difference of 391 ng/ml, 95% CI 231-551, p < 0.001).

Cannabis and tobacco use in bipolar disorder: Associations with early onset, psychotic symptoms, and relapse risk (2015-2019).

Olivier, Luis · 2025

Cannabis was associated with earlier onset of bipolar disorder, current manic polarity, presence of psychotic symptoms, and higher likelihood of discontinuing treatment.

Dynamic associations between cannabis use and sleep in adolescents and young adults during a cannabis intervention trial.

Parnes, Jamie E · 2025

During the first week of treatment, more cannabis use was associated with longer sleep for those with severe cannabis use disorder, but shorter sleep for those with mild CUD.

Cannabis use among adults who smoke tobacco: Relations with switching from combusted cigarettes to e-cigarettes or very low nicotine cigarettes.

Piper, Megan E · 2025

Participants who reported past-30-day cannabis co-use (N=56) smoked significantly more usual brand cigarettes during switch weeks than non-co-users (N=104, p=0.03) and were less likely to make a tobacco cessation attempt (p<0.05).

A multi-site study examining the tobacco withdrawal trajectory in people with tobacco and cannabis co-use.

Rabin, Rachel A · 2025

Among 330 participants with verified tobacco abstinence from a cessation trial (55 cannabis co-users, 275 tobacco-only), cannabis co-users had significantly elevated withdrawal scores at week 1 (mean 9.3 vs 7.1, p < 0.01).

Help-seeking behaviours among cannabis consumers in Canada and the United States: Findings from the international cannabis policy study.

Rundle, Samantha M · 2025

Among 13,209 past-12-month cannabis consumers, only 9.2% sought help in the past 3 months.

Pharmacotherapies for cannabis use disorder.

Spiga, Francesca · 2025

This is the gold standard of evidence synthesis: a Cochrane systematic review, now in its second update since 2014.

Exploring Novel Pharmacotherapy Candidates for Cannabis Use Disorder: Uncovering Promising Agents on the Horizon by Mechanism of Action.

Alayoubi, Myra · 2024

This review of randomized placebo-controlled trials found that CB1 receptor agonists (such as nabilone) showed the most promise for treating cannabis use disorder, while serotonergic, GABAergic, and other compound classes had more limited or mixed evidence..

Does smoking cessation reduce other substance use, psychiatric symptoms, and pain symptoms? Results from an emulated hypothetical randomized trial of US veterans.

Ban, Kaoon Francois · 2024

Quitting smoking was associated with improvement in cannabis use (adjusted OR 1.75, 95% CI 1.00-3.06), unhealthy alcohol use (OR 2.10), and cocaine use (OR 2.25).

The impact of blunt use on smoking abstinence among Black adults: Secondary analysis from randomized controlled smoking cessation clinical trial.

Lambart, Leah · 2024

Of 500 participants, 75 (15%) reported blunt use during the study.

Randomized controlled trial of zolpidem as a pharmacotherapy for cannabis use disorder.

Lee, Dustin C · 2024

Placebo participants but not zolpidem-XR participants showed significant sleep disturbance during week 1 of cannabis cessation.

Mind it! A mindfulness-based group psychotherapy for substance use disorders in adolescent inpatients.

Legenbauer, Tanja · 2024

Both groups showed significant reductions in cannabis use days at 6-month follow-up (effect sizes d = -0.72 and -0.75).

Cognitive-behavioral therapies in the management of adolescents with cannabis use disorder (CUD): A systematic review.

Mauries, Sibylle · 2024

Nine RCTs of CBT for adolescent CUD found treatments ranging from 3 to 24 weeks, often combined with motivational interviewing or family therapy.

Effectiveness of the adolescent-community reinforcement approach for treating Cannabis use disorder in Iranian adolescents: A randomized controlled trial.

Mehr, Najmeh Khosrovan · 2024

Among 40 male adolescents with CUD, those receiving A-CRA (n=20) showed higher abstinence rates, reduced cannabis use frequency, decreased substance-related problems, lower psychological distress, improved health-promoting lifestyles, and better mother-adolescent relationships compared to treatment as usual, with effects maintained at three-month follow-up..

Effects of cannabis use on cigarette smoking cessation in LGBTQ+ individuals.

Pang, Raina D · 2024

While all participants reduced cigarette use during a quit attempt, the reduction was smaller among those with current cannabis use compared to non-users.

The Indirect Influence of Cannabis Use Disorder Symptoms on PTSD Symptom Severity Through Psychological Inflexibility.

Russell, Patricia D · 2024

Cannabis use disorder (CUD) and PTSD frequently co-occur, but what connects them? This study identifies a specific psychological mechanism: psychological inflexibility (PI) — the tendency to get stuck in rigid thought patterns and avoidant behaviors rather than adapting flexibly to situations. Among 336 college students, the researchers tested whether CUD symptoms → psychological inflexibility → worse PTSD formed a mediation pathway.

A mixed method study exploring similarities and differences in general and social services-specific barriers to treatment-seeking among individuals with a problematic use of alcohol, cannabis, or gambling.

Schettini, Greta · 2024

Cannabis users shared similar treatment barriers with alcohol and gambling users, including privacy concerns, stigma, and fear of consequences.

Emerging pharmacotherapy for the treatment of cannabis use disorder.

Shamabadi, Ahmad · 2024

Across multiple pharmacological systems, CBD, gabapentin, galantamine, nabilone plus zolpidem, nabiximols, naltrexone, PF-04457845 (FAAH inhibitor), quetiapine, varenicline, and topiramate all showed some superiority over control conditions in RCTs for CUD.

Inpatients in substance use treatment with co-occurring psychiatric disorders: a prospective cohort study of characteristics and relapse predictors.

Andersson, Helle Wessel · 2023

Patients with co-occurring disorders (COD) had a 39.8% relapse rate vs 26.4% for those without.

Assessing changes in sleep across four weeks among adolescents randomized to incentivized cannabis abstinence.

Baumer, Andreas M · 2023

In a randomized trial of 116 adolescents, those assigned to verified abstinence reported worse overall sleep quality than the monitoring group, but the disruption was specific to increased sleep latency during week one, which resolved by week two and remained at baseline through week four..

Co-use of cigarettes and cannabis among people with HIV: Results from a randomized controlled smoking cessation trial.

Ozga, Jenny E · 2023

Increased cannabis use was associated with reduced odds of cigarette abstinence at 6 months vs decreased use (aOR 0.22) or no use (aOR 0.25).

Scoping Review of Cannabis-Reduction Psychosocial Interventions and Reasons for Use among Young Adults with Psychosis.

Petros, Ryan · 2023

Young adults with psychosis use cannabis for pleasure, to reduce dysphoria, and for social reasons.

Unravelling the landscape of Cannabis craving pharmacological treatments: a PRISMA-guided review of evidence.

Preto, Mayra Cruz · 2023

Twenty-two RCTs investigated various compounds for cannabis craving.

Predictive impact of different acute cannabis intoxication effects with regard to abstinence motivation and cessation of use.

Schnell, Thomas · 2023

Paranoid/dysphoric intoxication effects were the strongest predictors of abstinence motivation.

Who responds to a multi-component treatment for cannabis use disorder? Using multivariable and machine learning models to classify treatment responders and non-responders.

Tomko, Rachel L · 2023

Both multivariable logistic regression and machine learning models (random forest, gradient boosting) had limited ability to classify CUD treatment responders versus non-responders.

Effects of sub-chronic nabiximols on biological markers of individuals undergoing a clinical trial for the treatment of cannabis use disorder.

Wang, Ruoyu · 2023

Sub-chronic exposure to nabiximols at doses higher than typically used for MS treatment did not produce clinically significant changes in biological markers.

Cannabis Use in Adults Who Screen Positive for Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder: CANreduce 2.0 Randomized Controlled Trial Subgroup Analysis.

Ahlers, Joachim · 2022

Both ADHD-positive (n=94) and ADHD-negative (n=273) groups significantly reduced cannabis use days, severity scores, anxiety, and depression.

Clinical management of cannabis withdrawal.

Connor, Jason P · 2022

Cannabis withdrawal occurs in approximately 50% of regular/dependent users.

Safety and efficacy of a digital therapeutic for substance use disorder: Secondary analysis of data from a NIDA clinical trials network study.

Maricich, Yuri A · 2022

Among 399 patients with alcohol, cannabis, cocaine, or stimulant use disorders, those receiving the digital therapeutic plus treatment-as-usual (with reduced counseling) achieved significantly higher abstinence at weeks 9-12 (40.3% vs 17.6%, P<0.001) and better treatment retention (P=0.004).

Correlates of treatment engagement and client outcomes: results of a randomised controlled trial of nabiximols for the treatment of cannabis use disorder.

Mills, Llewellyn · 2022

Greater counseling attendance predicted both abstinence and 50%+ reduction in cannabis use.

Mood, sleep and pain comorbidity outcomes in cannabis dependent patients: Findings from a nabiximols versus placebo randomised controlled trial.

Montebello, Mark · 2022

Among participants with moderate-to-severe baseline scores, depression, anxiety, stress, and insomnia symptoms gradually decreased over 12 weeks of treatment.

Longitudinal Associations Between Use of Tobacco and Cannabis Among People Who Smoke Cigarettes in Real-world Smoking Cessation Treatment.

Nguyen, Nhung · 2022

Changes in cigarette frequency (β=0.17), e-cigarette frequency (β=0.11), and cigar frequency (β=0.19) were all positively associated with changes in cannabis use frequency over 3 months..

Controlled Trial Examining the Strength-Based Grit Wellbeing and Self-Regulation Program for Young People in Residential Settings for Substance Use.

Quinn, Catherine A · 2022

Both groups improved on all outcomes at 3 months, maintained through 12 months.

Contingency Management for Treatment of Cannabis Use Disorder in Co-Occurring Mental Health Disorders: A Systematic Review.

Rodas, Justyne D · 2022

Contingency management produced cannabis use reductions and periods of abstinence in individuals with psychotic-spectrum disorders or major depressive disorder.

Evaluating cannabis use risk reduction as an alternative clinical outcome for cannabis use disorder.

Sherman, Brian J · 2022

Cannabis risk levels based on frequency and quantity were sensitive to reductions in use.

Assessment of Withdrawal, Mood, and Sleep Inventories After Monitored 3-Week Abstinence in Cannabis-Using Adolescents and Young Adults.

Sullivan, Ryan M · 2022

Cannabis-using participants (n=37) reported higher overall withdrawal, mood symptoms, and sleep problems than controls (n=42) during 3 weeks of verified abstinence.

Cannabinoids in the Treatment of Cannabis Use Disorder: Systematic Review of Randomized Controlled Trials.

Vuilleumier, Caroline · 2022

Dronabinol reduced withdrawal symptoms but had limited broader efficacy.

Targeting maladaptive reactivity to negative affect in emerging adults with cannabis use disorder: A preliminary test and proof of concept.

Wolitzky-Taylor, Kate · 2022

Affect Management Treatment (AMT) was more effective than standard CBT at reducing negative affect and maladaptive reactivity to negative emotions through post-treatment and 6-month follow-up.

Self-reported reductions in tobacco and nicotine use following medical cannabis initiation: Results from a cross-sectional survey of authorized medical cannabis patients in Canada.

Lucas, Philippe · 2021

Of 650 current or former tobacco/nicotine users, 320 (49%) self-reported reductions in use after initiating medical cannabis, with 160 (24.6%) reporting no tobacco/nicotine use in the prior 30 days.

Association between Smoking Cannabis and Quitting Cigarettes in a Large American Cancer Society Cohort.

Westmaas, J Lee · 2021

Adjusted cigarette quitting rates did not differ by cannabis status: never cannabis users (36.2%), former users (34.1%), and recent users (33.6%).

Is Recovery from Cannabis Dependence Possible? Factors that Help or Hinder Recovery in a National Sample of Canadians with a History of Cannabis Dependence.

Fuller-Thomson, Esme · 2020

72% were in remission from cannabis dependence, and 53% were free of major psychiatric disorders and substance dependence.

Patterns of cigarette, e-cigarette, and cannabis use among adult smokers in primary care 2014-2015.

Thrul, Johannes · 2020

48.6% smoked cigarettes only.

A systematic review and Bayesian meta-analysis of interventions which target or assess co-use of tobacco and cannabis in single- or multi-substance interventions.

Walsh, Hannah · 2020

Meta-analysis of 11 RCTs (up to 1,117 participants) showed weak evidence for cannabis cessation (RR=1.48, CrI 0.92-2.49) and no clear effect on tobacco cessation (RR=1.10, CrI 0.68-1.87).

Cigarette smoking quit ratios among adults in the USA with cannabis use and cannabis use disorders, 2002-2016.

Weinberger, Andrea H · 2020

In 2016, quit ratios were 23% for any cannabis users and 15% for those with CUD, versus 51% for non-cannabis users and 48% for those without CUD.

Cannabis cessation among youth: rates, patterns and academic outcomes in a large prospective cohort of Canadian high school students.

Zuckermann, Alexandra M · 2020

Only 14.8% decreased use between grades, with two-thirds making only incremental changes.

Interactive effects of PTSD and substance use on suicidal ideation and behavior in military personnel: Increased risk from marijuana use.

Allan, Nicholas P · 2019

PTSD symptoms and marijuana use both independently predicted suicidal ideation and behavior at follow-up.

Varenicline and nabilone in tobacco and cannabis co-users: effects on tobacco abstinence, withdrawal and a laboratory model of cannabis relapse.

Herrmann, Evan S · 2019

Varenicline doubled cotinine-verified tobacco abstinence (46% vs 24%) and reduced mood disturbance and cigarette craving.

Effect of Computer-Based Substance Use Screening and Brief Behavioral Counseling vs Usual Care for Youths in Pediatric Primary Care: A Pilot Randomized Clinical Trial.

Knight, John R · 2019

At-risk youth receiving the computer-based screening and brief intervention (CSBI) showed significantly reduced cannabis use (HR 0.62) and reduced riding with impaired drivers (RR 0.58) compared to usual care over 12 months.

Tobacco and cannabis co-use: Drug substitution, quit interest, and cessation preferences.

McClure, Erin A · 2019

About 80% had tried to quit tobacco vs 40% for cannabis.

Exploring the components of an efficacious computer brief intervention for reducing marijuana use among adults in the emergency department.

Waller, Rebecca · 2019

The "evoking-change" domain (concerns about use and benefits of change) was significantly associated with reduced marijuana use at 6 months (B=-2.91, p<0.01).

Efficacy of a Web-Based Tailored Intervention to Reduce Cannabis Use Among Young People Attending Adult Education Centers in Quebec.

Côté, José · 2018

Researchers tested a theory-based, web-tailored intervention to reduce cannabis use among 588 young adults (ages 18-24) attending adult education centers in Quebec.

Factors associated with successful vs. unsuccessful smoking cessation: Data from a nationally representative study.

El-Khoury Lesueur, Fabienne · 2018

Researchers analyzed data from a nationally representative French survey of 2,110 current or former smokers, comparing three groups: those who never quit or quit less than 6 months, unsuccessful quitters (relapsed after 6+ months), and successful quitters (abstinent 6+ months). Both successful and unsuccessful quitting shared common predictors: no cannabis use, older age, and intermediate or high occupational grade. Factors that specifically distinguished successful quitters from unsuccessful ones were no e-cigarette use, no environmental tobacco smoke exposure, fear of health consequences, perceived harmfulness of smoking, high educational attainment, and good overall health. Notably, cannabis use was associated with both failed quit attempts and never quitting, suggesting it is a barrier to smoking cessation regardless of the quit trajectory..

Negative affectivity as a mechanism underlying perceived distress tolerance and cannabis use problems, barriers to cessation, and self-efficacy for quitting among urban cannabis users.

Manning, Kara · 2018

Researchers studied 203 urban adult daily cannabis users (29.2% female, mean age 37.7, 63% African American) to understand why low distress tolerance is linked to cannabis problems. Negative affectivity (the general tendency to experience negative emotions) significantly mediated the relationship between distress tolerance and multiple cannabis outcomes: - Cannabis use problems (b=-0.58, 95% CI [-1.14, -0.21]) - Cannabis withdrawal (b=-0.65, 95% CI [-1.36, -0.21]) - Self-efficacy for quitting (b=-0.83, 95% CI [-1.85, -0.22]) - Perceived barriers to cessation (b=-0.71, 95% CI [-1.51, -0.24]) In other words, people who perceive they cannot tolerate distress tend to experience more negative emotions generally, which in turn drives cannabis problems, withdrawal severity, low confidence in quitting, and perception of more barriers to stopping..

Psychosocial and cessation-related differences between tobacco-marijuana co-users and single product users in a college student population.

Masters, Matthew N · 2018

Researchers studied 721 college students aged 18-25 who used cigarettes and/or marijuana: 238 cigarette-only, 331 marijuana-only, and 152 co-users. Co-users rated the importance of quitting higher for cigarettes than marijuana, but had lower confidence in their ability to quit cigarettes versus marijuana. Co-users were more likely to report readiness to quit cigarettes (vs.

The effect of high-dose dronabinol (oral THC) maintenance on cannabis self-administration.

Schlienz, Nicolas J · 2018

Chronic dronabinol dosing significantly reduced cannabis self-administration compared to placebo maintenance.

Momentary factors during marijuana use as predictors of lapse during attempted abstinence in young adults.

Shrier, Lydia A · 2018

Nearly 3 in 4 participants (73.5%) lapsed during attempted abstinence.

Associations between marijuana use and tobacco cessation outcomes in young adults.

Vogel, Erin A · 2018

Marijuana use was associated with lower likelihood of tobacco abstinence (OR 0.56, 95% CI 0.35-0.90) and lower likelihood of reducing smoking (OR 0.71, 95% CI 0.51-0.98) over 12 months.

A Systematic Review of the Efficacy of Cannabinoid Agonist Replacement Therapy for Cannabis Withdrawal Symptoms.

Werneck, Maira Aguiar · 2018

Dronabinol, nabilone, and nabiximols, used alone or in combination with other drugs, showed promise in reducing cannabis withdrawal symptoms.

Perceived barriers for cannabis cessation: Relations to cannabis use problems, withdrawal symptoms, and self-efficacy for quitting.

Zvolensky, Michael J · 2018

Structural equation modeling showed perceived barriers for quitting were significantly associated with cannabis use problems (beta=0.50), greater withdrawal symptoms (beta=0.39), and lower self-efficacy for quitting (beta=-0.17).

Reductions in cannabis use are associated with improvements in anxiety, depression, and sleep quality, but not quality of life.

Hser, Yih-Ing · 2017

This study tracked 302 adults with cannabis use disorder over 12 weeks of a medication trial, splitting them into those whose cannabis use decreased and those whose use increased. The cannabis reduction group (152 people) showed statistically significant improvements in anxiety, depression, and sleep quality compared to the cannabis increase group (150 people), even after controlling for demographics, treatment condition, and concurrent tobacco and alcohol use. However, reductions in cannabis use did not translate into improved overall quality of life.

Prevalence, correlates, and trends in tobacco use and cessation among current, former, and never adult marijuana users with a history of tobacco use, 2005-2014.

Schauer, Gillian L · 2017

Using nationally representative data from 2013-2014, the study examined tobacco use and cessation patterns among adults who had ever used tobacco, stratified by marijuana use status. Current marijuana users who had ever used tobacco showed dramatically different tobacco patterns: 69.1% were current tobacco users, only 9.1% had recently quit, and only 21.8% had achieved sustained cessation (quit for more than 12 months).

Does cannabis use moderate smoking cessation outcomes in treatment-seeking tobacco smokers? Analysis from a large multi-center trial.

Rabin, Rachel A · 2016

Among 1,246 treatment-seeking tobacco smokers in a randomized trial, 220 were also current cannabis users.

Alcohol use during a trial of N-acetylcysteine for adolescent marijuana cessation.

Squeglia, Lindsay M · 2016

In a secondary analysis of a marijuana cessation trial for adolescents, researchers examined whether reducing marijuana use affected alcohol consumption.

The effects of dronabinol during detoxification and the initiation of treatment with extended release naltrexone.

Bisaga, Adam · 2015

Sixty opioid-dependent participants were randomized to receive dronabinol (30mg/day) or placebo during inpatient detoxification and transition to extended-release naltrexone.

The impact of posttraumatic stress disorder on cannabis quit success.

Bonn-Miller, Marcel O · 2015

Researchers followed 104 cannabis-dependent veterans through a self-guided quit attempt, assessing them weekly for the first month and then monthly through 6 months.

Psychological, social and familial factors associated with tobacco cessation among young adults.

Bowes, Lucy · 2015

Researchers followed 678 regular smokers from a French cohort study (mean age 28.9) who had smoked for an average of 10.5 years.

Web-based treatment for substance use disorders: differential effects by primary substance.

Cochran, Gerald · 2015

This secondary analysis of a large multi-site trial (497 participants) examined whether a web-based behavioral treatment worked differently depending on the primary substance of abuse.

Role of the endogenous cannabinoid system in nicotine addiction: novel insights.

Gamaleddin, Islam Hany · 2015

This review compiled evidence for the endocannabinoid system's involvement in nicotine addiction.

Cannabis and bipolar disorder: does quitting cannabis use during manic/mixed episode improve clinical/functional outcomes?

Zorrilla, I · 2015

Researchers followed 1,922 adults with bipolar disorder over two years, dividing them into three groups based on cannabis use during a manic or mixed episode: current users (6.9%), previous users who quit during the episode (4.6%), and never-users (88.5%). Patients who stopped using cannabis during their manic episode showed clinical and functional outcomes statistically similar to those who never used cannabis.

From counselor skill to decreased marijuana use: does change talk matter?

Barnett, Elizabeth · 2014

Researchers analyzed 170 audio-recorded motivational interviewing (MI) sessions with alternative high school students.

Effectiveness of different Web-based interventions to prepare co-smokers of cigarettes and cannabis for double cessation: a three-arm randomized controlled trial.

Becker, Julia · 2014

In a three-arm randomized trial of 325 tobacco-and-cannabis co-smokers, all three web-based interventions (personalized feedback, motivational interviewing-based, and psychoeducation control) produced a significant short-term increase in readiness to quit both substances simultaneously.

Abstinence phenomena of chronic cannabis-addicts prospectively monitored during controlled inpatient detoxification: cannabis withdrawal syndrome and its correlation with delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol and -metabolites in serum.

Bonnet, U · 2014

Thirty-nine chronic cannabis-dependent patients were monitored during inpatient detoxification.

Marijuana and alcohol use and attempted smoking cessation in adolescent boys and girls.

Camenga, Deepa R · 2014

Among 804 adolescent cigarette smokers, researchers examined whether marijuana and alcohol use frequency predicted having ever attempted to quit smoking.

Expectancies for smoking cessation among drug-involved smokers: implications for clinical practice.

Hendricks, Peter S · 2014

Among 507 non-treatment-seeking adult smokers, those who used marijuana and other drugs reported greater expectancies that quitting smoking would lead to adverse outcomes, such as worsening their drug use or causing other negative consequences.

Lithium carbonate in the management of cannabis withdrawal: a randomized placebo-controlled trial in an inpatient setting.

Johnston, Jennifer · 2014

In a double-blind RCT, 38 cannabis-dependent adults were randomized to lithium (500 mg twice daily) or placebo for 8 days of inpatient withdrawal.

Cannabis abstinence during treatment and one-year follow-up: relationship to neural activity in men.

Kober, Hedy · 2014

Twenty cannabis-dependent men completed an fMRI cognitive control task before starting a 12-week treatment trial.

Cannabis withdrawal in chronic, frequent cannabis smokers during sustained abstinence within a closed residential environment.

Lee, Dayong · 2014

Twenty-nine chronic, frequent cannabis smokers were monitored during sustained abstinence on a closed research unit.

Treatment of cannabis dependence using escitalopram in combination with cognitive-behavior therapy: a double-blind placebo-controlled study.

Weinstein, A M · 2014

Cannabis-dependent users received 9 weeks of weekly CBT and motivational enhancement therapy along with either escitalopram (10 mg/day) or placebo.

The effects of cannabis use expectancies on self-initiated cannabis cessation.

Boden, Matthew Tyler · 2013

One hundred cannabis-dependent military veterans were followed during a self-initiated 4-week quit attempt.

Motivations to quit cannabis use in an adult non-treatment sample: are they related to relapse?

Chauchard, Emeline · 2013

Researchers surveyed 385 non-treatment-seeking cannabis users who had made serious self-guided quit attempts.

Predictors of marijuana relapse in the human laboratory: robust impact of tobacco cigarette smoking status.

Haney, Margaret · 2013

Study 1 combined data from five inpatient laboratory studies (51 daily marijuana smokers averaging 10 joints/day).

Nabilone decreases marijuana withdrawal and a laboratory measure of marijuana relapse.

Haney, Margaret · 2013

Eleven daily marijuana smokers (averaging 8.3 joints/day) completed a within-subjects study testing three nabilone doses (0, 6, 8 mg/day).

A comprehensive examination of delay discounting in a clinical sample of Cannabis-dependent military veterans making a self-guided quit attempt.

Heinz, Adrienne J · 2013

Seventy-two cannabis-dependent US veterans (95% male) interested in quitting completed a delay discounting task before making self-guided quit attempts and were followed for 6 months.

Marijuana and tobacco co-use in young adults: patterns and thoughts about use.

Ramo, Danielle E · 2013

An online survey of young adult tobacco users (ages 18-25) found that over half (53%) had also used marijuana in the past 30 days.

Marijuana craving trajectories in an adolescent marijuana cessation pharmacotherapy trial.

Roten, Amanda T · 2013

Eighty-nine adolescents were randomized to N-acetylcysteine (NAC, 1200 mg twice daily) or placebo in an 8-week marijuana cessation trial.

The dose effects of short-term dronabinol (oral THC) maintenance in daily cannabis users.

Vandrey, Ryan · 2013

Thirteen daily cannabis smokers completed a within-subject crossover study receiving 0, 30, 60, and 120 mg dronabinol per day for five consecutive days each.

State of the art treatments for cannabis dependence.

Danovitch, Itai · 2012

This comprehensive review painted a sobering but nuanced picture of cannabis dependence treatment.

Alcohol and marijuana use in the context of tobacco dependence treatment: impact on outcome and mediation of effect.

Hendricks, Peter S · 2012

Researchers analyzed data from 739 adult cigarette smokers across three randomized cessation trials.

Cannabis use among military veterans after residential treatment for posttraumatic stress disorder.

Bonn-Miller, Marcel O · 2011

Researchers tracked 432 male military veterans admitted to residential PTSD rehabilitation, examining whether treatment response predicted subsequent cannabis use. Lower levels of PTSD symptom improvement between intake and discharge significantly predicted greater cannabis use frequency at 4-month follow-up, even after controlling for pre-treatment cannabis use and length of stay. Specifically, less improvement in avoidance/numbing symptoms and hyperarousal symptoms drove this relationship.

Dronabinol for the treatment of cannabis dependence: a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial.

Levin, Frances R · 2011

This was the first clinical trial testing an agonist substitution strategy for cannabis dependence, similar to how methadone is used for opioid dependence. 156 cannabis-dependent adults were randomized to dronabinol (20 mg twice daily) or placebo for 12 weeks, with all participants receiving weekly therapy.

Pharmacological treatment of cannabis dependence.

Weinstein, A M · 2011

This review surveyed the landscape of pharmacological treatments for cannabis dependence, a condition with rising treatment admissions but no approved medications.

Treatment of cannabis use among people with psychotic or depressive disorders: a systematic review.

Baker, Amanda L · 2010

From 1,713 initial articles, only 7 randomized controlled trials reported cannabis use outcomes from pharmacological or psychological interventions in mental health patients. The limited evidence suggested two key findings: 1.

Adolescent tobacco use and substance abuse treatment outcomes.

de Dios, Marcel A · 2009

Researchers followed 1,779 adolescents in substance abuse treatment, categorizing them by cigarette smoking status: persistent smokers, nonsmokers, quitters, and those who started smoking during the study period. Persistent smokers and those who started smoking had significantly greater odds of relapsing on both alcohol and marijuana compared with those who quit smoking.

Clinical trial of abstinence-based vouchers and cognitive-behavioral therapy for cannabis dependence

Budney, Alan J. · 2006

Three groups were compared for 14 weeks: cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) alone, abstinence-based voucher incentives alone, and the combination.

Cannabis withdrawal in adolescent treatment seekers.

Vandrey, Ryan · 2005

Adolescents presenting for outpatient substance abuse treatment with cannabis as their primary drug completed questionnaires about withdrawal symptoms during past periods of abstinence. Nearly two-thirds reported experiencing four or more withdrawal symptoms.

Five-year prospective prediction of marijuana use cessation of youth at continuation high schools.

Sussman, Steve · 2004

Among 339 teenage marijuana users at continuation high schools, 42% had quit marijuana use (no use in the past 30 days) at the 5-year follow-up.

Current perspectives on smoking cessation among substance abusers.

Sullivan, Maria A · 2002

Nicotine dependence was extremely prevalent among people with alcohol or other substance use disorders, and many patients in treatment programs expressed interest in quitting smoking.

History of alcohol or drug problems, current use of alcohol or marijuana, and success in quitting smoking.

Humfleet, G · 1999

Researchers examined how alcohol and drug histories affected smoking cessation in 199 clinic patients.

One-year prospective prediction of marijuana use cessation among youth at continuation high schools.

Sussman, S · 1999

Researchers tracked 566 current marijuana users at continuation high schools (alternative schools for at-risk youth) over one year.

Self-efficacy and marijuana cessation: a construct validity analysis.

Stephens, R S · 1995

Researchers examined self-efficacy, the confidence in one's ability to avoid marijuana use, in 212 adults seeking marijuana cessation treatment. Self-efficacy measured after treatment completion was more meaningfully connected to theoretically predicted sources (mastery experiences, social modeling, emotional states) than pre-treatment efficacy, suggesting the treatment experience itself shaped these beliefs. Cognitive-behavioral relapse prevention treatment produced marginally greater self-efficacy than a non-behavioral social support treatment, but the link between specific coping skill training and efficacy was ambiguous. The most nuanced finding: self-efficacy predicted frequency of post-treatment marijuana use better than it predicted complete abstinence.

Prospective study of factors predicting outcome of transdermal nicotine treatment in smoking cessation.

Gourlay, S G · 1994

Researchers followed 1,481 heavy smokers (averaging 32 cigarettes per day) through a 26-week smoking cessation program using transdermal nicotine patches and brief behavioral counseling. Overall, 21.3% successfully quit.

Testing the abstinence violation effect construct with marijuana cessation.

Stephens, R S · 1994

Researchers tested the Abstinence Violation Effect (AVE) theory with marijuana users.

Phase 1 Open-Label Pilot Trial of H4 Deep Repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation for Adults With Moderate-to-Severe Cannabis Use Disorder.

MacKillop, James · 2026

This phase 1 pilot study tested whether deep repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (dTMS) using the H4 coil — already approved for tobacco use disorder — could be safely applied to adults with moderate-to-severe cannabis use disorder who were seeking treatment. Participants received 18 sessions over four weeks (five sessions per week for three weeks, then three sessions in week four), with each session delivering electromagnetic pulses to the lateral prefrontal cortex and anterior insula — brain regions implicated in addiction. The primary findings focused on feasibility and tolerability: treatment completion rates (indicating feasibility), attainment of therapeutic dose (≥90% of resting motor threshold), and adverse event profiles (indicating tolerability).

The Effects of Extended Cannabis Abstinence in Comorbid Posttraumatic Stress Disorder and Cannabis Use Disorder.

Rodas, Justyne D · 2026

In this open-label pilot study, 21 veterans with both PTSD and cannabis use disorder attempted 12 weeks of cannabis abstinence with contingency reinforcement (progressive payments for confirmed abstinence at weeks 4, 8, and 12). Eleven participants achieved sustained abstinence; ten did not.

Outdated tools, underestimated harm: Modernizing cannabis surveillance in a post-legalization era.

Bahji, Anees · 2025

Canada legalized non-medical cannabis in 2018 as a public health initiative.

Use of cannabis among youth who vape nicotine.

Davis, Danielle R · 2025

92.4% reported lifetime cannabis use, 68.6% past-month use.

Characterizing proximal risk for depressive symptoms and suicidal ideation with acute cannabis use and withdrawal among adolescents using ecological momentary assessment: Study protocol.

Feibus, Isabella · 2025

Heavy cannabis use and depression frequently co-occur in adolescents, with cannabis users at increased risk of major depressive episodes and suicidal ideation.

Mobile intervention to address cannabis use disorder among black adults: A proof-of-concept randomized controlled trial.

Garey, Lorra · 2025

Black adults who use cannabis face documented health disparities: more frequent use and higher rates of cannabis use disorder compared to White adults, yet they are underrepresented in treatment research and face greater barriers to accessing care.

Mindfulness-Oriented Recovery Enhancement Reduces Illicit Substance Craving Among People with Alcohol Use Disorder and Polysubstance Use.

Gurrieri, Laura · 2025

In a randomized pilot trial of 50 adults with AUD who also used cannabis and/or cocaine, Mindfulness-Oriented Recovery Enhancement (MORE) produced significantly greater reductions in illicit substance craving compared to supportive group therapy (F=7.06, p=0.008).

Impact of Computer-Mediated Versus Face-to-Face Motivational-Type Interviews on Participants' Language and Subsequent Cannabis Use: Randomized Controlled Trial.

Llanes, Karla D · 2025

Both interview formats generated similar amounts of change talk and sustain talk after adjusting for verbosity.

Young Smokers' Therapy Preferences: App-Based vs. Face-to-Face Treatment in the Context of Co-Addictions.

López-Torrecillas, Francisca · 2025

This study enrolled 98 young adult smokers from the University of Granada into either an app-based cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) program or a traditional face-to-face CBT program for smoking cessation.

Clinician's perceptions and experiences with tobacco treatment in people who use cannabis: a qualitative study.

Martínez, Cristina · 2025

Five themes emerged from clinician focus groups: individual characteristics, clinician characteristics, intervention models, organizational healthcare models, and health policies.

Qualitative interviews with young adults at risk for psychosis and who use Cannabis: Informing the development of a mobile intervention.

Merrill, Jennifer E · 2025

Five key barriers to reducing cannabis emerged: using cannabis to cope, social influences, dependence symptoms, easy access, and ambivalence about change.

Clinician perspectives on barriers and facilitators to the treatment of adolescent cannabis use: A qualitative study.

Mian, Maha N · 2025

Key barriers to treating adolescent cannabis use include minimization of risks by both teens and parents.

Barriers and facilitators to nicotine and cannabis vaping cessation among young adults: a qualitative study using Capability, Opportunity, Motivation, and Behavior (COM-B) model and Theoretical Domains Framework (TDF).

Nguyen, Nhung · 2025

Young adults expressed stronger motivation to stop vaping nicotine than cannabis.

Mindfulness-based relapse prevention for cannabis regular users: Finally outcomes of a randomized clinical trial.

Pélerin, Jean-Marc · 2025

There was no significant difference between MBRP and treatment-as-usual groups on primary and secondary endpoints.

Telehealth tDCS to reduce cannabis use: A pilot RCT in multiple sclerosis as a framework for generalized use.

Pilloni, Giuseppina · 2025

The active tDCS group showed significant reductions in weekly cannabis use (5.3 to 3.9 days, p=0.014) and withdrawal symptoms (CWS, p<0.001).

Impact of the Kusa prevention program on cannabis consumption and emotional competencies among French Polynesian adolescents.

Pitel, Marion · 2025

Among 231 Polynesian middle and high school students, the Kusa prevention program improved emotional acceptance, awareness, verbalization, and impulse control in non-users and low-users.

Significant Psychedelic Experiences Evaluated for Mystical Characteristics Associated with Cannabis Use Reduction and Psychological Flexibility Improvement: A Naturalistic Cross-Sectional Retrospective Survey.

Romeo, B · 2025

Among 152 cannabis users who reported a significant past psychedelic experience, average cannabis use disorder scores (CUDIT) decreased significantly after the psychedelic experience.

Characterizing users of a mobile application for supporting a 30-day break from cannabis.

Russell, Alex M · 2025

Among 4,415 users of the Clear30 app, 83.3% were aged 18-25 and 86% used cannabis 6-7 days per week.

Cannabidiol as a potential cessation therapeutic: Effects on intravenous nicotine self-administration and withdrawal symptoms in mice.

Cheeks, Samantha N · 2024

CBD produced a significant decrease in nicotine self-administration across multiple CBD doses and both low and moderate nicotine levels.

Cannabidiol Reduces Nicotine Withdrawal Severity and State Anxiety During an Acute E-cigarette Abstinence Period: A Novel, Open-Label Study.

Gournay, L Riley · 2024

After controlling for positive CBD expectancies, 320 mg oral CBD reduced both nicotine withdrawal symptom severity and state anxiety during a 4-hour e-cigarette abstinence period compared to abstinence alone.

Profiles of cannabis users and impact on cannabis cessation.

MacQuarrie, Amy L · 2024

Four profiles emerged: low-risk (42%), rapidly escalating high-risk (27%), long-term high severity (24%), and long-term lower severity (7%).

Urgent need for treatment addressing co-use of tobacco and cannabis: An updated review and considerations for future interventions.

Nguyen, Nhung · 2024

Across 9 studies, combined psychosocial strategies (CBT, motivational interviewing, contingency management) with pharmacotherapy (nicotine replacement) showed promise.

Telehealth counseling plus mHealth intervention for cannabis use in emerging adults: Development and a remote open pilot trial.

Shrier, Lydia A · 2024

All 14 participants completed both motivational therapy sessions and achieved 100% median engagement with daily smartphone surveys.

Pilot trial of a telehealth-delivered behavioral economic intervention promoting cannabis-free activities among adults with cannabis use disorder.

Coughlin, Lara N · 2023

Of 20 adults with CUD who enrolled, 70% completed all intervention components.

Implementation and Preliminary Evaluation of a 12-Week Cognitive Behavioural and Motivational Enhancement Group Therapy for Cannabis Use Disorder.

Trick, Leanne · 2023

Cannabis use disorder (CUD) is increasingly recognized as a real clinical condition, but treatment options have been slow to develop.

Young adults with psychosis: Intentions for cannabis reduction and cessation based on theory of planned behavior.

Petros, Ryan · 2022

Participants recognized that cannabis use conflicted with their life goals but maintained use because they perceived it as facilitating social interactions, enjoyable activities, and improved mental health.

Lower dACC glutamate in cannabis users during early phase abstinence.

Zuo, Chun S · 2022

dACC glutamate was significantly lower in cannabis users compared to controls from baseline through day 21 of abstinence (F=5.90, p=0.022).

Trait mindfulness and cannabis use-related factors in adolescents and young adults with frequent use.

Lin, Jessica A · 2021

Higher mindfulness scores correlated with fewer cannabis-related problems (P = 0.004) and fewer quit attempts (P = 0.035).

Redefining recovery: Accounts of treatment experiences of dependent cannabis users in Nigeria.

Nelson, Ediomo-Ubong Ekpo · 2021

Participants initially sought treatment hoping for total abstinence and identity repair.

Marijuana Use and Adherence to Smoking Cessation Treatment Among Callers to Tobacco Quitlines.

Carpenter, Kelly M · 2020

Among quitline callers, 24% used marijuana in the past 30 days (28.9% Alaska, 25.0% Oregon, 16.7% DC).

End User-Informed Mobile Health Intervention Development for Adolescent Cannabis Use Disorder: Qualitative Study.

Bagot, Kara · 2019

Five themes emerged from focus groups with 37 cannabis-using teens: (1) rewards mimicking social media engagement plus prosocial activity rewards for progressive use reduction, (2) ability to self-monitor progress, (3) peer social support within the app, (4) privacy through discrete logo/name and usernames, (5) individualized frequency and content of notifications..

Use of Guanfacine for Cannabis Use Disorder and Related Symptomology.

Holst, Manuela · 2019

Guanfacine (3 mg/day) showed no significant effects on cannabis withdrawal, craving, or sleep compared to placebo.

Preliminary evidence that computerized approach avoidance training is not associated with changes in fMRI cannabis cue reactivity in non-treatment-seeking adolescent cannabis users.

Karoly, Hollis C · 2019

CAAT training shifted approach bias toward avoidance while sham training increased approach bias (trend p=0.055).

Engaging Youth (Adolescents and Young Adults) to Change Frequent Marijuana Use: Motivational Enhancement Therapy (MET) in Primary Care.

Kells, Meredith · 2019

Most youth reported their main reason for cannabis use was emotional coping.

Sequential and simultaneous treatment approaches to cannabis use disorder and tobacco use.

Lee, Dustin C · 2019

No significant differences in cannabis outcomes between simultaneous and sequential tobacco treatment during weeks 1-12.

A method to achieve extended cannabis abstinence in cannabis dependent patients with schizophrenia and non-psychiatric controls.

Rabin, Rachel A · 2018

With contingency management incentives and twice-weekly urine monitoring, cannabis-dependent schizophrenia patients achieved abstinence rates statistically similar to controls (42.1% vs 55%, p=0.53).

Nabiximols combined with motivational enhancement/cognitive behavioral therapy for the treatment of cannabis dependence: A pilot randomized clinical trial.

Trigo, Jose M · 2018

Nabiximols was well-tolerated with no serious adverse events.

Development and initial validation of a marijuana cessation expectancies questionnaire.

Metrik, Jane · 2017

This study developed and validated the Marijuana Cessation Expectancies Questionnaire (MCEQ), the first tool specifically designed to measure what regular cannabis users expect to happen if they quit or reduce their use. Six distinct expectation factors emerged from the analysis of 151 regular marijuana users.

Effects of Extended Cannabis Abstinence on Cognitive Outcomes in Cannabis Dependent Patients with Schizophrenia vs Non-Psychiatric Controls.

Rabin, Rachel A · 2017

Nineteen cannabis-dependent patients with schizophrenia and 20 cannabis-dependent controls without psychiatric illness attempted 28 days of cannabis abstinence.

CB1 Cannabinoid Receptors Mediate Cognitive Deficits and Structural Plasticity Changes During Nicotine Withdrawal.

Saravia, Rocio · 2017

Researchers discovered that the cognitive deficits occurring during nicotine withdrawal are mediated by the endocannabinoid system, specifically through CB1 receptors on inhibitory (GABAergic) neurons. During nicotine withdrawal in mice, 2-AG levels (but not anandamide) increased.

Outcomes of a family-based HIV prevention intervention for substance using juvenile offenders.

Tolou-Shams, Marina · 2017

Forty-seven caregiver-youth dyads in a juvenile drug court program were randomized to either a 5-session family-based intervention integrating substance use prevention with affect management strategies, or an adolescent-only psychoeducation control. At 3 months, youth in the family-based intervention showed enhanced motivation to change their marijuana use, decreased marijuana use, and decreased risky sexual behavior compared to the control condition. The intervention's emphasis on affect management (emotional regulation) strategies was based on the theory that emotion dysregulation underlies the co-occurrence of substance use, delinquency, and sexual risk-taking in justice-involved youth..

Longitudinal associations of friend-based social support and PTSD symptomatology during a cannabis cessation attempt.

Carter, Sarah P · 2016

Researchers studied 116 veterans with cannabis dependence and PTSD symptoms who were attempting to quit cannabis use, tracking the relationship between PTSD and friend-based social support over 6 months. Using a cross-lagged model, they found that earlier PTSD symptoms predicted later decreases in friend support, but the reverse was not significant.

Cannabinoid receptor 1 (CNR1) gene variant moderates neural index of cognitive disruption during nicotine withdrawal.

Evans, D E · 2016

Researchers tested whether genetic variation in the cannabinoid receptor 1 gene (CNR1) affected how much nicotine withdrawal disrupted cognitive function, as measured by resting brainwave (EEG) patterns. Seventy-three Caucasian smokers (15+ cigarettes/day) completed two lab sessions: one after smoking nicotine cigarettes and one after smoking placebo cigarettes following overnight deprivation.

Effects of fixed or self-titrated dosages of Sativex on cannabis withdrawal and cravings.

Trigo, Jose M · 2016

Nine cannabis-dependent community members underwent an 8-week trial alternating between smoking-as-usual periods and cannabis abstinence periods.

The association between cannabis use and motivation and intentions to quit tobacco within a sample of Australian socioeconomically disadvantaged smokers.

Twyman, Laura · 2016

In a survey of 369 current tobacco smokers receiving community services in New South Wales, Australia, 19% reported concurrent tobacco and cannabis use.

Feasibility of a group cessation program for co-smokers of cannabis and tobacco.

Becker, Julia · 2015

Researchers tested a group cessation program for people who used both cannabis weekly and tobacco daily.

Lifetime influences for cannabis cessation in male incarcerated indigenous australians.

Jacups, Susan · 2015

Researchers interviewed 101 male Indigenous Australian inmates about their cannabis use and what motivated them to quit.

Outcomes from a computer-assisted intervention simultaneously targeting cannabis and tobacco use.

Lee, Dustin C · 2015

Researchers enrolled 32 people who met criteria for cannabis use disorder and also smoked tobacco daily in a 12-week program that simultaneously treated both addictions.

Natural Recovery From Cannabis Use in People With Psychosis: A Qualitative Study.

Rebgetz, Shane · 2015

Researchers interviewed 10 young adults (mean age 23) with early psychosis who had quit cannabis without formal treatment, averaging nearly 8 months of abstinence.

Physical activity and cannabis cessation.

Irons, Jessica G · 2014

In a study of 84 cannabis-dependent military veterans attempting self-guided cessation, those who reported low physical activity levels were significantly more likely to use cannabis during the first week after quitting compared to those with moderate or high activity levels.

Treatment models for targeting tobacco use during treatment for cannabis use disorder: case series.

Lee, Dustin C · 2014

Approximately 50% of individuals seeking cannabis treatment also smoke tobacco, and tobacco use predicts worse cannabis treatment outcomes.

Young adults who smoke cigarettes and marijuana: analysis of thoughts and behaviors.

Ramo, Danielle E · 2014

Of 1,987 young adult cigarette smokers surveyed, nearly half (972) also reported past-month marijuana use.

The impact of perceived sleep quality and sleep efficiency/duration on cannabis use during a self-guided quit attempt.

Babson, Kimberly A · 2013

Researchers followed 102 cannabis-dependent military veterans for 6 months after a self-guided quit attempt.

Development of an integrative cessation program for co-smokers of cigarettes and cannabis: demand analysis, program description, and acceptability.

Becker, Julia · 2013

Through expert interviews, focus groups with former smokers, and an online survey, researchers confirmed strong demand for an integrated cessation program targeting both tobacco and cannabis.

Posttraumatic stress disorder and cannabis use characteristics among military veterans with cannabis dependence.

Boden, Matthew Tyler · 2013

Among 94 cannabis-dependent military veterans preparing for a quit attempt, those with PTSD reported significantly more coping-motivated cannabis use, more severe withdrawal symptoms, and stronger cravings related to compulsivity, emotionality, and anticipation. The links between PTSD and coping motives and between PTSD and craving remained significant even after controlling for concurrent cannabis, alcohol, and tobacco use, and co-occurring mood, anxiety, and substance use diagnoses.

Cannabidiol for the treatment of cannabis withdrawal syndrome: a case report.

Crippa, J A S · 2013

A 19-year-old heavy cannabis user experiencing withdrawal syndrome (increased anxiety, insomnia, loss of appetite, irritability, restlessness) was treated with cannabidiol (CBD) for 10 days.

Integrating brain and behavior: evaluating adolescents' response to a cannabis intervention.

Feldstein Ewing, Sarah W · 2013

Forty-three adolescent cannabis users (mean age 16) underwent motivational interviewing before brain scanning.

Use of micronutrients attenuates cannabis and nicotine abuse as evidenced from a reversal design: a case study.

Harrison, Rachel · 2013

As part of a broader study of micronutrients for psychiatric symptoms (ADHD, depression, anxiety), researchers observed that a participant spontaneously reduced cannabis and cigarette use while taking vitamin and mineral supplements.

Cigarette smoking and quit attempts among injection drug users in Tijuana, Mexico.

Shin, Sanghyuk S · 2013

Six hundred seventy injection drug users in Tijuana, Mexico were interviewed, with 89.7% being current cigarette smokers.

Quantifying the clinical significance of cannabis withdrawal

Allsop, David J. · 2012

People who felt that withdrawal was getting in the way of normal activities reported higher withdrawal severity, and those two measures moved together with a strong statistical signal.

Pericyazine in the treatment of cannabis dependence in general practice: a naturalistic pilot trial.

Morley, Kirsten C · 2012

Twenty-one patients with cannabis dependence received pericyazine, a low-potency antipsychotic with sedative properties and low abuse potential, for 4 weeks in a community clinic setting.

Cannabinoid hyperemesis: A case series of 98 patients

Simonetto, Douglas A. · 2012

Across 98 patients under age 50 with recurrent vomiting and prior cannabis exposure, the pattern was consistent.

Effects of chronic, heavy cannabis use on executive functions.

Crean, Rebecca D · 2011

The case described a cannabis-dependent person entering a 12-week abstinence-based research program.

Increased blood pressure after abrupt cessation of daily cannabis use.

Vandrey, Ryan · 2011

Thirteen daily cannabis users participated in an inpatient study alternating between ad libitum cannabis smoking and supervised abstinence.

Longitudinal study of cognition among adolescent marijuana users over three weeks of abstinence.

Hanson, Karen L · 2010

Nineteen adolescent marijuana users (ages 15-19) and 21 non-using controls were tested at three time points: after 3 days, 2 weeks, and 3 weeks of confirmed abstinence. Marijuana users performed significantly worse on verbal learning (p<0.01), verbal working memory (p<0.05), and attention accuracy (p<0.01) compared to controls. Verbal learning improved after 2 weeks of abstinence, and working memory improved after 3 weeks, suggesting these deficits can recover. However, attention accuracy remained impaired throughout the entire 3-week abstinence period, suggesting more persistent effects on prefrontal cortex function. Abstinence was verified through decreasing THC metabolite levels on serial urine drug screens..

Substitution profile of the cannabinoid agonist nabilone in human subjects discriminating δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol.

Lile, Joshua A · 2010

Six cannabis users learned to identify 25 mg oral THC under double-blind conditions.

A placebo-controlled trial of buspirone for the treatment of marijuana dependence.

McRae-Clark, Aimee L · 2009

Fifty participants with marijuana dependence received either buspirone (up to 60 mg/day) or placebo for 12 weeks alongside motivational interviewing. In the full intent-to-treat analysis, the buspirone group had 18 percentage points more negative urine drug screens than placebo, though this did not reach statistical significance (p=0.071). Self-reported marijuana-free days did not differ between groups (45.2% vs 51.4%). However, among participants who completed all 12 weeks, buspirone produced a significantly higher percentage of negative drug tests (p=0.014) and a trend toward reaching the first negative test sooner (p=0.054). Retention in the study was a major challenge, limiting statistical power..

Cannabinoid hyperemesis: cyclical hyperemesis in association with chronic cannabis abuse

Allen, John H. · 2004

Nine closely followed patients with long-term heavy cannabis use had a repeating vomiting illness.

'You can't go without a fag...you need it for your hash'--a qualitative exploration of smoking, cannabis and young people.

Amos, Amanda · 2004

Among 145 young smokers in Scotland (ages 15-19), cannabis use was regarded as an important and enjoyable part of their lives.

Factors in marijuana cessation among high-risk youth.

Weiner, M D · 1999

Researchers surveyed 842 students at eleven continuation high schools in southern California about marijuana use and cessation using both questionnaires and focus groups. Approximately 70% were current marijuana users.

A survey of adolescent smoking patterns.

Dappen, A · 1996

Researchers surveyed 154 students aged 14 to 20 at two vocational high schools about their smoking habits, with objective laboratory verification. Sixty-five percent of the sample smoked at least 10 cigarettes daily and had begun by age 13.

Development of Mobile Contingency Management for Cannabis Use Reduction.

Beckham, Jean C · 2024

During the baseline ad lib phase, participants used cannabis on 94% of days at 1.42 grams daily.

Intention to quit or reduce e-cigarettes, cannabis, and their co-use among a school-based sample of adolescents.

Liu, Jessica · 2024

Among sole e-cigarette users, 40.9% intended to quit and 24.1% intended to reduce.

A preliminary randomized controlled trial of repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation applied to the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex in treatment seeking participants with cannabis use disorder.

Sahlem, Gregory L · 2024

Active rTMS (10Hz, left DLPFC, 20 sessions) did not significantly reduce craving compared to sham.