Nabilone

Nabilone is a synthetic cannabinoid similar to THC, approved as a prescription capsule for chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting that has not responded to usual anti-nausea drugs.

It was developed in the 1970s and is sold under the brand name Cesamet. Like THC it acts as an agonist at CB1 and CB2 receptors, and it produces similar effects, including drowsiness, dizziness, dry mouth, euphoria or dysphoria, and impaired coordination. Because of its psychoactive properties it is a controlled substance, listed in Schedule II in the United States, and is dispensed only by prescription under medical supervision for its approved indication.

Nabilone has been studied off-label for chronic pain, sleep disturbance in post-traumatic stress disorder, and other conditions, mostly in small trials with early results. It is distinct from dronabinol, which is synthetic THC itself rather than an analog, and from over-the-counter hemp products, which do not contain nabilone and are not regulated as drugs. In research summaries, nabilone is often grouped with dronabinol as a cannabinoid pharmaceutical whose effects should not be extrapolated to hemp-derived CBD.