Medical cannabis is increasingly used in routine clinical care in many countries, often without national regulatory approval. Its use spans a range of settings, from chronic non-cancer pain and palliative care to epilepsy, insomnia, and anxiety. As prescribing expands and regulatory frameworks evolve, there is a clear need for evidence that reflects how medical cannabis is used in practice today and the scientific evidence supporting its use. This Collection focuses on current clinical applications, not new therapeutic development, and welcomes work that documents real‑world practice, patient pathways, and the systems that shape access and decision‑making.

Research into prescribing behavior, the scientific evidence supporting current practice, pharmacy and dispensing models, regulatory oversight, and private‑practice approaches provides essential insight into how clinicians and patients navigate existing medical cannabis programs. Studies examining utilization patterns, patient‑reported outcomes, and long‑term clinical trajectories help clarify effectiveness, safety, and consistency across healthcare settings.

Investing in this area of research aligns with the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 3: Good Health and Well-Being, which emphasizes the need to ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages. By advancing our understanding of medical cannabis, we can contribute to the broader goals of health equity and access to effective healthcare solutions.

We invite contributions on topics including, but not limited to:

• Pharmacy practice and dispensing of medical cannabis
• Prescription patterns and prescriber behavior
• Clinical use in chronic non-cancer pain, palliative care, and any other commonly treated indications.
• Healthcare access pathways, patient navigation, and service models
• Regulatory and private‑practice frameworks governing medical cannabis
• Scientific evidence, patient‑reported outcomes, and utilization patterns
• Policy implementation and its clinical impact
• Evidence‑based clinical practice guidelines

Through this Collection, the Journal of Cannabis Research aims to present the evidence base around present‑day medical cannabis use, support responsible clinical practice, improve patient outcomes, and encourage interdisciplinary contributions that reflect the realities of contemporary healthcare systems.

This Collection supports and amplifies research related to SDG 3, Good Health and Well-Being.

All submissions in this collection undergo the journal’s standard peer review process. Similarly, all manuscripts authored by a Guest Editor(s) will be handled by the Editor-in-Chief. As an open access publication, this journal levies an article processing fee (details here). We recognize that many key stakeholders may not have access to such resources and are committed to supporting participation in this issue wherever resources are a barrier. For more information about what support may be available, please visit OA funding and support, or email OAfundingpolicy@springernature.com or the Editor-in-Chief.

Implementation Science has published 2,197 papers since its inception in 2006 (as of May 27, 2026). Implementation Science Communications has published 938 papers since it began in 2019 (also as of May 27, 2026). In addition to papers published in these two journals, a larger number of papers focusing on implementation science in health care have been published in other journals over the last 20 years, conservatively around 22,300. This is based on a PubMed search using a specific search string^[1], conducted on May 27, 2026. It is important to note that landmark papers in the field were published before 2006. Our purpose in marking this anniversary is to reflect on the field as a whole.

While much of the growth in the literature has come from high-income countries, there has been an increase in the number and scope of papers from lower and middle-income countries, fueling the overall growth.

Arguably, the growth in the literature and underlying research studies shows that the science and practice of implementation have moved from the periphery to mainstream health research. We are interested in papers that document and analyze the change over the last couple of decades—although the history of the field prior to 2006 is also of interest—and propose how this shapes the future of the field. This may be based on bibliographic or citation analysis, surveys among researchers, or other sources. Papers that only review the past, without analysis and future direction, will not be seen as responding to this call.

Examples of topics include, but are not limited to:

• Content analysis or systematic reviews of empirical publications from Implementation Science and/or Implementation Science Communications
• Content analysis of editorials and research agenda-setting articles from both journals, including papers focusing on implementation science published in other journals
• Bibliographic/citation analysis of publications over the 20 years of IS, including other papers published in other journals
• Analyses of geographic, disciplinary, authorship, funding, or institutional patterns in implementation science

Submissions should include critical interpretive analysis of existing literature and provide new insights, ideas, and thoughts from reflection on the existing literature.

This Collection welcomes submissions of a range of article types. Should you wish to submit to this Collection, please read the submission guidelines of the journal you are submitting to, i.e., Implementation Science or Implementation Science Communications, to confirm that the type is accepted by the journal you are submitting to.

Articles for this Collection should be submitted via our submission systems in Implementation Science or Implementation Science Communications. During the submission process, you will be asked whether you are submitting to a Collection. Please select "Learning From the Past and Shaping the Future" from the dropdown menu.

Articles will undergo the standard peer-review process of the journal in which they are considered, Implementation Science or Implementation Science Communications, and are subject to all of the journal’s standard policies. Articles will be added to the Collection as they are published.

The Editors have no competing interests with the submissions that they handle through the peer-review process. The peer review of any submissions for which the Editors have competing interests is handled by another Editorial Board Member who has no competing interests.

^[1] ("Implementation Science"[Mesh] OR "implementation science"[tiab] OR "implementation research"[tiab] OR "dissemination and implementation"[tiab] OR "translation science"[tiab] OR "knowledge translation"[tiab]) AND 2006:2026[dp]