Marilyn Huestis, PhD
Senior Science and Policy Advisor, Clinical Pharmacology and Toxicology, Cannabinoid and Other CNS-Active Pharmacotherapies
Applying excellence in clinical and forensic toxicology to CNS-active drug and compound development and regulatory pathways
Expertise
With an extensive and well-recognized career in research on psychoactive substances, Marilyn shares with clients an exceptional mastery of:
- Clinical and forensic toxicology
- Diagnostic screening and confirmation drug testing
Experience
Marilyn conducted human drug administration studies for 23 years before retiring from the National Institute on Drug Abuse, where she was a tenured senior investigator and chief of the section of Chemistry and Drug Metabolism of the Intramural Research Program.
She is a senior fellow at the Institute on Emerging Health Professions, Thomas Jefferson University; Honorary Professor at Barts and the London School of Medicine and Dentistry, Queen Mary University of London; member of the Smart Approaches to Marijuana Science Advisory Board; and president of Huestis & Smith Toxicology, LLC.
Marilyn has published more than 500 peer-reviewed publications and book chapters, and has had more than 800 abstracts presented at meetings worldwide. Her recent honors include the Distinguished Service to Safety Award, National Safety Council (2021); the American Association of Clinical Chemistry’s Outstanding Lifetime Achievement Award (2021); the Alexander O. Gettler Award, Toxicology Section, American Academy of Forensic Sciences (2021); the Lyons-Voorhees Endowed Lectureship at the University of Colorado Medical School Department of Psychiatry, Aurora, Colo. (2019); the Robert F. Borkenstein Award, National Safety Council (2018); the Marian W. Fischman Lectureship Award, College on Problems of Drug Dependence (2016); and Distinguished Fellow, American Academy of Forensic Sciences (2015).
The journal Clinical Chemistry has featured Marilyn in its “Inspiring Minds” series of essays.
Education
- MD honoris causa, Faculty of Medicine, University of Helsinki, Finland
- PhD with honors, Toxicology, University of Maryland
- MS with honors, Clinical Chemistry, University of New Mexico
- BS cum laude, Biochemistry, Mount Holyoke College
