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Marta Di Forti

Professor Marta Di Forti MD, MRCPsych, PhD

Professor of Drug use, Genetics and Psychosis

  • MRC Senior Research Fellow

Research interests

  • Psychiatry

Biography

Marta Di Forti is Professor of Drug use, Genetics and Psychosis at the Department of Social, Genetic & Developmental Psychiatry at the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience (IoPPN), and Honorary Consultant Adult Psychiatrist, Lambeth EI Community team, South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust.

She leads the first Cannabis Clinic for patients with Psychotic disorders in UK. She was recently awarded the Royal College of Psychiatrist Researcher of the year prize. In 2020, she was granted a MRC Senior Research Fellowship to expand her research in the role of cannabis use in psychosis and its underlying biology. With her team she showed for the first time that use of high potency types of cannabis e.g. "skunk" carries a higher risk of psychosis than use of traditional types and that it affects rates of Psychotic disorders across Europe. Though it still remains unclear who are those cannabis use most at risk. Her future work aims to investigate the interaction between cannabis use and genes predisposing to schizophrenia, and how cannabis changes the epigenome. 

Cannabis & Me Study. Link to online survey: Cannabis & Me

    Research

    vrlab_banner-image_children_placeholder
    IoPPN Virtual Reality Lab

    The IoPPN Virtual Reality Research Lab (VR Lab) is a world-leading multidisciplinary group dedicated to VR based research, assessment and treatments to improve mental health, enhance well-being and promote resilience.

    News

    Largest ever study into cannabis use investigates risk of paranoia and poor mental health in the general population

    New research from the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience (IoPPN) at King’s College London, in partnership with the University of Bath, has...

    Three cannabis joints pictured on a bed of weed buds

    Cannabis withdrawal associated with increased risk of transfer to psychiatric intensive care following admission to hospital

    Cannabis users with acute mental illness admitted to psychiatric hospitals are at increased risk of being transferred to a psychiatric intensive care unit...

    smoking cannabis

    Professors Oliver Howes and Marta Di Forti presented with Schizophrenia Research Society Outstanding Translational Research Awards

    Professor Howes and Professor Di Forti were presented their awards on 29 March 2025 at the 2025 Congress of the Schizophrenia International Research Society...

    Professors Marta Di Forti and Oliver Howes on stage, both holding their awards at the SIRS conference.

    Scientists show for the first time that risk of psychotic disorder appears to decline with time following cannabis use cessation

    New research reports that cannabis users' risk of developing psychotic disorders appears to decrease with time once they stop using the drug.

    smoking cannabis

    First specialist NHS clinic provides effective help for young adults with psychosis to decrease or stop their cannabis use

    The NHS Cannabis Clinic for Psychosis (CCP) offers a feasible and effective treatment strategy to help young adult cannabis users to significantly cut down...

    smoking cannabis

    Cannabis use increases risk of psychosis independently from genetic predisposition

    New research from the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience (IoPPN) at King’s College London and South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust...

    Three cannabis joints pictured on a bed of weed buds

    High-potency cannabis use leaves a distinct mark on DNA – new research

    Cannabis is one of the most commonly used drugs in the world. Yet there’s still much we don’t know about it and what effects it has on the brain – including...

    smoking cannabis

    First study to show high potency cannabis use leaves unique signature on DNA

    High potency cannabis use leaves a distinct mark on DNA, according to new research by the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience (IoPPN) at King’s...

    DNA & cannabis

    King's College London spearheads the largest ever independent study into cannabis use

    The Medical Research Council has allocated over £2.5 million of funding to Cannabis & Me, a scientific study into the effects of cannabis on the human brain.

    Cannabis_driving

    Three researchers win awards at the RcPsych Awards 2021

    Dr Marta Di Forti, Prof. Neil Greenberg, and Prof. Carmine Pariante all come out on top in their categories

    Awards

      Research

      vrlab_banner-image_children_placeholder
      IoPPN Virtual Reality Lab

      The IoPPN Virtual Reality Research Lab (VR Lab) is a world-leading multidisciplinary group dedicated to VR based research, assessment and treatments to improve mental health, enhance well-being and promote resilience.

      News

      Largest ever study into cannabis use investigates risk of paranoia and poor mental health in the general population

      New research from the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience (IoPPN) at King’s College London, in partnership with the University of Bath, has...

      Three cannabis joints pictured on a bed of weed buds

      Cannabis withdrawal associated with increased risk of transfer to psychiatric intensive care following admission to hospital

      Cannabis users with acute mental illness admitted to psychiatric hospitals are at increased risk of being transferred to a psychiatric intensive care unit...

      smoking cannabis

      Professors Oliver Howes and Marta Di Forti presented with Schizophrenia Research Society Outstanding Translational Research Awards

      Professor Howes and Professor Di Forti were presented their awards on 29 March 2025 at the 2025 Congress of the Schizophrenia International Research Society...

      Professors Marta Di Forti and Oliver Howes on stage, both holding their awards at the SIRS conference.

      Scientists show for the first time that risk of psychotic disorder appears to decline with time following cannabis use cessation

      New research reports that cannabis users' risk of developing psychotic disorders appears to decrease with time once they stop using the drug.

      smoking cannabis

      First specialist NHS clinic provides effective help for young adults with psychosis to decrease or stop their cannabis use

      The NHS Cannabis Clinic for Psychosis (CCP) offers a feasible and effective treatment strategy to help young adult cannabis users to significantly cut down...

      smoking cannabis

      Cannabis use increases risk of psychosis independently from genetic predisposition

      New research from the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience (IoPPN) at King’s College London and South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust...

      Three cannabis joints pictured on a bed of weed buds

      High-potency cannabis use leaves a distinct mark on DNA – new research

      Cannabis is one of the most commonly used drugs in the world. Yet there’s still much we don’t know about it and what effects it has on the brain – including...

      smoking cannabis

      First study to show high potency cannabis use leaves unique signature on DNA

      High potency cannabis use leaves a distinct mark on DNA, according to new research by the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience (IoPPN) at King’s...

      DNA & cannabis

      King's College London spearheads the largest ever independent study into cannabis use

      The Medical Research Council has allocated over £2.5 million of funding to Cannabis & Me, a scientific study into the effects of cannabis on the human brain.

      Cannabis_driving

      Three researchers win awards at the RcPsych Awards 2021

      Dr Marta Di Forti, Prof. Neil Greenberg, and Prof. Carmine Pariante all come out on top in their categories

      Awards