In a phase 2 trial, about half of cancer patients reported sustained reductions in depression and anxiety 2 years after a single session of psilocybin plus psychological support.
A single dose of psilocybin combined with psychological support can provide lasting relief from depression and anxiety in patients with cancer. In a phase 2 clinical trial, more than half of patients reported sustained reductions in depression, and nearly half reported significant reductions in anxiety 2 years after treatment.
Psilocybin is a “potentially paradigm-shifting alternative to traditional antidepressants,” wrote the investigators, led by Manish Agrawal, MD, Sunstone Therapies, Rockville, Maryland. Sandeep Nayak, MD, medical director, Johns Hopkins Center for Psychedelic and Consciousness Research, Baltimore, who wasn’t involved in the study, said that the antidepressant effects of psilocybin in patients with cancer are “consistent” with those found in larger studies of people with depression. “If psilocybin works for major depression in general, it’s likely to work for major depression in people with cancer, even though there are, of course, unique aspects of psychological suffering with cancer,” Nayak told“Ultimately, this data is encouraging but not a game changer,” said Nayak. “We do need bigger studies, which are coming.”Depression remains common in patients with cancer, and the typical treatment approaches — antidepressants and psychotherapy — have demonstrated limited success. Agrawal and colleagues explored the safety, feasibility, and efficacy of psilocybin-assisted group therapy in 30 patients with major depressive disorder and curable or noncurable cancer. Participants received one-on-one and group therapy sessions before, during, and after receiving a single 25-mg psilocybin dose. No patients were taking an antidepressant or antipsychotic medications or using medical cannabis.showed that, at 8 weeks posttreatment, 25 of 30 patients had a lasting response to psilocybin, with half demonstrating full remission of depressive symptoms by week 1, which lasted for at least 8 weeks.At 2 years, 15 patients demonstrated ongoing benefit, with a significant 15-point reduction in Montgomery-Åsberg Depression Rating Scale scores, 14 of which had full remission of depressive symptoms. Psilocybin also helped relieve anxiety. At 2 months, 22 patients had a significant 17-point reduction from baseline in Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale, with 13 having a sustained reduction in anxiety at 2 years .Nayak said the fact that 50% of patients with cancer were in remission from their depression at 2 years is “impressive and consistent with a long-lasting antidepressant effect of psilocybin.” “However, the study had no control group, which is a limitation in that we can’t tell how much of the benefit was from the intervention vs other causes ,” he noted. “If psilocybin receives approval for major depressive disorders, studies like this will I think spur clinical work with psilocybin and cancer,” Nayak said.“There are a lot of theories,” F. Perry Wilson, MD, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut, and Medscape’s Impact Factor commentator, said in a “The science suggests that one-time use of these agents can allow for a sudden increase in neural plasticity, allowing new neuronal connections to form where they wouldn’t in other conditions, and for older connections to break down and restructure,” Wilson explained. “If our brains are etched with the stories of our lives, if our behaviors deepen and reinforce those psychological ruts, psychoplastogens like psilocybin may loosen the soil, so to speak.” This also suggests that concomitant psychotherapy could be a critical component of psilocybin treatment for depression, he added. “Perhaps the psilocybin shakes loose some maladaptive pathways, but putting them together in a healthy way still takes work.” Wilson said it wouldn’t surprise him if this is the case, “and it’s a good reminder to those of you reading this that these drugs are not a panacea for mental health.” This study was partially funded by Compass Pathways, a mental health care company, as well philanthropic as support through the Shady Grove Adventist Medical Center Foundation. Some authors reported various relationships with Compass Pathways and Sunstone Therapies. Nayak and Wilson had no relevant disclosures.All material on this website is protected by copyright, Copyright © 1994-2025 by WebMD LLC. This website also contains material copyrighted by 3rd parties.
Cancer Malignant Neoplasia Carcinoma Malignant Neoplasm Major Depression Major Depressive Disorder Unipolar Depression Clinical Depression MDD Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) Anxiety Antidepressant Antidepressant Drug Anxiety Disorder Remission Psychotherapy Antipsychotics Neuroleptics Neuroleptic Drugs Brain Clinical Research Clinical Trials Clinical Studies
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