The FDA Has Already Authorized Clinical Trials Into the Therapeutic Potential of MDMA for Patients With PTSD, But Now it’s Given the Green Light to a Psychedelics Research Institute to Expand its Studies By Administering the Substance to Certain Therapists
Volunteer therapists who are being trained to treat people with PTSD will be able to participate in the Phase 1 trials to gain personal experience with the treatment option. This is a complementary research project that comes as the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS) is in the process of conducting Phase 3 trials involving people with the disorder.
New results From a Clinical Trial Using MDMA to Treat PTSD Showed the Promise of a Stigmatized Drug to Treat Mental Illness at a Time When Covid-19 Has Raised Global Awareness of the Toll of Mental Health Conditions
Decriminalization of drugs like “magic” mushrooms in places including Denver and Oregon may lead to broader public acceptance, but the emerging alternative drug industry is focused on patients most in need and where current psychiatric medications have failed. Companies like
Compass Pathways (NASDAQ:CMPS), which uses psilocybin for depression, and ATAI Life Sciences, backed by Peter Thiel, are researching a variety of ways to treat mental health with alternative and psychedelic therapies.
Depression Scores Did Not Differ Significantly Between Patients Who Used Psilocybin or Escitalopram at 6 weeks
These findings, from a phase 2, double-blind, randomized, controlled trial, were published in the New England Journal of Medicine. Patients (N=59) with long-standing, moderate to severe major depressive disorder were recruited via an advertisement in the United Kingdom in 2019. Patients were randomized to receive 2 doses of 25 mg psilocybin with a daily placebo for 6 weeks (n=30) or 2 doses of 1 mg psilocybin with 3 weeks of daily 10 mg escitalopram and 3 weeks of 20 mg escitalopram (n=29). Patients were assessed by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and performed cognitive and affective processing tasks.
The U.S. House of Representatives Voted for the Secure and Fair Enforcement Banking Act for the Fourth time, but the Bill Aimed at Enabling Banks to Provide its Services to State-Legal Cannabis Businesses Never Before Passed to the Senate Floor
Cantor Fitzgerald’s analyst Pablo Zuanic doesn’t see the bill reaching a Senate vote either, as leading Democrats there are pushing for broader reform, and not for “isolated federal level changes” for the industry. Back in March, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer held a short conference with Senate Finance Committee Chairman Ron Wyden (D-OR) and Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ) sharing their actions on drafting extensive reform legislation. Just last week, Schumer announced his plans to introduce a federal legalization bill soon. “Once it is introduced, it will go on the floor,” Schumer said.