Magic mushroom compound provides anti-anxiety and antidepressant effects lasting years, study finds
Single dose of psilocybin leads to decreased demoralisation and improved spiritual wellbeing among cancer sufferers, long-term research indicates
A single dose of psilocybin, a compound found in psychedelic mushrooms, can result in “significant improvements” in reducing stress and anxiety in cancer patients for as long as five years after it was administered, a new study suggests.
A research team at New York University‘s Grossman School of Medicine, who were following up a landmark 2016 study into psilocybin, found that in conjunction with psychotherapy, cancer patients experienced improvements in emotional and existential distress.
In the earlier study, the team reported that the use of psilocybin produced “immediate, substantial, and sustained improvements in anxiety and depression and led to decreases in cancer-related demoralisation and hopelessness, improved spiritual wellbeing, and increased quality of life”.
After a follow-up assessment, six-and-a-half months later, psilocybin was associated with “enduring anti-anxiety and antidepressant effects”.
The new study — a long term follow up of the same set of patients — found the positive effects had continued.
