The Science Of Psychedelics For Cancer Patients
by MADELINE FERGUSON
A team of researchers at the Huntsman Cancer Institute here in Utah set out to research the impact of group psychedelic therapy on the mental distress of cancer patients. They chose to focus on psilocybin, the hallucinogenic molecule found in magic mushrooms. The goal of the study was to see if the substance could aid patients in confronting their own mortality.
“Psychedelic medicine is the only thing that has been shown to make a difference in terms of alleviating some of the existential distress [felt by cancer patients],” one of the lead researchers told KUER.
Psychedelics have shown time and time again to have transformational effects on people. The internet (and likely your inner circle) is full of stories about the healing properties of these substances and as of late, there has been a bit of a resurgence when it comes to scientific research into psychedelic treatments for many ailments.
One long-term study conducted by a team of prestigious University researchers showed improvements in distress and better spiritual well-being in cancer patients after just one dose of psilocybin. That’s pretty incredible when you consider the time commitment traditional therapy or mental health medications require.
One big barrier to patient access is that psilocybin is still classified as a schedule one substance, meaning it is illegal in the United States, though rumors about it being rescheduled have trickled in as of late. More on the history of psilocybin here.
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Another barrier is accessibility for lower-income patients. This type of treatment is both time-intensive and resource-intensive. It will likely also take time for insurance companies to catch up with the science, so payment would likely be left up to the patient for the foreseeable future.
The study from Huntsman Cancer Institute is looking at ways to help relieve some of the time and financial burden by focusing on group therapy, meaning more patients could be treated at one time by one therapist.
This also bring another important piece of overall wellbeing to the table: community and friendship. The study will evaluate whether it is safe and effective to do this kind of treatment in a group setting.
The results of this specific study are still pending, the first round of participants went through the program during the Fall of 2021 and researchers are currently taking data and evaluating results.
Studies like this are exciting and it feels the country and, even just Utah, is on the precipice of a psychedelic renaissance which is great news for people looking for healing in unconventional ways and let’s be honest, after the past few years, we could all use a little community healing.
