This One-Time Treatment Helped Ease Cancer-Related Anxiety For Months
A cancer diagnosis brings more than physical symptoms. It can raise difficult questions about the future, change, and mortality, while anxiety and depression can make an already overwhelming experience even harder to navigate.
Researchers have studied whether psychedelic-assisted therapy could help with this particular kind of distress.
In two clinical trials published in 2016, a single supervised psilocybin session was followed by improvements in anxiety, depression, and wellbeing that lasted for months.
About the studies
Researchers at NYU and Johns Hopkins conducted separate clinical trials1 to investigate whether psilocybin could ease anxiety and depression in people with cancer.
Psilocybin is the psychedelic compound found in certain mushrooms, and earlier research has explored its potential effects on mood and emotional wellbeing.
The NYU trial included 29 participants, while the Johns Hopkins trial included 51. Both provided extensive preparation before the session and support from trained monitors during and afterward.
The trials used slightly different comparison treatments.
Johns Hopkins compared a high dose of psilocybin with a very low dose, while NYU compared psilocybin with niacin, an active placebo. Participants were followed for roughly six months.
The benefits lasted for months
The improvements continued well beyond the psychedelic experience itself.
At six months, 78% of Johns Hopkins participants met the criteria for a meaningful improvement in depression, while 83% did so for anxiety. Depression was in remission for 65% of participants, and anxiety was in remission for 57%.
The changes weren't limited to symptoms. Johns Hopkins participants reported better quality of life, greater optimism, and a stronger sense of meaning, along with less fear of death.
At NYU, 70% said their psilocybin session was among the five most meaningful experiences of their lives, and 87% reported greater life satisfaction or wellbeing afterward.
Why the experience may matter
One of the more interesting findings was that the potential benefit wasn't simply about the amount of psilocybin participants received.
Researchers also measured how participants experienced the session.
Some described a profound sense of connection, unity, or personal meaning, known as a "mystical-type" experience.
People who reported more intense experiences tended to have greater improvements in depression and anxiety months later. Both trials found that the quality of the experience helped explain the treatment's effects.
This doesn't prove that the experience directly caused symptoms to improve, but it offered researchers a clue about how psychedelic-assisted therapy may work.
What this means for people facing serious illness
These weren't casual psychedelic experiences. Participants had trained professionals helping them prepare, supporting them throughout the session, and following up afterward.
The research also highlighted the potential value of emotional care alongside medical treatment. Therapy that gives people space to explore fear, uncertainty, meaning, and mortality may be valuable when facing a serious diagnosis.
If anxiety or depression is making it harder to cope with illness, consider speaking with a mental health professional experienced in supporting people with serious conditions.
Psychedelic-assisted therapy is still an evolving area of research and should only be pursued in appropriate clinical and legal settings.
The takeaway
One session, months of change. In these trials, the depth of the experience may have been a key part of what helped participants feel better long after the session ended.
