Hallucinogenic drug heading towards the clinic

The use of LSD (d-lysergic acid diethylamide) in psychotherapy could be studied for the first time in 35 years. 

A Swiss ethics committee has approved a trial to determine whether patients with anxiety relating to advanced-stage illnesses can be safely given LSD-assisted psychotherapy to improve their anxiety symptoms. 

The trial will be a randomised, active placebo controlled double-blind dose-response, Phase II pilot study with 12 subjects, conducted in Switzerland by Peter Gasser, psychiatrist, psychotherapist and president of the Swiss Medical Association for Psycholytic Therapy.  

The Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (Maps) in the US is sponsoring the study as part of its goal for LSD to be available for prescription use by trained and licensed psychiatrists and psychotherapists in regulated clinics. The organisation is donating at least $50 000 of the estimated $150 000 cost. 

Gasser hopes to start the trial by the end of the year and anticipates it will last about two years. Before he can begin, approval is also needed from SwissMedic, the Swiss drug regulation authority. 'We have had informal conversations with officials within SwissMedic,' said Rick Doblin, president of Maps, 'and believe that SwissMedic will approve a study that has already obtained approval from a Swiss ethics committee.' He expects to get approval before the end of the summer.  

LSD can produce intense changes in perception, cognition and emotion that last for up to 12 hours. Previous clinical research suggest it could be used to treat psychiatric conditions that emerge after a life-threatening illness is diagnosed, helping people grappling with physical deterioration and impending death. The researchers hypothesise that the combination of LSD within a therapeutic setting will reduce anxiety afterwards. 

Karen Harries-Rees