For people facing a cancer diagnosis, the psychological weight can be as devastating as the physical illness. In 2016 C.E., two rigorous clinical trials published simultaneously in the Journal of Psychopharmacology offered something remarkable: a single dose of psilocybin — the active compound in so-called “magic mushrooms” — produced rapid, dramatic, and lasting reductions in depression and anxiety among cancer patients. One participant described the experience as lifting “a cloud of doom.” Researchers called the results unprecedented.
What the trials found
- Psilocybin trials: Two independent studies — one at Johns Hopkins University and one at New York University — each found that a single guided psilocybin session reduced depression and anxiety in cancer patients by clinically significant margins, with effects lasting at least six months.
- Response rates: In the Johns Hopkins trial, roughly 80% of participants showed clinically significant decreases in depressed mood and anxiety; in the NYU trial, approximately 83% showed anti-depressant response at the seven-week follow-up, effects that held through six months.
- Therapeutic context: Neither trial administered psilocybin in isolation — participants received psychological preparation, in-session support from trained therapists, and follow-up integration sessions, pointing to the importance of the therapeutic container, not just the compound itself.
Why this moment mattered
Depression and anxiety affect an estimated 40% of cancer patients, yet they remain dramatically undertreated. Standard antidepressants can take weeks to produce effects and often fail to address the existential dimension of facing a life-threatening illness — the confrontation with mortality, loss of identity, and fear of suffering.
Psilocybin appeared to work differently. Participants in both trials frequently described their sessions as among the most meaningful experiences of their lives, producing a sense of connectedness, reduced fear of death, and what researchers called “mystical-type” experiences. These subjective effects, measured on validated scales, correlated strongly with the therapeutic outcomes.
The simultaneous publication of two independent, randomized, placebo-controlled trials in a peer-reviewed journal was itself a milestone. It signaled that psychedelic research — largely frozen since the early 1970 C.E.s following federal prohibition — had returned to the scientific mainstream with rigorous methodology and replicable results.
A long road back to the lab
Psilocybin had been studied in medical contexts as early as the 1950 C.E.s and 1960 C.E.s before being swept up in broader cultural and political backlash. Its scheduling as a Schedule I substance in the U.S. in 1970 C.E. effectively shut down research for decades. The work at Johns Hopkins and NYU — begun cautiously in the 2000 C.E.s with special regulatory approval — represented the slow rebuilding of an evidence base that had been interrupted, not disproved.
That history matters. The 2016 C.E. publications drew on decades of patient advocacy, harm-reduction science, and a small number of researchers who kept the field alive through lean years. Indigenous traditions in the Americas had long used psilocybin-containing mushrooms in ceremonial healing contexts — knowledge systems that informed early Western researchers, even when that debt was not always acknowledged.
Lasting impact
The 2016 C.E. trials helped catalyze a broader shift in how regulators, funders, and clinicians view psychedelic-assisted therapy. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration subsequently granted psilocybin “Breakthrough Therapy” designation for treatment-resistant depression in 2018 C.E. and for major depressive disorder in 2019 C.E., expediting research pathways.
Multiple Phase 2 and Phase 3 trials have since enrolled thousands of participants across depression, addiction, PTSD, and end-of-life distress. MAPS and the newly formed COMPASS Pathways have expanded clinical infrastructure. Oregon became the first U.S. state to legalize supervised psilocybin therapy in 2020 C.E., though implementation has moved slowly.
Perhaps most significantly, the 2016 C.E. studies reframed what “treating” existential suffering in terminal illness might mean — not just suppressing symptoms, but helping patients find meaning, reduce fear, and live more fully in whatever time they have.
Blindspots and limits
Both trials had small sample sizes — 51 participants at Johns Hopkins, 29 at NYU — and studied mostly white, educated, psychologically stable patients, limiting how broadly the results can be applied. The therapeutic model is resource-intensive, requiring trained guides and extended sessions, raising serious questions about access, cost, and equity if psilocybin therapies scale. Psilocybin remains a Schedule I controlled substance at the federal level in the U.S. as of 2016 C.E., and regulatory approval for clinical use has not yet arrived, meaning most patients cannot access these treatments. The risk of psychological distress during sessions, while manageable in controlled settings, is real — and proper screening and support are essential.
Read more
For more on this story, see: CNN Health
For more from Good News for Humankind, see:
- Alzheimer’s risk cut in half by drug in landmark prevention trial
- U.K. cancer death rates down to their lowest level on record
- The Good News for Humankind archive on global health
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