PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — The psychedelic mushroom psilocybin will soon be used in clinical trials at the Philadelphia VA hospital and elsewhere, as healthcare officials seek new ways to treat veterans with major depression and post-traumatic stress disorder.
The Corporal Michael J. Crescenz Medical Center, just southwest of the University of Pennsylvania, will participate in one of eight studies in Pennsylvania — one of two in Philadelphia — looking at psychiatric use of the fungus.
Dr. Ana Rose Childress, a research professor at UPenn’s Department of Psychiatry focused on addiction treatment, says psilocybin is exciting clinicians because it functions differently than typical antidepressants.
Most antidepressant medications target the patient’s mood, but the psychoactive effects of psilocybin can help change the thought patterns that contribute to depression and PTSD symptoms.
“We have, at this point with these psychedelics, a new target,” Childress explained. “The short name is flexibility, but really it’s neurocognitive flexibility — being able to get unstuck from really unhelpful patterns of thinking or doing.”
She said the current studies are determining whether the hallucinogenic “trip” stereotypical of psychedelics is a necessary part of treatment with psilocybin.
According to Childress, early trials have shown success.
“That’s generated quite a lot of excitement for the treatment-resistant depression field,” she said. “But also for things like trauma, post-traumatic stress… obsessive-compulsive disorder, eating disorders and substance use disorders, which all have their own version of being stuck.”
The recent push for clinical trials came after the White House issued an executive order accelerating research aimed at treating mental illness in April.
Other studies will look at medications that act on the same brain receptors as psilocybin, but without the hallucinogenic effects, to determine whether they have similar clinical benefits.
The medical center will look at the effects of psilocybin in treating veterans with major depression and other mental illnesses, as one of eight clinical studies across Pennsylvania
The medical center will look at the effects of psilocybin in treating veterans with major depression and other mental illnesses, as one of eight clinical studies across Pennsylvania
