4 Canadian Cancer Patients Win Right To Try Psilocybin
In a recent decision, 4 Canadian cancer patients have won the right to try psilocybin, the active ingredient in magic mushrooms, as a remedy for their illness. Illegal in Canada since 1974, psilocybin offers a promise of relief for patients in severe, palliative, end-of-life situations. All of this is still subject to ongoing clinical trials.
TheraPsil, an advocacy group, sought to help these four patients receive their exemptions. Borrowing from a successful early campaign to normalize cannabis, they argued that terminally ill patients deserve access to something that might help them, arguing that compassion supersedes the legal standing of the drug as a controlled substance.
According to Health Canada, “These exemptions do not change the fact that the sale and possession of magic mushrooms remain illegal in Canada.” They went on to re-establish that magic mushrooms may increase your risk of “flashbacks and bad trips that may lead to risk-taking behaviour, traumatic injuries and even death,” as well as increased heart activity.
Treating Anxiety with Psilocybin
Recent research is consistently establishing that psilocybin can create increased quality of life in cancer patients. Just as it can have anti-depressive impacts on patients from all walks of life, so too has recent research established that palliative care patients see sustained reduction in anxiety and depression. Johns Hopkins University in Maryland is investigating the use of psilocybin to manage a range of health conditions, including smoking addiction, eating disorders and Alzheimer’s disease.
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