A study was published in the Archives of General Psychiatry in which psilpcybin, the chemical that takes mushrooms to "magic mushrooms," was given to a test group. The test group consisted of cancer patients in the advanced stages of their disease. The purpose of the study was to see whether this schedule I, hallucinagenic drug had any effect on the anxiety these patients felt in regards to their terminal condition.
These patients, all of whom were guided through their trips, reported feeling significantly less depressed, and some even connected with their disease from a different perspective, and felt closer to family members. I am not surprised by this, seeing as these are usual reportings of the effects of the chemical, regardless of physical health. I am surprised in regards to this study, however. I believe that, so long as this group of people feel happier, more accepting, or optimistic toward their illness, then they were benefitted. I also understand the need for exploration of treatments, especially mental health treatments in terminally ill. But I am taken aback by this study for a few reasons.
1) there is still such a great debate as the the benefits/risks (physically, socially, financially, you name it) towards medical marijuana. So the timing of studying this chemical, with longer, more lasting effects surprises me. 2) Though we know how this group was positively effected, what is the plan in terms of the "dose?" Would it be intended to be given every day? A one time dose (though the treatment group went through two six-hour sessions)? Once a month for a cleansing? Are we going to just numb the patients into a permanent state of Wonderland? I think the long-term plan was not necessarily thought through.
The findings of this study fascinate me. The notion that alternative drugs / treatments are being tested is great; it also speaks to the attitudes of drugs in general, and looking at possible positives they can offer. I am happy for each individual that reported finding more peace. However, the idea of where this study will go from here, I'm not too sure about.
http://www.takepart.com/news/2010/09/16/study-finds-magic-treatment-for-terminally-ill-patients
I completely agree with what Rachel said about the long term plans following this study. I am pleasently surprised to see that such extreme alternative methods of treatment are being taken into consideration for these diseases. However, do not think that the researchers that conducted this study really thought about how this drug could be applied to a real world setting. As Rachel stated above, there is no mention of dose size or frequency of dose. Also, this may lead patients to seek the drug outside of a clinical setting, which could be very reckless to say the least.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Rachel and KaitVit on the fact that this experiment wasn't thought through properly. Depending on the dose this exerpiment could be helpful or hurtful. The thing is of all treatments they put these poor cancer patients on a hallucinagenic drug. Why not something else?
ReplyDeleteI totally agree with the girls, this study shows that society is changing its perspective on alternative medicines and heading in the right direction. I am however a little skeptical if this is a good treatment for cancer patients, etc. because I don't think that constantly numbing patients is really a good idea, but with a specific dose and schedule, it could be very beneficial to patients, as well as medical marijuana. It seems that it's only a matter of time before drugs like these are legal, since several other states have already legalized it or decriminalized it, which could really help a lot of people and eliminate many of the other legal drugs currently available. I think that's why its such a big controversy, because legalizing these drugs could essentially put the major drug companies out of business.
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