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http://www.maps.org/research/cluster/psilo-lsd/ (1 of 9)28.11.2006 16:45:05
BROWSE LSD / PSILOCYBIN RESEARCH
INFORMATION:
LSD-assisted Psychotherapy Research in
Switzerland
Research into psilocybin and LSD as
potential treatments for people with cluster
headaches
News & Progress Reports
Research-related Documents and Resources
LSD-assisted Psychotherapy Research in
Switzerland
MAPS and Dr. Peter Gasser have signed a
Memorandum of Understanding about our
working together on the design of a study to
investigate LSD-assisted psychotherapy in 12
subjects suffering from anxiety associated with
advanced-stage cancer and other lifethreatening illnesses. The study will cost an
estimated $150,000, with MAPS promising to
donate at least $50,000 and to try to raise the
additional $100,000. This study will complement
Dr. John Halpern's MAPS-initiated research
investigating MDMA-assisted psychotherapy
and Dr. Charles Grob's Heffter-sponsored
research investigating psilocybin-assisted
psychotherapy, both with subjects suffering from
anxiety associated with advanced-stage cancer.
Dr. Gasser's study is in the early stages of
protocol design. The current idea is for a
preliminary 12 patient, double-blind design to
gather basic information on safety and efficacy
for this patient population and to develop a
treatment approach. Though there has been
LSD and Psilocybin Research
substantial prior research with LSD in cancer
MAPS is a non-profit research and educational organization. patients that demonstrated safety and some
We need your support so together we can make a
degree of efficacy, that research was conducted
difference.
over 35 years ago. For this study to follow
modern drug development standards, we must
start from scratch and build carefully. Our goal
is to be able to start this study before January
11, 2007, Albert Hofmann's 101st birthday. .
Research into psilocybin and LSD as
potential treatments for people with cluster
headaches
MAPS is developing research into the use of
psilocybin and LSD in the treatment of cluster
headaches. Cluster headaches are a rare,
severely painful form of headache that is related
to but different from the more common migraine.
Dr. Peter Goadsby, the world's leading
researcher on cluster headaches, has
commented, "The pain of a cluster headache is
worse than natural childbirth or even amputation
without anesthetic." The pain of a cluster
headache commences quickly, without warning,
and reaches a crescendo within 2 to 15
minutes. It is often excruciating in intensity, and
is deep, nonfluctuating, and explosive in quality.
People may have episodic or chronic cluster
headaches; currently, this research focuses on
episodic cluster headaches. Episodic cluster
headaches occur periodically, often occurring at
the same time each year. During a cycle, a
person with episodic cluster headaches will
experience an average of one to three
headaches per day, with frequency ranging from
one headache every other day to eight per day.
Conventional treatments include treatments for
stopping headache pain as it occurs (abortives),
and treatments that reduce the occurrence or reoccurrence of cluster headaches (prophylaxis).
Abortive treatments include Imitrex
(sumatriptan) and other triptans, nonpsychedelic ergotamines, and pure oxygen, and
prophylaxes include the ergotamine
methysergide, lithium (used to treat bipolar
affective disorder) and calcium channel blockers
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LSD and Psilocybin Research
(medication used to treat high blood pressure).
Up to 30% of people with cluster headaches
cannot prevent headaches from occurring with
conventional prophylactic treatments, and
because there are limits on the number of daily
doses of triptans for treating headaches as they
occur, some people may not be able to stop
every headache they have once it occurs. As
well, use of abortive and preventive medications
has risks (for instance, a monthly blood test for
serum lithium levels is required when taking
lithium), and some cluster headache sufferers
report that prophylaxes can "wear out" over
time.
Case reports suggest that ingesting psilocybin
(as through psilocybin-containing mushrooms)
or LSD can reduce cluster headache pain and,
more significantly, can inerrupt cluster
headache cycles so that no more headaches
will occur. MAPS is supporting John Halpern
MD and Andrew Sewell MD in analyzing and
organizing responses to a questionnaire posted
on www.clusterbusters.com, an organization run
by and for people with cluster headaches and
supporting the use of psilocybin, LSD and other
related substances as treatments for cluster
headaches. A survey is also on the Vaults of
Erowid for people who have used psychedelics
in the treatment of cluster headaches and
migraines. Data from both surveys will be used
by John H. Halpern MD and Andrew Sewell MD
in developing a research study directly
investigating psilocybin and LSD as a potential
abortive and prophylactic (cycle-interrupting)
treatment for cluster headaches. Initially, this
research will focus on studying people with
episodic cluster headaches; future research
may include people with episodic and chronic
cluster headaches.
Drs. Halpern and Sewell are currently
developing a randomized, dose-response study
of psilocybin and LSD in people with episodic
cluster headaches. If approved by the McLean
IRB and the FDA, this research study will take
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LSD and Psilocybin Research
place at McLean Hospital, a psychiatric facility
and research hospital affiliated with Harvard
Medical School. The investigators are currently
working on designing a pilot study wherein
people will be assigned to receive low or higher
doses of psilocybin or LSD to see whether these
substances will interrupt an ongoing cluster
headache cycle. If study results are promising,
then further research studies will be designed
and conducted. We hope that this research
program will lead to psilocybin and LSD
becoming legal, prescription treatments for the
interruption of cluster headaches and cluster
headache cycles.
Currently, there is no legal research with LSD in
humans taking place in the world, and we hope
that this will be the first study to renew human
research with LSD.
Marsha and David Weil have donated $50,000
for this research effort, Joseph Leonard has
donated $2,000 and the Organization for
Understanding Cluster Headache (OUCH) has
donated $1000. An estimated $107,000 in
addition is being sought to support this clinical
trial.
Donations to support research on psilocybin and
LSD as cluster headache treatments are
needed, MAPS will allocate 100% of any
donation specifically restricted to this study.
People who donate $100.00 or more to the
Cluster Headache Research project at Harvard
Medical School can receive a free
Clusterbusters necklace, featuring a mushroomshaped pendant. To receive a necklace, make a
donation here at MAPS and write Clusterbusters
to confirm the donation, along with information
on your shipping address. People can also help
support this research by purchasing a necklace
directly from Clusterbusters. Visit the
ClusterBusters website for more details.
MAPS is also raising funds for the cluster
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LSD and Psilocybin Research
headache study through the sale of limited
editions of portraits of Albert Hofmann by light
artist Dean Chamberlain, signed by Albert. The
first series of 50 are all sold out and raised over
$26,000 for the study. A series of 25 larger-size
portraits are now for sale, with prices now
starting at $5000. For more information, see
Hofmann Portraits.
Visit our bookstore to purchase one of the
remaining prints.
News and progress reports
November 6, 2006. The Spanish-language
journal Revista de Neurologia published a case
report of a man with chronic cluster headaches
treating the condition with monthly subpsychedelic doses of psilocybin-containing
mushrooms.
October 16, 2006. The Globe and Mail
published an editorial entitiled, "The LSD
Treatment", describing a study just published in
the journal Social History of Medicine about a
long-term follow-up study on Dr. Humphrey
Osmond's research treating alcoholics with LSDassisted therapy.
September 13, 2006. The science journal
Nature reported today on MAPS-initiated
research at Harvard/Maclean Hospital
investigating the efficacy of LSD and psilocybin
to treat cluster headache. Click here to read
"Dropping acid may help headaches."
August 16, 2006. Health Reporter Jim Ritter
published in the Chicago Sun-Times today
"Pain Sufferer Turns to 'Shrooms'." The article
describes the use of psilocybin as a treatment
for cluster headaches and MAPS-initiated
research at Harvard/McLean Hospital
investigating LSD and psilocybin as treatment
for subjects with cluster headache.
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August 15, 2006. In their "Newsdesk" section,
the journal Lancet Neurology published
"Hallucinogen Research Inspires
Neurotheology," a report on developments in
research with psychedelic compounds, such as
ketamine or psilocybin. The piece contains
comments from Roland Griffiths, John Halpern
and Deborah Mash.
July 20, 2006. We're posting today a report
about a very unusual death linked to LSD
written on Oct. 2, 1982, by MAPS President
Rick Doblin. We're making this public as part of
MAPS' educational mission and as part of our
mission to lead the way into research into the
risks of psychedelics as well as the benefits.
Coincidentally, on January 13, 2006, after a
lecture Rick Doblin gave at the LSD conference
in Basel held to honor Albert Hofmann on his
100th birthday, Rick was asked a question
about a death linked to LSD. After some
discussion, it turned out the question was about
the same person as discussed in the report we
are posting today.
July 11, 2006. On Tuesday, July 11, a National
Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) and Council on
Spiritual Practices (CSP)-funded research team
from John Hopkins University published in
Psychopharmacology the first modern-day
continuation of the Good Friday Experiment,
finding that psilocybin is likely to induce spiritual
experiences in most subjects. A former NIDA
director and a former deputy director of ONDCP
supported the results of the study in associated
commentaries published with the article, but the
current NIDA director issued a statement
distancing NIDA from the study. Read about this
amazing psychedelic research development as
reported by the Economist, Washington Post,
Wall Street Journal, LA Times, and ABC News,
which features a salient quote from MAPS
President Rick Doblin.
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June 28, 2006. Results of Dr. Andrew Sewell
and Dr. John Halpern's interviews with people
who reported attempting to treat their cluster
headaches with psilocybin-containing
mushrooms or LSD are now published in the
journal Neurology. Their results are promising
and lend support to embarking on further
research into the therapeutic potential of these
drugs.
April 14, 2006. A recently published editorial in
the Lancet supports research into the potential
therapeutic benefits of psychedelic drugs and
calls for a new legal structure that makes this
research easier and less burdensome to
conduct. The Lancet editorial was likely inspired
by a commentary published in the British
Journal of Psychiatry. This editorial was then
covered by the British newspaper, the Guardian.
December 22, 2005. Dr. Andrew Sewell's and
Dr. John Halpern's research into the use of LSD
and psilocybin in the treatment of cluster
headaches has reached a major milestone, in
that Dr. Sewell's colleagues recently submitted
a case report series for publication with data
from over 50 subjects.
August 2, 2005. London's Guardian publishes a
positive article by Mark Honigsbaum,
"Headache sufferers flout new drug law- Calls
for clinical trials and rethink of legislation as
patients claim that magic mushrooms can
relieve excruciating condition." MAPS' effort to
sponsor research into the use of LSD and
psilocybin in treating cluster headaches is
favorably mentioned.
December 1, 2004. Currently Andrew Sewell
and John Halpern are preparing a case series
from responses to the clusterbusters surveys.
Research-related documents and resources
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1. Subjective Experiences During the LSD
Training Session (PDF) - S Grof, 1970.
An incredible document and one of the
most amazing LSD trip reports.
2. www.clusterbusters.com
3. Erowid survey "Treating cluster
headaches and migraines with
psychedelics"
4. Clusterbusters survey for Cluster
headache sufferers who have tried the
psilocybin treatment"
5. OUCH-Canada, an organization for
cluster headache sufferers that includes
a message board for discussing the
treatment.
6. A personal account of a woman who
overcame her cigarette addition during
an LSD experience.
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