Single dose of LSD can cut anxiety in half within weeks: ‘Breakthrough’ study

Health

By Adriana Diaz

A single dose of LSD can cut anxiety in half within weeks, according to the results of a new study conducted by a biopharmaceutical company.

MindMed, a clinical-stage company that develops novel products to treat brain health disorders, revealed the breakthrough findings on Friday.

MindMed declared that just 100 micrograms of MM120 — the salt form of lysergide d-tartrate, a hallucinogen commonly known as LSD — provided lasting relief to patients suffering from generalized anxiety disorder (GAD).

GAD is characterized by excessive, persistent, and unrealistic worry about everyday things resulting in fear, persistent anxiety and a constant feeling of being overwhelmed.

Approximately 10% of US adults — about 20 million people — currently suffer from the disorder.

“I’ve conducted clinical research studies in psychiatry for over two decades and have seen studies of many drugs under development for the treatment of anxiety,” Dr. David Feifel, an investigator in the study, said in a statement.

“That MM120 exhibited rapid and robust efficacy, solidly sustained for 12 weeks after a single dose, is truly remarkable.”

100 micrograms of MM120 is classified as a single dose of the drug.

Just that amount led to a 48% rate of remission from generalized anxiety disorder after 12 weeks, MindMed reported.

About 65% of patients saw improvements within three months, the company said.

“The clinical improvement for many patients was more than double what we see with today’s standard of care,” Dr. Daniel Karlin, assistant professor of psychiatry at Tufts University School of Medicine in Boston and chief medical officer for MindMed, according to CNN. “This occurred at all levels of anxiety, from moderate all the way up to severe.”

The trial tested doses of 25, 50, 100 and 200 micrograms compared with a placebo without the use of psychotherapy during the session — which most research with MDMA and psilocybin has relied on.

“We’re very confident based on the results that 100 micrograms is the right dose to bring into our phase three studies, as we didn’t see any more improvement with 200 micrograms but did see additional adverse effects,” Karlin said.

Some participants did report mild to moderate symptoms of euphoric feelings, illusions and hallucinations, anxiety, abnormal thinking, headaches, dizziness, nausea, excessive sweating, vomiting, numbness or tingling of the skin, and pupil dilation on the day of the dosage.

The drug will still need to go through the standard FDA approval process and will soon enter phase III trials.

The study also found that MM120 showed “rapid and robust improvement on depression symptoms in people” as “depression and anxiety have overlapping disease definitions,” according to Karlin.