The Canadian Network for Psychedelic-Assisted Cancer Therapy

There’s a growing belief that psychedelics are a universal cure or panacea for all of society’s ills — but this idea can be misleading and unsafe. While psychedelic-assisted therapies show promising results, these benefits come from carefully controlled, supervised clinical settings with specific populations, not general use.

⚠️ Risks still exist.
Modern trials often report mild or temporary side effects, but we still lack strong data on how psychedelics affect different populations, especially outside research settings. Some people may experience anxiety, distress, or lingering perceptual changes — and we don’t yet know who is most vulnerable.

🧠 Psychedelics aren’t a one-size-fits-all solution.
Genetics, mental health history, environment, setting and preparation all influence how someone responds. More research is needed to understand who benefits most and how to reduce harm.

✨ Bottom line: Psychedelics have real potential — but they are not a cure-all.
If choosing to use them, it’s safest when it happens in a professional, supervised, and controlled environment.

Citation:
Simonsson O, Johnson MW, Hendricks PS. Psychedelic and M**A-Related Adverse Effects—A Call for Action. JAMA Health Forum. 2024;5(11):e243630. doi:10.1001/jamahealthforum.2024.3630

For many people, psychosocial care is associated with improved coping, emotional support, and quality of life during and after cancer treatment. But could its impact extend even further?

In this systematic review and meta-analysis, researchers examined 32 randomized controlled trials involving 5,704 participants to explore whether psychosocial interventions were associated with survival outcomes in people with cancer.

The findings suggested a small but robust survival benefit, with an estimated median survival advantage of 3.9 months.

The interventions studied included a range of approaches commonly used in psycho-oncology, such as:
🧠 Cognitive-behavioural approaches
🌱 Meaning-enhancing interventions
📖 Life review and dignity therapy
💬 Counselling
🎓 Education
🎵 Music, writing, and supportive therapies

Importantly, psychosocial interventions are not intended to replace medical treatment. Rather, they are designed to complement cancer care by helping individuals navigate the emotional, psychological, and social challenges that often accompany a cancer diagnosis. These types of supportive care programs may allow people to better tolerate and complete standard cancer treatments, or they can improve important behavioral and lifestyle factors like physical activity and sleep, which may in turn impact survival.

While the authors note that effects may not generalize equally across all populations, these findings contribute to a growing body of evidence supporting psychosocial care as an important component of comprehensive cancer care.

📖 SOURCE
Asakawa-Haas KD, Bauer L, Tran US, and colleagues. Psychosocial interventions indicate prolonged survival in cancer patients in a systematic review, meta-analysis, and multiverse meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. Communications Psychology. 2026;4:49. https://doi.org/10.1038/s44271-026-00414-x

🍄 Psilocybin-assisted therapy is being studied for a wide range of health conditions and challenges—not just depression alone.

This pocket guide highlights six areas where psilocybin research has been particularly active, including depression, anxiety, substance use disorders, cancer-related distress, obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), and headache disorders.

While research findings vary across conditions and more studies are needed, interest in psilocybin-assisted therapy has grown significantly over the past decade. Researchers around the world are exploring its potential to support mental health, quality of life, and wellbeing in both clinical and supportive care settings.

👉 At CAN-PACT, our focus is on advancing research related to psychedelic-assisted cancer therapy, including its potential role in addressing the psychological, emotional, and existential challenges that can accompany a cancer diagnosis.

📩 Interested in the latest psychedelic-assisted cancer therapy research? Sign up for the CAN-PACT newsletter (link in bio).

📖 Source:

Madden K, Flood B, Young Shing D, Ade-Conde M, Kashir I, Mark M, MacKillop J, Bhandari M, Adili A. Psilocybin for clinical indications: A scoping review. Journal of Psychopharmacology. 2024;38(10):1014–1029. https://doi.org/10.1177/02698811241269751

👉 For decades, cancer care has focused primarily on treating the disease itself. Today, there is growing recognition that supporting emotional, psychological, social, and spiritual well-being is also an essential part of comprehensive cancer care.

In this recent meta-analysis, researchers examined 32 randomized controlled trials involving 5,704 cancer patients and found that psychosocial interventions were associated with improved survival outcomes. Participants receiving psychosocial support experienced a 20% lower risk of death, with an estimated median survival benefit of 3.9 months. While effects varied across studies, the findings add to a growing body of evidence highlighting the importance of supportive care throughout the cancer journey.

🤔 Why does this matter to CAN-PACT?

Psychedelic-assisted cancer therapy is often discussed as an emerging approach within supportive cancer care. While this study did not examine psychedelic interventions, it reinforces a broader principle that has guided psychosocial oncology research for decades: addressing psychological and emotional well-being may influence outcomes that matter deeply to patients and families.

As interest in psychedelic-assisted therapies continues to grow, research like this helps provide important context for understanding the value of psychosocial and supportive care interventions in cancer settings.

✨ Enjoying our Research Radar selections? Subscribe to the CAN-PACT newsletter for more research highlights, emerging evidence, and network news. Link in bio! ☝️

📖 Research Radar

Asakawa-Haas KD, Böttche L, Tran US, et al. Psychosocial interventions indicate prolonged survival in cancer patients in a systematic review, meta-analysis, and multiverse meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. Communications Psychology. 2026;4:49. https://doi.org/10.1038/s44271-026-00414-x

✨ Ayahuasca and ibogaine are often discussed in the same conversations about psychedelic and plant-based medicines, but the experiences they produce are commonly described in very different ways.

Ayahuasca experiences are often characterized as visionary, emotional, spiritual, and connected, with many individuals reporting vivid imagery, emotional processing, and mystical-type experiences. In contrast, ibogaine experiences are frequently described as deeply reflective and introspective, often involving autobiographical memories, self-examination, and “life review” experiences. These distinctions have contributed to growing interest in how different psychedelic substances may support different therapeutic goals and processes.

👉 Understanding these differences can help support more informed conversations about psychedelic research and the diverse ways different substances may affect perception, emotion, and self-reflection.

Experiences can vary based on the person, dose, environment, and level of support provided. Research in this area continues to evolve.

What comparison should we explore next? 🤔

📖 Source:
Arenson A, Campbell CI, Remler I. Psychoactive plant derivatives (ayahuasca, ibogaine, kratom) and their application in opioid withdrawal and use disorder: A narrative review. Journal of Addictive Diseases. 2024;42(3):253–263. https://doi.org/10.1080/10550887.2023.2195777

🍄 What changes after a first psilocybin experience? 🍄

In this exploratory study, researchers followed 28 healthy adults with no prior psychedelic experience before and after a single high-dose (25 mg) psilocybin session.

One month later, participants demonstrated three notable changes:

💡 Greater psychological insight
Participants reported significantly higher levels of insight into themselves and their experiences.

😊 Improved well-being
Researchers observed improvements in psychological well-being that persisted for at least one month after the session.

🔄 Greater cognitive flexibility
Participants showed improved performance on an objective measure of cognitive flexibility.

Interestingly, the study also found that self-reported greater psychological insight after the session compared to beforehand was associated with improved well-being one month later, suggesting that the meaning people derive from an experience may play an important role in lasting change.

While these findings are promising, this was a small exploratory study conducted in healthy volunteers. More research is needed to understand how these findings may apply to clinical populations and therapeutic settings.

Don’t forget to save me for another date!

📖 SOURCE
Lyons T, Spriggs M, Kerkelä L, Rosas FE, Roseman L, Mediano PAM, Timmermann C, Oestreich L, Pagni BA, Zeifman RJ, Hampshire A, Trender W, Douglass HM, Girn M, Godfrey K, Kettner H, Sharif F, Espasiano L, Gazzaley A, Wall MB, Erritzoe D, Nutt DJ, Carhart-Harris RL. Human brain changes after first psilocybin use. Nature Communications. 2026;17:3977. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-026-71962-3

👉 Psychedelic-assisted therapy is being studied for more than depression and anxiety alone.

In cancer care, research has explored how psychedelics may help support some of the deep emotional and existential challenges that can arise during and after a diagnosis—including fear of death, hopelessness, demoralization, and loss of meaning.

These experiences are common in people facing serious illness, yet they are often difficult to talk about and even harder to treat with conventional approaches alone.

This pocket guide highlights some of the symptoms and experiences currently being explored in psychedelic-assisted cancer therapy research.

At CAN-PACT, our work focuses on advancing evidence-based psychedelic-assisted cancer therapy research in Canada through collaboration, patient partnership, and supportive care innovation.

📩 Want research updates, publications, and upcoming opportunities to get involved?
Sign up for the CAN-PACT newsletter (link in bio)

📖 Sources:
Ross S, Agin-Liebes G, Lo S, et al. Acute and sustained symptom reduction following psilocybin-assisted group therapy for demoralized older long-term AIDS survivor men: An open-label safety and feasibility pilot study. EClinicalMedicine. 2022;48:101433. doi:10.1016/j.eclinm.2022.101433

Reiche S, Hermle L, Gutwinski S, Jungaberle H, Gasser P, Majić T. Serotonergic hallucinogens in the treatment of anxiety and depression in patients suffering from a life-threatening disease: A systematic review. Progress in Neuro-Psychopharmacology & Biological Psychiatry. 2018;81:1–10. doi:10.1016/j.pnpbp.2017.09.012

Griffiths RR, Johnson MW, Carducci MA, et al. Psilocybin produces substantial and sustained decreases in depression and anxiety in patients with life-threatening cancer: A randomized double-blind trial. Journal of Psychopharmacology. 2016;30(12):1181–1197. doi:10.1177/0269881116675513

M**A and L*D are often grouped together in public conversations about psychedelics—but the experiences they produce are commonly described in very different ways.

Research suggests that M**A is more often associated with emotional openness, empathy, connection, sociability, and positive mood, while L*D is more commonly linked to altered perception, visual and sensory changes, introspection, and shifts in consciousness.

Understanding these differences is important when discussing research, therapeutic models, and how different substances may affect people in different ways. While they are sometimes discussed under the same umbrella, they are not interchangeable experiences.

Experiences can vary based on the person, dose, environment, and level of support provided. Research in this area is still evolving.

What comparison should we break down next?

📖 Source:
Holze F, Vizeli P, Ley L, Müller F, Dolder P, Stocker M, Duthaler U, Varghese N, Eckert A, Borgwardt S, Liechti ME. Distinct acute effects of L*D, M**A, and D-amphetamine in healthy subjects. Neuropsychopharmacology. 2020;45(3):462–471. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41386-019-0569-3

🍄 Psilocybin therapy isn’t just “taking a dose.” 🍄

It’s a structured, supported experience shaped by preparation, the environment, and what happens afterward. From guided support throughout the session to integration the next day, each element plays a role in how the experience unfolds and is understood.

This pocket guide highlights some of the key expectations going in—so you have a clearer sense of what’s involved.

📩 Want more research, tools, and updates on psychedelic-assisted therapy in cancer care?
👉 Sign-up for the CAN-PACT newsletter (link in bio)

✨ Stay tuned for an upcoming infographic breaking down the full dosing session and step-by-step process. ✨