Bader H, Farraj H, Maghnam J, Abu Omar Y. Investigating the therapeutic efficacy of psilocybin in advanced cancer patients: A comprehensive review and meta-analysis. World J Clin Oncol 2024; 15(7): 908-919 [PMID: 39071471 DOI: 10.5306/wjco.v15.i7.908]
Corresponding Author of This Article
Husam Bader, MD, Assistant Professor, Department of Internal Medicine, University of Michigan, 1500 E Medical Center Dr, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, United States. h.bader87@gmail.com
Research Domain of This Article
Oncology
Article-Type of This Article
Systematic Reviews
Open-Access Policy of This Article
This article is an open-access article which was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
World J Clin Oncol. Jul 24, 2024; 15(7): 908-919 Published online Jul 24, 2024. doi: 10.5306/wjco.v15.i7.908
Investigating the therapeutic efficacy of psilocybin in advanced cancer patients: A comprehensive review and meta-analysis
Husam Bader, Husam Farraj, Joud Maghnam, Yazan Abu Omar
Husam Bader, Yazan Abu Omar, Department of Internal Medicine, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, United States
Husam Farraj, Department of Internal Medicine, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM 87106, United States
Joud Maghnam, Faculty of Medicine, AL-Balqa Applied University, Al-Salt 19110, Jordan
Author contributions: Bader H and Farraj H performed data extraction and data analysis; Maghnam J assisted in manuscript writing; Abu Omar Y designed the study and assisted in manuscript writing.
Conflict-of-interest statement: All the authors report no relevant conflicts of interest for this article.
PRISMA 2009 Checklist statement: The authors have read the PRISMA 2009 Checklist, and the manuscript was prepared and revised according to the PRISMA 2009 Checklist.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: Https://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Husam Bader, MD, Assistant Professor, Department of Internal Medicine, University of Michigan, 1500 E Medical Center Dr, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, United States. h.bader87@gmail.com
Received: March 4, 2024 Revised: May 22, 2024 Accepted: June 11, 2024 Published online: July 24, 2024 Processing time: 133 Days and 7 Hours
Abstract
BACKGROUND
Psilocybin, a naturally occurring psychedelic compound found in certain species of mushrooms, is known for its effects on anxiety and depression. It has recently gained increasing interest for its potential therapeutic effects, particularly in patients with advanced cancer. This systematic review and meta-analysis aim to evaluate the effects of psilocybin on adult patients with advanced cancer.
AIM
To investigate the therapeutic effect of psilocybin in patients with advanced cancer.
METHODS
A comprehensive search of electronic databases was conducted in PubMed, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, and Google Scholar for articles published up to February 2023. The reference lists of the included studies were also searched to retrieve possible additional studies.
RESULTS
A total of 7 studies met the inclusion criteria for the systematic review, comprising 132 participants. The results revealed significant improvements in quality of life, pain control, and anxiety relief following psilocybin-assisted therapy, specifically results on anxiety relief. Pooled effect sizes indicated statistically significant reductions in symptoms of anxiety at both 4 to 4.5 months [35.15 (95%CI: 32.28-38.01)] and 6 to 6.5 months [33.06 (95%CI: 28.73-37.40)]. Post-administration compared to baseline assessments (P < 0.05). Additionally, patients reported sustained improvements in psychological well-being and existential distress following psilocybin therapy.
CONCLUSION
The findings provided compelling evidence for the potential benefits of psilocybin-assisted therapy in improving quality of life, pain control, and anxiety relief in patients with advanced cancer.
Core Tip: Psilocybin-assisted therapy shows promising results in improving quality of life, pain control, and anxiety relief for patients with advanced cancer. This systematic review and meta-analysis of 7 studies involving 132 participants demonstrated significant reductions in anxiety symptoms and sustained improvements in psychological well-being following psilocybin therapy. These findings highlight the potential therapeutic benefits of psilocybin in palliative care settings.
