Psilocybin for psychological distress tested in palliative care for the first time
02/23/2026
Up to half of patients with advanced illness experience severe psychological distress as they approach the end of life. In the first clinical trial of its kind published in Palliative Medicine, researchers tested microdose psilocybin (psychedelic medication) for symptom management and alleviation of depression, anxiety, and existential distress in palliative care patients.
The study found 72% of participants who completed the three-week trial had improved demoralization scores, measured by loss of meaning and purpose, distress, and coping abilities.
Sixty-two percent of participants reported meaningful improvements in depression, and 54% of participants reported meaningful improvements in another measure of anxiety and depression.
While psychological and existential distress are pervasive aspects of advanced illness, traditional therapies such as counselling or antidepressants take many weeks, if not months, to have an effect and have been shown to have limited effectiveness for palliative patients.
“Finding treatments that support a greater quality of life that can have a timely and meaningful impact are central to rethinking end-of-life care,” said Dr. James Downar, Senior Investigator at Bruyère Health Research Institute and the study’s lead author.
Subjectively, 69% of participants felt they had meaningful improvement, and there were no serious adverse effects, suggesting microdose psilocybin could be a potentially effective treatment for patients with advanced illness and limited treatment options.
“PSilocybin for psYCHological and existential distress in PALliative care (PSYCHED-PAL): A single arm unblinded clinical trial” was published in Palliative Medicine.