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Psilocybin may help prevent painful chemotherapy side effect, study finds
Researchers found two doses before chemotherapy prevented painful hypersensitivity in rats and preserved cancer-fighting effects, while human testing is still needed.
- A study published in Science last Thursday found psilocybin prevented peripheral neuropathy in rodents undergoing chemotherapy, offering potential relief from a common, painful side effect.
- Peripheral neuropathy affects about three quarters of chemotherapy patients, causing numbness and burning pain that sometimes forces doctors to reduce or stop treatment, impacting survival chances.
- Patrick Dougherty, a pain treatment specialist at the University of Texas Anderson Cancer Center, explains psilocybin protects nerve cells by stimulating mitochondrial transport, preserving energy flow to hands and feet.
- The Anderson Cancer Center plans clinical tests later this year, though psychiatrist Gregory Jones warns the drug acts as an "amplifier," potentially worsening stress for unsupervised patients.
- Human trials require safety testing, potentially accelerated by a Trump administration executive order from April and a boom in psychedelic research; Townsend called the findings "a highly promising finding.
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Psilocybin protects sensory nerves from chemotherapy damage in preclinical study
In mouse models, prophylactic psilocybin prevented or reduced multiple features of chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy, with cycle-matched dosing sustaining protection during repeated cisplatin exposure without measurably affecting tumor growth. Experiments in human-derived sensory neurons and ex vivo peripheral nerves linked the effect to 5-HT2A-dependent preservation of mitochondrial trafficking and local axonal energy supply, while a n…
·Mona Vale, Australia
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Total News Sources15
Leaning Left1Leaning Right0Center14Last UpdatedBias Distribution93% Center
Bias Distribution
- 93% of the sources are Center
93% Center
C 93%
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