MindMed Plans MDMA-LSD Trial To Study ‘Bad Trip’ Reduction

Mind Medicine (MindMed) Inc. (NEO: MMED)(OTCQB: MMEDF)announced that it is working with the University Hospital Basel’s Liechti Lab on a combination MDMA and LSD in Phase 1 clinical trial. The Phase 1 MDMA-LSD trial is scheduled to start in Q4 of this year in Basel, Switzerland.

“A new treatment paradigm combining MDMA and LSD may enhance the positive effects of LSD by inducing a positive psychological state with MDMA which is an empathogen to help counteract some known negative or less positive aspects of LSD or psilocybin,” said President of MindMed, Dr. Miri Halperin Wernli. “With this innovative treatment paradigm, we are looking to bring the participants outside the bounds of their everyday perceptions, bringing their mind into a very flexible state of mind facilitating new states of consciousness. This will provide the opportunity to step outside their usual sense of self and experience themselves from a radically different and new perspective.”

Psychedelic-assisted Therapy

The company said that combined MDMA-LSD treatments have the potential to create next-generation psychedelic-assisted therapy paradigms. When added to a psychedelic-assisted therapy session, MDMA has the potential to reduce some known rare negative side effects that may occur while using LSD or other classic psychedelics on their own. So it seems the theory here is that the MDMA may work towards lessening a “bad trip.”

Classic psychedelics such as psilocybin and LSD can sometimes induce short-term unpleasant effects for patients during a psychedelic-assisted therapy session. These symptoms may include negative thoughts, rumination, panic and paranoia or what is commonly called a “bad trip.”

According to the study description, MDMA is known to acutely induce feelings of increased well-being and trust. By combining LSD and MDMA within the same session, the Liechti Lab and MindMed are evaluating if the combination produces greater overall positive acute effects when compared to LSD or MDMA on their own. MDMA may reduce some of the negative mood effects of LSD and make the patient more comfortable during psychedelic-assisted therapy.

“The potential of MDMA-LSD is to create a psychological state that may have the benefits of both substances and have longer-lasting effects than standalone psilocybin or LSD,” said University Hospital Basel’s Liechti Lab’s Dr. Matthias Liechti. “Inducing an overall primarily positive acute response during psychedelic-assisted therapy is critical because several studies showed that a more positive acute experience is linked to a greater therapeutic long-term effect in patients.”

Phase 1 Trial Details

The Phase 1 Clinical Trial is intended to take around one year to complete. It is expected that 24 people will enroll in the study, which is expected to begin in January 2021. The study is expected to be completed in January 2022.

MindMed said that if it finds the results promising, the company may decide to undertake further studies with treatments combining MDMA and LSD and prepare patient trials for various indications.

Debra Borchardt

Debra Borchardt is the Co-Founder, and Executive Editor of GMR. She has covered the cannabis industry for several years at Forbes, Seeking Alpha and TheStreet. Prior to becoming a financial journalist, Debra was a Vice President at Bear Stearns where she held a Series 7 and Registered Investment Advisor license. Debra has a Master's degree in Business Journalism from New York University.


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