LSD, a Schedule 1 controlled substance with no accepted medical use in the U.S., is being tested as a potential treatment for anxiety disorders in a Charleston clinical trial. The drug has received breakthrough therapy designation from the FDA following promising early results, reflecting a growing wave of research into psychedelics for treating stubborn psychiatric conditions.
Early Study Results
The clinical trial at Coastal Carolina Research Center is testing MM120, a form of LSD known as lysergide, to treat generalized anxiety disorder. In an earlier study of 194 patients, 65% of those who took the drug experienced some relief compared to those receiving placebo, and 45% achieved remission of symptoms, according to Mind Medicine, the New York-based company developing it. Those results were published in JAMA Network and earned the drug breakthrough therapy designation from the FDA, which grants this status to “promising therapies for serious problems that appear to offer a substantial improvement over existing treatments.” The designation could potentially speed the approval process.
Broader Research Momentum
Around 2,000 studies in recent years have tested the clinical promise of psychedelics, according to Dr. Paul Robbins, principal investigator on the Charleston LSD study. Much of this momentum is spurred by the scale of mental health problems and lack of effective treatments. Around 20 million people in the U.S. have generalized anxiety disorder, Robbins noted, and current treatments often have side effects and don’t work for many patients. The therapeutic potential of hallucinogens has been explored in Michael Pollan’s influential 2018 book “How to Change Your Mind” and a related 2022 documentary series examining LSD, psilocybin, MDMA, and mescaline. MDMA was also tested in clinical trials for PTSD with positive results, though an FDA advisory panel voted it down in 2024 over concerns about distinguishing the real drug from placebo and MDMA’s history as a party drug.
Study Design and Challenges
The Charleston trial is placebo-controlled and double-blind: participants are randomized to receive either MM120 or an inactive replacement, with neither participants nor clinicians knowing who received which. However, the previous study found that nearly 93% of those receiving the 100 microgram dose experienced “visual perceptual changes” such as hallucinations, which could compromise the blinding. Dr. Elizabeth Perkins, sub-investigator for the Charleston study, noted that more than 10% of placebo recipients in the previous study had similar reactions, likely due to the placebo effect, which has been increasing in the U.S. over the last 10 to 20 years.
Proposed Mechanisms
The exact mechanism by which LSD might treat anxiety is not well-understood. Robbins explained that the drug affects serotonin receptors in the brain and “appears to increase neuroplasticity, which means it helps the brain become more flexible, so that new pathways can be formed more easily.” He hypothesized that an LSD experience might change a person’s perspective on life, potentially opening new brain pathways that support recovery from anxiety disorders—though this remains theoretical.
This article is an AI-assisted summary. All facts and figures are drawn from the original report: https://www.postandcourier.com/health/lsd-promise-treating-anxiety-charleston/article_babe1903-daf6-4e1a-a4f0-7cc14d90701a.html