Treating Tobacco Addiction and Other Behaviors with Psilocybin: Exploring Years of Research and What the Future Holds
In his keynote address for the psychedelics track at Cannabis Science Conference East 2022, Dr. Matthew Johnson presented his talk “Psilocybin in the Treatment of Tobacco Addiction,” which reviewed the treatment of substance use disorders with classic psychedelics (5HT2A agonists) including LSD and psilocybin. Dr. Matthew Johnson, PhD, is the Susan Hill Ward Professor of Psychedelics at Johns Hopkins and is one of the world’s most widely published experts on psychedelics. Here are some highlights from his session.
On the first day of the Cannabis Science Conference in the psychedelics track, Dr. Matthew Johnson presented a keynote address highlighting important results from the past 18 years of his research on the treatment of addiction and other psychiatric disorders using psychedelics. He gave a history of how psychedelics have been used in the past primarily to treat alcoholism and cancer-related distress, explained the recent uptick in interest in studies involving psilocybin and hallucinogens, and gave his vision for future studies.
“I'm excited to present the high rates of success that we've seen so far,” Dr. Johnson explained in a recent interview with Cannabis Science and Technology. “It's been surprisingly effective and research is ongoing, but the things that makes psilocybin different are the high rates of success, and the different way in which it works. That's the thing that's difficult to really digest because it is different than other anti-addiction medications in a lot of ways. In one sense, as I mentioned earlier, it's not a substitution treatment.”
In his presentation, Dr. Johnson outlined several published studies, comparative efficacy trials, and pilots in terms of which psychedelic was used and for which condition, how patients were screened and selected, and the results plus the unexpected outcomes. If we take a step back and look at the commonalities of these promising findings, he asked, what are the common mechanisms? What does an addiction disorder mean in a broad sense? How do reported “mystical experiences” during treatments affect patients’ understanding of themselves and their addictive behaviors?
In looking at ongoing studies and into the future, Dr. Johnson listed possibilities such as an expansion of experimental work with different compounds, suggestions for making these types of treatments less expensive, and the types of institutions that could develop as this type of alternative therapy becomes more popular. At the end of the hour-long session, the audience asked several questions about topics such as details on the patient screening process, pharmacology, and dosing.
Ep 24, Part III: Data Transparency in Cannabis Testing with Yasha Kahn
December 26th 2024In the final part of this episode, Evan Friedmann and Yasha Kahn discuss the need for a national entity to centralize cannabis data collection, moving from snapshot data to continuous updates. They emphasize the importance of accurate lab data and adverse event tracking, suggesting QR codes on packaging to report issues. Yasha suggests harsher consequences for result manipulation and suggests collaboration between state departments and federal entities to support underfunded regulators. They also discuss the potential benefits of off-the-shelf testing and the importance of stability testing. Finally, Yasha shares his top three reading recommendations for the audience.
Ep 24, Part II: Data Transparency in Cannabis Testing with Yasha Kahn
December 12th 2024Evan Friedmann and Yasha Kahn, co-founder of MCR Labs, discuss the discrepancies between current regulations and data on mycotoxins and pesticides in cannabis products. They highlight the need for updated regulations based on new data, emphasizing the importance of accurate testing and labeling. They also discuss the issue of result manipulation, particularly in THC content, and the need for public health officials to address this. Yasha suggests making testing data public to enhance oversight and suggests a national entity to manage this data for better consistency and public safety.
