Progress in Palliative Care
December 1, 2025
M. Barimbing, D. Jeger, Made Edwin Sridana
A narrative review of previous studies finds that psilocybin-assisted therapy is a promising treatment for death anxiety in terminally ill patients. Psilocybin alters brain function by affecting 5-HT2A receptors and disrupting the default mode network, which helps reduce existential fear. Recent randomized controlled trials showed standardized mean differences in anxiety reduction ranging from −0.70 to −1.08, with effects lasting up to six months after a single dose. The review highlights psilocybin's favorable safety profile and its potential to fill gaps left by conventional treatments, while also addressing ethical issues and supporting integration with standard palliative care.
Progress in Palliative Care
April 1, 2025
Jaime Andrés Vinasco Barco, Ana Cláudia Mesquita Garcia
The article introduces the neologism 'palliadelic' to describe the use of psychedelic substances in palliative care to address psychological, spiritual, and existential suffering in patients with serious or incurable illnesses or at the end of life. It traces the history of psychedelic use in medicine from the 1950s and 1960s to the current renaissance, arguing that this term legitimizes a growing field and advances research, clinical practice, and public policy. The authors conclude that adopting 'palliadelic' can increase visibility and integration of psychedelics in palliative care, contributing to humanized care and reduced suffering.
Progress in Palliative Care
July 3, 2024
A. C. Garcia, Myla Chistie Araujo Custodio Bonifácio, L. O. Maia
Compassionate care is vital for psychedelic-assisted therapy (PAT) in hospice and palliative settings, as the patient-therapist bond strongly influences positive outcomes. The article reviews evidence for PAT's therapeutic potential in serious illness, defines compassion and compassionate care in healthcare, and links these to essential competencies for psychedelic therapists. It discusses how compassionate care can enhance PAT application in end-of-life contexts and presents implications for research and practice.
Progress in Palliative Care
January 2, 2022
A. C. Garcia, L. O. Maia
After a period of halted research in the 1970s, studies since the 2000s have resumed investigating psychedelic therapies for patients with serious diseases. Psychedelics, classified as classic psychedelics, empathogens, dissociative anaesthetics, and atypical psychedelics, are substances that alter perception, cognition, and emotion and can evoke mystical experiences. In hospice and palliative care, preliminary evidence suggests that assisted psychedelic therapies can profoundly impact psychological, existential, and spiritual outcomes. Controlled psychedelic experiences may help patients turn toward fear of death, reducing anxiety and increasing compassion, acceptance, and present-moment living. A randomized placebo-controlled trial is also underway to evaluate psilocybin-assisted psychotherapy for healthcare providers experiencing COVID-19-related depression, anxiety, burnout, and post-traumatic stress.