Enduring changes in personality/attitudes , depression , spirituality , anxiety , wellbeing , substance misuse , meditative practice s , and mindfulness were documented .
Mystical experiences , connectedness , emotional breakthrough , and increased neural entropy were related to these long-term changes in psychological functioning .
Finally , with proper screening , preparation , supervision , and integration , limited aversive side effects were noted by study participants .
Research into the basic effects and therapeutic applications of  psychedelic drugs  has grown considerably in recent years .
Yet , pressing questions remain regarding the substances ' lasting effects .
Although individual studies have begun monitoring sustained changes , no study to- date has synthesized this information .
Long-term follow-up of psilocybin-assisted psychotherapy for psychiatric and existential distress in patients with life-threatening cancer
Background : A recently published r and omized controlled trial compared single-dose psilocybin with single-dose niacin in conjunction with psychotherapy in participants with cancer-related psychiatric distress . Results suggested that psilocybin-assisted psychotherapy facilitated improvements in psychiatric and existential distress , quality of life , and spiritual well-being up to seven weeks prior to the crossover . At the 6.5-month follow-up , after the crossover , 60–80 % of participants continued to meet criteria for clinical ly significant antidepressant or anxiolytic responses . Methods : The present study is a long-term within-subjects follow-up analysis of self-reported symptomatology involving a subset of participants that completed the parent trial . All 16 participants who were still alive were contacted , and 15 participants agreed to participate at an average of 3.2 and 4.5 years following psilocybin administration .  Results : Reductions in anxiety , depression , hopelessness , demoralization , and death anxiety were sustained at the first and second follow-ups . Within-group effect sizes were large . At the second ( 4.5 year ) follow-up approximately 60–80 % of participants met criteria for clinical ly significant antidepressant or anxiolytic responses . Participants overwhelmingly ( 71–100 % ) attributed positive life changes to the psilocybin-assisted therapy experience and rated it among the most personally meaningful and spiritually significant experiences of their lives . Conclusion : These findings suggest that psilocybin-assisted psychotherapy holds promise in promoting long-term relief from cancer-related psychiatric distress . Limited conclusions , however , can be drawn regarding the efficacy of this therapy due to the crossover design of the parent study . Nonetheless , the present study adds to the emerging literature base suggesting that psilocybin-facilitated therapy may enhance the psychological , emotional , and spiritual well-being of patients with life-threatening cancer
Enduring changes in personality/attitudes , depression , spirituality , anxiety , wellbeing , substance misuse , meditative practice s , and mindfulness were documented .
Mystical experiences , connectedness , emotional breakthrough , and increased neural entropy were related to these long-term changes in psychological functioning .
Finally , with proper screening , preparation , supervision , and integration , limited aversive side effects were noted by study participants .
Research into the basic effects and therapeutic applications of  psychedelic drugs  has grown considerably in recent years .
Yet , pressing questions remain regarding the substances ' lasting effects .
Although individual studies have begun monitoring sustained changes , no study to- date has synthesized this information .