Study to test Ecstasy on terminal cancer patients

[zimv20]

link

WASHINGTON (AP) — The illegal club drug Ecstasy can trigger euphoria among the dance club set, but can it ease the debilitating anxiety that cancer patients feel as they face their final days?

The Food and Drug Administration has approved a pilot study looking at whether the recreational hallucinogen can help terminally ill patients lessen their fears, quell thoughts of suicide and make it easier for them to deal with loved ones.

"End of life issues are very important and are getting more and more attention, and yet there are very few options for patients who are facing death," Dr. John Halpern, the Harvard research psychiatrist in charge of the study, said Monday.

The small, four-month study is expected to begin early next spring. It will test the drug's effects on 12 cancer patients from the Lahey Clinic Medical Center in the Boston area. The research is being sponsored by the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies, a nonprofit group that plans to raise $250,000 to fund it.

MAPS, on its web site, touted the study's approval, saying "the longest day of winter has passed, and maybe so has the decades-long era of resistance to psychedelic research."

The FDA would not comment, but this will be the second FDA-approved study using Ecstasy this year. South Carolina researchers are studying the effects of Ecstasy on 20 patients suffering from post traumatic stress disorder.

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[iJon]

OH NO, didn't these people get the memo from the government that anyone who rolls will die instantly . It will be interesting to see how this turns out, keep us posted if you plan on following it.

jon

 

[Mechcozmo]

OH NO, didn't these people get the memo from the government that anyone who rolls will die instantly .

Ecstasy.... nasty drug. It would kill a terminally ill patient, they are too weak to undergo Ecstasy's effects...

 

[iJon]

Ecstasy.... nasty drug. It would kill a terminally ill patient, they are too weak to undergo Ecstasy's effects...

Yeah, I can see that in an older person I suppose.

jon

 

[iJon]

Ecstasy.... nasty drug. It would kill a terminally ill patient, they are too weak to undergo Ecstasy's effects...

Yeah, I can see that in an older person I suppose. Assuming it was pure and not laced with dangerous items it might be alright. I'm no doctor so I'm no sure.

jon

 

[Jovian9]

Yeah, I can see that in an older person I suppose. Assuming it was pure and not laced with dangerous items it might be alright. I'm no doctor so I'm no sure.

jon

I doubt they would give these patients anything that is not pure.....which would most likely not be dangerous. Now if it were cut with speed/heroin/cocaine then there would probably be problems. Though if they are studying this I wonder how many rolls these people will actually get. If they give them too much/too often the seratonin levels may temporarily dry up (as compared to what they normally are....not technically dry up....but you know what I mean if you've rolled before) and they may be in a worse mental/emotional condition than they were before taking x.

 

[Blue Velvet]

If I was suffering from a conclusively-proven terminal condition, I would do whatever I could to make life easier on myself by taking any substance that I thought could help my mood... including MDMA.

And my friends would make sure to help me with whatever I wanted...

 

[wdlove]

I think that under a controlled study like this, it's worth any risk. This might help them to be more alert, especially those in a lot of pain. It might reduce the need for pain medication which often causes somnolence. Only by trying a study like this can they answer the questions.

 

[Ugg]

If I was suffering from a conclusively-proven terminal condition, I would do whatever I could to make life easier on myself by taking any substance that I thought could help my mood... including MDMA.

And my friends would make sure to help me with whatever I wanted...

Same here. The government is not in place to make dying people suffer. Those about to die should be extended all the benefits of those just entering the worlds. I hope this leads to a more "enlightened" view of dying and terminal illness.

 

[zimv20]

This might help them to be more alert

it is an amphetamine, so yes. mostly, it's going to make them feel good (hence, 'ecstacy'). MDMA is known as an entactogen, putting people in touch w/ their own feelings, the feelings of those around them, and the joy of physical touch. it's a good choice for this study.

 

[Jovian9]

it is an amphetamine, so yes. mostly, it's going to make them feel good (hence, 'ecstacy'). MDMA is known as an entactogen, putting people in touch w/ their own feelings, the feelings of those around them, and the joy of physical touch. it's a good choice for this study.

Not all people feel good when they roll. Out of about 20 of us friends who did this a lot back in the late 90's.......4 or 5 would actually feel bad while doing it (even with mollies...pure MDMA). I myself felt excellent, but I think this is a very mental drug. If your mindset is not in it it may make you feel worse than you did before taking it.

 

[zimv20]

If your mindset is not in it it may make you feel worse than you did before taking it.

that's a good point -- set and setting are very important. i wonder if, in the study, they're paying attention to setting. might not be fun for the patient if they're still in their hospital bed.

 

[wdlove]

that's a good point -- set and setting are very important. i wonder if, in the study, they're paying attention to setting. might not be fun for the patient if they're still in their hospital bed.

I would hope that they would also include patients that have chosen Hospice and are in their own home. It would be important to include different settings.

 

[hvfsl]

I still think Jesus is the only answer to terminal illnesses. I have had many relatives with cancer and strangely enough the ones that got through it were the christians (people who properly believed, not just went to church every Sunday).

 

[zimv20]

I still think Jesus is the only answer to terminal illnesses. I have had many relatives with cancer and strangely enough the ones that got through it were the christians

is it the belief itself or the subject of that belief, iyo?

 

[savar]

Ecstasy.... nasty drug. It would kill a terminally ill patient, they are too weak to undergo Ecstasy's effects...

I've never used X, but pure MDMA was used a lot in the 60's in pschological tests. MDMA isn't necessarily a terrible thing, but the US government -- since the Nixon administration -- has placed undue emphasis on controlling what chemicals Americans are allowed access to. It has the double effect of making research on compounds such as MDMA impossible, and simultaneously creating an unregulated, "black" market in MDMA trade. I suspect that liberal

Ideally, they would legalize MDMA (as well as a number of other drugs) and simply regulate it...crime would drop and the product would be pure. Fer god's sake, Cocaine was a major ingredient in a lot of medicines in the US in the 19th century.

Anyway, I don't want to start a flame war here about drug control policy (but I am willing to discuss), so here's a cool link that I've always enjoyed looking at:
http://www.cowboybooks.com.au/html/acidtrip1.html

 

[hvfsl]

is it the belief itself or the subject of that belief, iyo?

People who believed and asked for healling.

 

[Xtremehkr]

The quality of the ecstacy the patients would get is probably a lot higher than the stuff off the street. Less likely to kill a terminally ill person anyway.

 

[Xtremehkr]

I still think Jesus is the only answer to terminal illnesses. I have had many relatives with cancer and strangely enough the ones that got through it were the christians (people who properly believed, not just went to church every Sunday).

Why did all of these pious people get cancer in the first place.

 

[Blue Velvet]

I still think Jesus is the only answer to terminal illnesses. I have had many relatives with cancer and strangely enough the ones that got through it were the christians (people who properly believed, not just went to church every Sunday).

Strangely enough... it was radio & chemotherapy plus other medication which helped my mother. She still lives, years later.

Your belief is not supported by any medically-recognised research and furthermore, holds out a false hope for those with cancer.

Plus: what does this belief of yours have to do with the topic of the thread?

 

[zimv20]

People who believed and asked for healling.

iow, you're saying it's the act of believing and taking control of one's health, and not divine intervention, which has cured these people?

 

[Ugg]

Why did all of these pious people get cancer in the first place.

Now, now.

There have been a number of studies done and they seem to indicate that some form of meditation/prayer has a positive effect on healing. I'm a firm believer in the power of the mind over the body yet I would never pray to a so called higher being. If the poster wants to think that it is Jesus instead of his own mind that has caused the result, then so be it because nobody can prove him wrong, or me right for that matter. I just hope that nobody goes praying to JC when I'm ill, I'm convinced that crossing wires is very bad news.

A person's last days should be as enjoyable as possible and hospices and hospitals would be a lot better places if patients were allowed access to drugs that could truly help them.

I've never tried E and don't want to but if I were dying and it might provide me some relief from the physical and mental anguish, why shouldn't I receive it?

 

[apple2991]

This is good.

Pure MDMA simply releases a large amount of Serotonin to nerves in the brain, which causes all of the happy effects described by others on this thread.

As long as they stay hydrated, the risk is minimal. In fact, much less than most other cancer drugs, treatments, or pain alleviators. Additionally, there is no physical addiction related to MDMA, only a potential psychological dependency.

Either way, Ghostbusters 2 is on. I better go watch.

 

[Jovian9]

Either way, Ghostbusters 2 is on. I better go watch.

Ha Ha! That is what I'm watching right now......Comedy Central.

 

[Xtremehkr]

Now, now.

There have been a number of studies done and they seem to indicate that some form of meditation/prayer has a positive effect on healing. I'm a firm believer in the power of the mind over the body yet I would never pray to a so called higher being. If the poster wants to think that it is Jesus instead of his own mind that has caused the result, then so be it because nobody can prove him wrong, or me right for that matter. I just hope that nobody goes praying to JC when I'm ill, I'm convinced that crossing wires is very bad news.

A person's last days should be as enjoyable as possible and hospices and hospitals would be a lot better places if patients were allowed access to drugs that could truly help them.

I've never tried E and don't want to but if I were dying and it might provide me some relief from the physical and mental anguish, why shouldn't I receive it?

Yeah, positive thinking is always going to yield better results.

Would you really prosecute a terminally ill ecstasy user anyway? I'd turn a blind eye to a rolling cancer patient I think.