The legal use of MDMA and psilocybin as treatments for mental health conditions such as anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder could potentially be one step closer, with the national drugs regulator finding they have therapeutic benefits.
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MDMA is a party drug while psilocybin is the active ingredient in magic mushrooms, both of which are highly restricted drugs.
The Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) released its evaluation report into several trial studies on the drugs, concluding that they "show potential" as a treatment for some disorders in controlled conditions, when combined with psychotherapy.
A Tasmanian GP said it was a matter of urgency that these treatments be made available to people with treatment resistant mental health disorders, adding that it was becoming increasingly common for those in the health sector to see conventional therapies failing.
"I have been contacted by patients who have reached the end of the road in terms of other treatments available to them, and are holding out hope that psychedelic assisted therapy may soon be available to them," they said.
"These medicines have unique mechanisms of action that simply aren't reproducible in any of our other current therapeutics. I believe people should have a right to choose novel medicines where other methods have failed."
The GP said with thorough assessment and consent, and when administered in a supported environment, the treatments are remarkably safe, more safe than dispensing a pack of medication that could be possibly fatal with overdose.
"The next important step is having that reflected in legislation. It makes no sense to keep these substances listed as schedule 9, implying no therapeutic benefit and high risk.
"The findings of the independent review bring us one step closer to seeing this happen, so that these medicines may be able to be prescribed within a regulated environment.
The TGA noted that current treatments for PTSD and anxiety assist almost half of sufferers, and provide symptomatic relief for others.
It agreed that more effective treatments, for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder in particular, are needed.
"Many people are not helped by an interventions and the social and economic costs are high for unresolved and lifelong PTSD," the report found.
"Similarly, anxiety and depression are common in people with life-threatening disease and can contribute to poor recovery from medical procedures and early mortality. In addition, many patients with major depression do not achieve full or lasting recovery and so require switching, combination or augmentation of medication plus ...electro-convulsive therapy, all of which increase side-effects."
It said both drugs were well-tolerated by those in the trials.
Mind Medicine Australia executive director Tania de Jong said Australia was at the crossroads when it came to mental health.
"Our Health Practitioners desperately need new treatment options. We have a serious mental health emergency in Australia and people need some hope for healing," she said.
"Psilocybin assisted therapy, primarily for treatment resistant depression and end of life anxiety, and MDMA assisted therapy, primarily for treatment resistant post-traumatic stress disorder, have both shown remission outcomes of 60-80% in overseas trials."
She said this was after just two to three medicinal sessions in combination with a short course of psychotherapy.
"As the Panel has observed, these medicines are very safe and well tolerated by patients in a clinical environment."
