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RecruitingPhase 2

Pragmatic Trial of Psilocybin Therapy in Palliative Care

NCT05403086 · PT2PC · Charles S. Grob, M.D.

Recruiting
Status
Accepting participants
Phase 2
Phase
100
Target enrolment
5
Study sites
2 US states

What it is testing

Summary

This multicenter, triple-blind, phase 2, randomized controlled trial will evaluate the efficacy and safety of psilocybin therapy compared to an active control in treating demoralization in adults near the end of life (≤2 years life expectancy).

Summary as written by the trial’s own sponsor and published on ClinicalTrials.gov API v2. It is the sponsor’s description, reproduced unedited, not an assessment by this site.

What counts as success

Primary outcome measures

  • Change in patient-reported Demoralization Scale-II..

    Measured over From Pre-dose V4 to ~14-days post drug (V8), and from Pre-dose (V4) to ~35-days post drug (V9), compared to active control.

A trial succeeds or fails on its primary outcome, declared in advance. Everything else it reports is secondary by definition.

Who can take part

Eligibility, as published

18 Years
Ages
All
Sex
Not accepted
Healthy volunteers
Inclusion Criteria: General * Provision of signed and dated informed consent form and the capacity to consent to research. * Stated willingness to comply with all study procedures and availability for the duration of the study * Is currently a patient in a study-engaged clinical site * Has a life-threatening illness and a life expectancy of ≤2 years * Has moderate-to-severe demoralization * Ability to take oral medication (capsules and liquid) Exclusion Criteria: General * Known allergic or severe reactions to the non-psychoactive components of psilocybin capsules or liquid ketamine * Treatment with another investigational drug or intervention within 1 month of signing Informed Consent Form (ICF) * If deemed by clinical judgment of the study investigators to be unsafe for undergoing the intervention Neurological * Cognitive impairment sufficient to impede the ability to complete study tasks * History of intracranial hemorrhage * Recent embolic stroke * Recent seizure * Current intracranial mass * Advanced stage of a neurologic disease that elevates risk for psychosis Cardiovascular * Uncontrolled hypertension * Clinically significant cardiac disease Respiratory * Severe pulmonary disease * Supplemental oxygen requirement Gastrointestinal * Current intractable nausea/vomiting/diarrhea * Recent, clinically significant GI bleed * Markedly abnormal liver function tests Endocrine, Renal, and Reproductive * Pregnancy or lactation * Severe renal insufficiency * Unstable insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus Prohibited Medications * Antipsychotics (with exceptions) * Antidepressants (with exceptions) * Dopamine agonists * Drugs known to have adverse interactions with psilocybin or ketamine

Where

5 study sites

FacilityCityRegionCountry
Marin Cancer CareGreenbraeCaliforniaUnited States
University of California, Los AngelesLos AngelesCaliforniaUnited States
University of San FranciscoSan FranciscoCaliforniaUnited States
Lundquist Institute for Biomedical Innovation at Harbor-UCLA Medical CenterTorranceCaliforniaUnited States
Sunstone TherapiesRockvilleMarylandUnited States

On the registry

Contact the trial directly

This site does not enrol anyone and is not involved in this trial. To ask about taking part, use the sponsor’s own contact details on the official registry record, which is also where the most current version of everything above lives.

Before you do, the preparation checklist lists what a site will ask you on a first call and what is worth asking them. It is free and collects nothing.

NCT05403086 on ClinicalTrials.gov →

Last updated in the registry 2025-11-25. Registry records change; this page reflects the data build of 2026-08-25.

Related

Where this trial sits