From Clinic to Chapel: A Genealogy of the Therapeutic Efficacy of Hallucinogens

Abstract

Despite an extensive history of human experimentation with natural hallucinogenic substances dating back to hunter-gatherer societies, psychedelic substances have only become a subject of clinical research since Albert Hofmann accidentally synthesized lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) in 1943. Although the safety and therapeutic benefit of hallucinogens has been established in a multitude of clinical, religious, and cross-cultural settings, psilocybin and LSD remain categorized with drugs of high potential for abuse. In this thesis, I will contextualize current modes of inquiry in the field of psychedelic research by providing a genealogical account of clinical trials investigating the therapeutic use of psychedelic substances from the 1950s to the present. I will supplement my discussion of the current state of psychedelic research with empirical evidence from conversations with a psycho-oncologist at the forefront of Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center’s psychedelic research.