More than 320 million people globally suffer with major depressive disorder (MDD)i, the leading cause of disability worldwide and one of the fastest growing mental health illnessesii. About a third of these patients – 100 million people – aren’t helped by existing therapies and suffer with TRDiii.
Psilocybin therapy is an approach being investigated for the treatment of mental health challenges, including TRD. It combines the pharmacological effects of a synthesised version of psilocybin, a psychoactive substance that is an active ingredient in some species of mushrooms, with psychological supportiv.
The survey of 259
Key survey findings:
- 66% of doctors surveyed believe psilocybin therapy has potential benefit for patients with TRD
- 50% would prescribe psilocybin therapy, if it was approved; 32% are undecided
- The greatest potential advantages to psilocybin treatment are believed to be: improved efficacy in treatment-resistant conditions (30%), rapid onset of action (26%), and different mechanism of action from existing therapies (19%)
- The greatest potential barriers to treatment were cited as: needing a dedicated space for six to eight hours (28%), lack of trained therapists in a new model of psychological support (21%), and office infrastructure (15%)
- Opinions on the optimal setting for psilocybin administration varied by region: 50% of European respondents said hospital; 42% of US respondents said specialised network of centres
- Physicians also noted the need to educate healthcare professionals on the potential benefits of psilocybin therapy and on how to incorporate the therapy into their practice, if approved
“Severe mental illnesses, such as treatment-resistant depression, have affected too many people in society for too long. Physicians are looking for new approaches to accelerate the healing process, particularly for patients for whom current therapies have failed,” said Murali Doraiswamy MBBS, FRCP, Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioural Sciences at
Dr
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Survey methodology
The survey was designed to assess attitudes towards the use of psilocybin therapy in general, in psychiatry. The survey was conducted online via Sermo’s RealTime platform and the random sample of physicians received compensation for their time and expertise. Survey limitations include sampling bias, inability to deduce causality from opinion polls, confounding variables not measured, and other factors.
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Forward-looking statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, as amended. In some cases, forward-looking statements can be identified by terminology such as “may”, “might”, “will”, “could”, “would”, “should”, “expect”, “intend”, “plan”, “objective”, “anticipate”, “believe”, “contemplate”, “estimate”, “predict”, “potential”, “continue” and “ongoing,” or the negative of these terms or other comparable terminology, although not all forward-looking statements contain these words. Forward-looking statements include express or implied statements relating to, among other things, the safety or efficacy of psilocybin therapy, including COMP360, as a treatment for depression, COMPASS’s business strategy and goals, including its ability to launch and commercialise products, COMPASS’s expectations for the timing of its pivotal phase III programme and the potential for that or other trials to support regulatory filings and approvals, COMPASS’s ability to continue to advance its research or develop plans to bring its product candidates to patients, including COMP360, clinicians’ perceptions of the potential advantages and efficacy of COMP360 in relation to other available therapies, including any new therapies that may be approved for the indications we are investigating, and COMPASS’s expectations regarding the benefits of psilocybin therapy and the effectiveness of its executive team. The forward-looking statements in this press release are neither promises nor guarantees, and you should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements because they involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors, many of which are beyond COMPASS’s control and which could cause actual results, levels of activity, performance or achievements to differ materially from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements.
These risks, uncertainties, and other factors include, among others: preclinical research and clinical development is lengthy and uncertain, and therefore our preclinical studies and clinical trials may be delayed or terminated, or may never advance to or in the clinic; and those risks and uncertainties described under the heading “Risk Factors” in COMPASS’s annual report on Form 20-F filed with the
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i WHO (2017). Depression and Other Common Mental Disorders Global Health Estimates [Online]. Available at: https://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/handle/10665/254610/WHO-MSD-MER-2017.2-eng.pdf [Accessed
ii WHO (2012). Depression: A Global Crisis [Online]. Available at: https://www.who.int/mental_health/management/depression/wfmh_paper_depression_wmhd_2012.pdf [Accessed
iii Al-Harbi KS. Treatment-resistant depression: therapeutic trends, challenges, and future directions. Patient Preference and Adherence. 2012; 6: 369–388
iv Ross et al, 2016; Griffiths et al, 2016; Carhart-Harris et al, 2016
Source: COMPASS Pathways
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