Innovative mental health research partnership launches to study new therapies
People across Cambridgeshire and Peterborough with severe mental health conditions now have the opportunity to take part in local groundbreaking clinical trials, to assess if empathogens and psychedelics can help people with treatment-resistant conditions.
Research staff and health professionals at CPFT, Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and the University of Cambridge have partnered to establish a new clinical Cambridge Psychedelic Research group (pictured) for mental health studies - the first in this region to offer studies with promising new neuroplastogen and psychedelic treatments - after the Home Office granted their licence.
Around 30% of people with severe mental illness find standard mental health treatments do not work well enough, and there is growing scientific evidence that some psychoactive medications, can safely support recovery and improve quality of life when administered in a safe clinical setting and supported by trained specialists. To administer these drugs, research centres must meet strict criteria to secure a licence for safe use and clinical practice from the UK Government Home Office.
The new Cambridge Psychedelic Research group is formed by clinicians and research staff from CPFT’s Windsor Research Unit in Fulbourn and the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) Cambridge Clinical Research Facility, which is hosted by Cambridge University Hospitals (CUH) NHS Foundation Trust and based at Addenbrooke’s Hospital in Cambridge.
For their first research study, this group is taking part in a clinical trial sponsored by Transcend Therapeutics called IMPACT-1 evaluating the effects of TSND-201 – a rapid-acting neuroplastogen – on people with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
CPFT consultant psychiatrist, Affiliated Assistant Professor at the University of Cambridge and Principal Investigator Dr Liliana Galindo (pictured right) said: “We are excited to join the growing psychedelic research field with this new local partnership and help to develop the next wave of neuropsychiatric treatments. There is great potential to treat persistent mental health conditions that are resistant to standard therapies.
“Thank you to everyone in Cambridge who has worked so hard to meet the rigorous standards to achieve our licence and set up our very first study to help people with PTSD. Our expert researchers and clinicians can contribute a great deal to the global evidence base and we will be trialling new mental health treatments that could help millions.”
An estimated one in ten people in the UK will experience PTSD at some point in their lives which can include flashbacks and nightmares of traumatic events, hypervigilance, numbness and avoidance. Current treatments of talking therapies and antidepressant medications do not work for everyone. TSND-201 is a non-hallucinogenic, rapid-acting neuroplastogen.
Neuroplastogens are compounds which can increase the brain's ability to regrow and reform lost neural connections, a process known as neuroplasticity, and they have great potential to treat neurological and psychiatric conditions.
Lynne Whitehead (pictured left), Head of Pharmacy Clinical Trials Services at CUH said: “The CUH pharmacy team are delighted to be able to support research into new drug treatments for this therapeutic area and contribute to building the evidence base required.”
Anyone who is interested in taking part is advised to learn more on the IMPACT-1 website . The research team is looking for people with PTSD for whom standard mental health treatments are not working well. Eligible participants will receive the study drug (TSND-201 or placebo) once a week for 4 weeks, with close monitoring for a further six weeks after the trial.
This study is not currently recruiting control volunteers without mental health conditions.
One of the first CPFT participants in IMPACT-1, shared their hopes for the research: “Having lived with PTSD since my tour in Iraq in 2007, I've been seeking out any new treatments available. I was excited to see this study being conducted by my local NHS nearby, and this study seemed to be the best option for me, as I could potentially expect to feel results in days, not months. Although I was hesitant about other drug trials with psychedelics, it set me at ease that the compound being tested was not a psychedelic and could be safely administered through this NHS clinical trial. Everyone involved has exceeded my expectations and I have so many military friends that will benefit from this research.”
The new research group is hoping to expand their collaborations with national and international partners to offer a number of trials in the future. As part of their next project, they are currently progressing through the selection and approval process for a second trial with psilocybin – a psychedelic/hallucinogenic compound naturally produced by fungi - that could start later this year.
