Podcast: Do We Know Enough to Use Psychedelics As Medicine? - science debate on evidence, safety, and clinical trials

Psychedelics as medicine is weighed against the evidence and the risks, focusing on what is known from clinical trials and whether it is enough to expand medical access. Hosts Brooke Borel and Anna Rothschild interview two guests with different perspectives: Albert Garcia-Romeu (Johns Hopkins) and Bertha Madras (Harvard Medical School). The discussion centers on current trial work and why approvals have not yet happened, including that research is often built around structured, safety focused protocols. Garcia-Romeu explains how trials screen for factors that could increase adverse reactions and then use supervised dosing plus therapist facilitated aftercare. He describes promising targets such as tobacco addiction, depression, and broader palliative or symptom centered uses, while noting potential long lasting benefits. Madras emphasizes the central fear that psychedelics can induce or worsen psychosis in vulnerable people, pointing to historical and more recent cautionary examples when medicalizing these drugs.