FDA panel rejects ecstasy to treat PTSD

13 million Americans are living with PTSD

(Image credit: Travis Dove for The Washington Post via Getty Images)

published 5 June 2024

What happened

A Food and Drug Administration advisory panel on Tuesday voted against approving the use of MDMA, a psychedelic drug commonly known as ecstasy or molly, to treat post-traumatic stress disorder. The committee voted 9-2 that data submitted by Lykos Therapeutics did not prove that MDMA combined with talk therapy was effective at treating PTSD.

Panel members "praised the promise" of MDMA to treat PTSD, which hasn't seen a new drug in nearly 25 years, but "struggled with gaps in the research data" and the "potential for abuse," The Washington Post said. Lykos' two late-stage trials found vast improvements in a sizable majority of participants who got MDMA, but its data was "uncommonly messy," and the study participants were largely able to tell if they took a placebo or ecstasy, marring the results.

Lykos CEO Amy Emerson said the company is "disappointed in the vote" but will continue working with the FDA to meet the "urgent need for new, effective and accessible therapies" for the 13 million Americans living with PTSD.

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Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.