There’s been an increase in Congressional support for administering psychedelic medicine, but the relatively new industry is still struggling in many ways to get on its feet. Compass Pathways had a big chance to show that psilocybin can have positive effects on mental health, and although its newest trial satisfied its goal, stockholders were disappointed.
The group evaluated 258 adults in a psilocybin drug trial and found that the substance reduced depression symptoms by 3.6 points compared to a placebo. This result was an internal success—Guy Goodwin, Compass’ Chief Medical Officer, said they’ve been shooting for three points or more since the beginning.
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Wall Street didn’t feel the same. After the conclusion of the study, Compass Pathways saw a 45 percent decrease in American depository receipts in New York. The investors, according to RBC Capital Markets, were expecting at least a five-point difference.
Still, though, Compass is excited by the study’s results. For one, this 3.6 point difference came over a six-week period following only one dose. According to the company’s release, Chief Commercial Officer Lori Engelbert believes this feat has not yet been seen in psychiatry.
Chief Patient Officer Steve Levine agreed, saying, “Seeing this kind of meaningful improvement from a single dose is incredibly important—for patients, for caregivers, and for the entire field.”
Psilocybin is the psychedelic furthest along in medical development. Compass set out to tackle treatment-resistant depression (TRD); it looked at patients who had tried at least two others to no avail. Of the almost 21 million adults in the country with major depressive disorder, about 30 percent of them have this iteration of it. Companies like Johnson & Johnson have released drugs like Spravato, a substance closely related to ketamine meant to treat TRD.
Psychedelic trials pose a unique challenge: most patients know whether or not they were administered a placebo. This fact, Goodwin implied, explains the slightly lower results than expected.
“If we’d come out with a massive difference between active and placebo, then people would have said, ‘Oh, well, you can’t trust placebo.’”
Compass held a secondary trial in which it gave patients a second dose of psilocybin. Its results will most likely be released in 2026.
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Other studies have shown psilocybin’s potential to treat severe alcohol use disorder, anorexia, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress. Magic mushroom therapy has been legalized in Colorado, Oregon, and New Mexico, and vulnerable populations like veterans may get streamlined access to the substance within the next year, according to RFK Jr.
Psychedelic medicine sits in a weird place in our culture. Companies, many people, and even some government officials are ready to try it out, and yet, the finance sector isn’t ready to go all in without the results to back up the big bucks. Some may see this move as a simple way to delay the field from blooming, but in the end, good results are worth demanding.