It's all about the relationship: The caregiver experience of supporting a person with advanced cancer going through an LSD microdosing trial.

Abstract

<h4>Objectives</h4>The objectives of this research were to investigate the hopes, beliefs, perceptions, and experience of caregivers for advanced cancer patients undergoing a trial investigating a psychedelic-assisted therapy.<h4>Methods</h4>Semi-structured interviews asked 15 caregivers about their experience at baseline and 1 month after their close associate had completed treatment in a feasibility trial where participants were randomized to receive either lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) microdoses or placebo alongside meaning-centered psychotherapy (MCP). Blinded to condition, reflexive thematic analysis was used to analyze interview transcripts.<h4>Results</h4>This study demonstrates the importance of bidirectional influences between caregiver and patient; the experience of one influences the experience of both. Caregivers were generally supportive of their close associate participating in a psychedelic-assisted trial, although some admitted hesitancy in them taking part. Caregivers described a desire to make the most of now, referring to the role of LSD microdose-assisted MCP as a means of accessing hope, improving the dyad relationship, and reducing existential distress.<h4>Significance of results</h4>Participation in trials investigating psychedelic-assisted MCP may offer hope for patients and their caregivers. Given the bidirectional relationship in wellbeing between cancer dyads, caregivers should be included alongside patients in such trials.

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