Psilocybin-assisted Therapy: One Patient vs. the DEA
Advocacy, MBC Allies, Legislature, MBC Patients, Challenges and Barriers, BC Policies and Legislation, Access to Care and Drugs Our MBClife Advocacy, MBC Allies, Legislature, MBC Patients, Challenges and Barriers, BC Policies and Legislation, Access to Care and Drugs Our MBClife

Psilocybin-assisted Therapy: One Patient vs. the DEA

Welcome to the third and final episode in our series on the potential of psilocybin-assisted therapy to relieve the existential distress of, and help us live as well as possible with, metastatic breast cancer.

In this episode, we speak with two women taking action to increase legal access to psilocybin-assisted therapy in the United States. The first is a patient living with MBC who, along with her doctor, have brought a lawsuit against the Drug Enforcement Agency which is denying her access to psilocybin in the palliative care setting and under existing Right to Try laws for promising investigational medications for the terminally ill. The patient petitioner, Erinn Baldeschwiler, tells us why she joined the lawsuit, what she hopes to gain from psilocybin-assisted therapy, and what it’s been like to deal with all the legal proceedings on top of a progressing MBC diagnosis.

Our second interview in this episode is with the attorney who is leading the legal case to open access to psilocybin under Right to Try legislation, Kathryn Tucker of the Emerge Law Group. Kathryn explains why psilocybin should be immediately available to patients suffering from distress, anxiety, depression under FDA rules and state and federal Right to Try laws. But the DEA is continuing to block access and hold psilocybin on Schedule 1 of the Controlled Substance Act.

It’s confusing, but we explain it all here. Lastly, see the Episode Notes for a current petition to the DEA to step out of the way and grant access to psilocybin for anyone with a terminal illness.

This series has been led by series producer, Dr. Paula Jayne with assistance from co-host Lynda Weatherby, and senior producer and host Lisa Laudico.

Thanks for listening!

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Psilocybin-assisted Therapy: Patient Experiences
Living with MBC, MBC Patients, Lifestyle Research, MBC Stories, Challenges and Barriers, BC Policies and Legislation, Access to Care and Drugs, Quality of Life Our MBClife Living with MBC, MBC Patients, Lifestyle Research, MBC Stories, Challenges and Barriers, BC Policies and Legislation, Access to Care and Drugs, Quality of Life Our MBClife

Psilocybin-assisted Therapy: Patient Experiences

Welcome to the second episode in our series on the potential of psilocybin-assisted therapy to help us live as well as possible with metastatic breast cancer.

In this episode, we talk to two women with breast cancer who had legal access to psilocybin-assisted therapy. Journalist and writer Erica Rex participated in a clinical trial at Johns Hopkins after being diagnosed with early-stage breast cancer. Mari Singfield, a young Canadian woman living with MBC, gained access through an exemption to Section 56(1) of the Canadian Controlled Drugs and Substances Act, a process facilitated by the organization, TheraPsil.

Both women shared with us the process that they went through to gain legal access to psilocybin-assisted therapy, what the treatment was actually like for them, and what, if anything, changed in their lives afterward.

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Road to a Cure - ABC with Dr. Fatima Cardoso
Novel Treatments, Medical Community, BC Policies and Legislation, Clinical Trials Process, Health Disparities, Diagnosis and Treatment, Entities of Cancer, Precision Oncology, MBC Imaging and Profiling, Difficult to Treat, Obstacles to Better Outcomes, Clinical Research, Basic Science, Translational Research Our MBClife Novel Treatments, Medical Community, BC Policies and Legislation, Clinical Trials Process, Health Disparities, Diagnosis and Treatment, Entities of Cancer, Precision Oncology, MBC Imaging and Profiling, Difficult to Treat, Obstacles to Better Outcomes, Clinical Research, Basic Science, Translational Research Our MBClife

Road to a Cure - ABC with Dr. Fatima Cardoso

This is the sixth stop in our series Road to a Cure. From the start our goal for this series was not only to educate and give hope to every listener but also to ensure that each of these special interviews feels like an intimate conversation with our smartest friend who also happens to be an oncologist researcher. This episode will not disappoint., Co-hosts Victoria Goldberg and Lisa Laudico, sit down with the Director of the Breast Unit of the Champalimaud Clinical Center in Lisbon, Portugal, Dr. Fatima Cardoso.

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Advocacy from a Legislator’s Perspective - Rep. Debbie Wasserman Shultz
Advocacy, MBC Allies, Legislature, BC Policies and Legislation, Challenges and Barriers, Access to Care and Drugs Our MBClife Advocacy, MBC Allies, Legislature, BC Policies and Legislation, Challenges and Barriers, Access to Care and Drugs Our MBClife

Advocacy from a Legislator’s Perspective - Rep. Debbie Wasserman Shultz

Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz shares with us the power of the patient advocate voice and the impact of personal stories. She talks about how her own experience with breast cancer has shaped her approach to issues related to healthcare. We are so thrilled to get a legislator’s perspective as we explore Our MBC Life.

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Policy and the Power of Patient Advocacy
Advocacy, MBC Allies, Patient Advocates, Legacy, Challenges and Barriers, Access to Care and Drugs, BC Policies and Legislation, Health Disparities, Living with MBC, Making Our Best MBC Life Our MBClife Advocacy, MBC Allies, Patient Advocates, Legacy, Challenges and Barriers, Access to Care and Drugs, BC Policies and Legislation, Health Disparities, Living with MBC, Making Our Best MBC Life Our MBClife

Policy and the Power of Patient Advocacy

“I see so much in the metastatic community this idea of just paying it forward, this idea of, yeah, this might not actually help me right now, but I'm still going to bring it up and I'm still going to advocate for it because it will help somebody else.” This is the story about the power of advocacy. Meet some of the individuals and organizations who are advocating for metastatic breast cancer every day wherever the work takes them.

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Dept. of Defense Breast Cancer Research Program
Advocacy, Patient Advocates, MBC Research Funding, Challenges and Barriers, BC Policies and Legislation Our MBClife Advocacy, Patient Advocates, MBC Research Funding, Challenges and Barriers, BC Policies and Legislation Our MBClife

Dept. of Defense Breast Cancer Research Program

Dr. Gayle Vaday, Program Manager of the Department of Defense Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs focused on Breast Cancer (BCRP), joins co-hosts Sheila McGlown and Lisa Laudico for a conversation about MBC funding and research and how the funds are distributed. In addition, Sheila McGlown talks about her experience as a consumer reviewer at DoD and her special connection to this critical research funder.

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