Major trial tests ketamine-assisted therapy to break alcohol addiction

The University of Exeter has said it is using a licensed form of the drug and early results showed it reduced drinking over a period of six months.
It is the largest ever trial of ketamine-assisted therapy for alcoholism, increasing testing from seven to eight NHS sites across the UK for phrase three.

Over half a million adults in the UK have a serious alcohol problem and three out of four who quit begin drinking again after a year, according to Charity Alcohol Change.
Participants randomly receive a different dose of ketamine infusion and psychological support sessions.

Prof Celia Morgan is leading the trial and said the initial stages had found participants stayed away from alcohol for longer.
“We think that ketamine helps to catalyse the psychological therapy”, she said, “partly because of the unique subjective effects that you get from the drug.
“People find themselves having these quite weird experiences, often having out-of-body experiences, so they look at life from a different perspective, and that is very useful.”

‘Out-of-body experiences’
Anna Kelsey, assistant psychologist, said mindfulness therapy was a key part of the research.
Its pilot study found that ketamine had the potential to make some people more receptive – improving their engagement with therapy.
“It’s called neuroplasticity, so when you’re in that aspect you can take on a lot more change, you could be more welcome to new ideas [and] new thinking patterns,” she said.

Prof Morgan explained that the research was not swapping alcohol addiction for ketamine addiction.
“We’re giving the drug in only three isolated doses, surrounded by a therapy that’s designed to help people tackle their addiction, so we don’t feel that this is a significant risk.
“It’s something we’ll definitely be watching out for really carefully. We feel that the potential benefits of this treatment for people who are struggling with alcohol problems outweigh those risks.”

If the trial is a success, the university claim the treatment could be available on the NHS in five years. The government estimates the cost of alcohol-related harm to the NHS is around £3.5bn each year.