Mind-bending drug helps cancer victims

Research in the United States showed that one session with the drug, psilocybin, improved mood and reduced anxiety in the patient group for up to six months.

Psilocybin is the active ingredient in "magic mushrooms", and classified as an illegal Class A drug in the UK.

The drug has psychedelic effects that can include the enhancement of colours and visual hallucinations.

Professor Charles Grob, from the LA BioMed research institute in Los Angeles, California, said: "We are working with a patient population that often does not respond well to conventional treatments.

"Following their treatments with psilocybin, the patients and their families reported benefit from the use of this hallucinogen in reducing their anxiety.

"This study shows psilocybin can be administered safely."

The research is published in the journal Archives of General Psychiatry.