In recent years there has been a spate of research suggesting psychedelic drugs can help people manage mental health conditions like depression, anxiety, chronic pain or even eating disorders. But a growing body of data points to one as the leading contender to treat the intractable disease of substance abuse. Psilocybin, the active ingredient in psychedelic mushrooms, has shown promise in limited early studies, not only in alcohol and harder drugs, but also nicotine — all of which resist long-term treatment.

"The old rule of thumb is that one-third of people get better, one-third stay the same, and one-third continue to get worse," said Dr. Michael Bogenschutz, a psychiatrist at New York University's Grossman School of Medicine studying psilocybin-assisted therapy as a treatment for alcohol abuse. "What's fascinating to me about this whole process is how many different kinds of experiences people can have, which ultimately help them make these profound changes in their behavior."

Take Aimée Jamison, who several years ago wanted to kick her cigarette habit. Statistically speaking, her chance of success wasn't great. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 55% of adult smokers tried to quit in 2018, but only 8% were successful.

In fall 2018, Jamison participated in a clinical trial at the Johns Hopkins Center for Psychedelic & Consciousness Research. When she had to abstain from nicotine for a day before a brain scan, she called it "the most hellish 24 hours I've experienced." After three talk therapy sessions, she was given a single pill containing 30 milligrams of psilocybin, a relatively high dose. After swallowing the pill, she put on an eye-mask, lay on a couch and went on a psychedelic trip with two therapists nearby for the next five hours.

When her trip ended, she sat up and looked at the therapists. "Now, I understand why I smoked," she said, "and I don't need to do that anymore."

Over the next couple months, Jamison attended several more therapy sessions, but took no additional psilocybin. She hasn't touched a cigarette in the years since.

An early version of that study, published in 2014, reported an 80% success rate in 15 smokers, compared with 35% typically observed in patients taking the leading conventional anti-smoking drug Chantix.