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PSYCHIATRY

Putting the MD back into MDMA

Nature Medicine volume 27, pages 950–951 (2021)Cite this article

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A phase 3 study shows that MDMA may be a promising treatment for PTSD, which will require a shift in how this drug is perceived.

MDMA—colloquially known in its unregulated form as ‘E’ or ‘ecstasy’ in Europe and as ‘molly’ in the USA—is a small, amphetamine-like molecule that has had a rollercoaster reputational ride, from being positioned as a promising new therapeutic tool to being branded a brain-damaging recreational drug. Most of those historic fears were overstated, and recent empirical research, especially into the treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and related conditions, is now bringing MDMA back into the medical fold. In this issue of Nature Medicine, Mitchell et al. report the first phase 3 study of MDMA, which reveals significant efficacy and an excellent safety profile in people with severe PTSD1. It now seems likely that it will be an approved medication in a few years.

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Fig. 1: The brain pathways of PTSD and site of action of MDMA in therapy.

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Author information

Author notes

  1. These authors contributed equally: David J. Nutt, Harriet de Wit.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Psychiatry, Imperial College London, London, UK

    David J. Nutt

  2. Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neuroscience, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA

    Harriet de Wit

Authors
  1. David J. Nutt
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  2. Harriet de Wit
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to David J. Nutt.

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Competing interests

D.J.N. is a paid advisor to Awakn, a company with an interest in MDMA treatment research.

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Nutt, D.J., de Wit, H. Putting the MD back into MDMA. Nat Med 27, 950–951 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41591-021-01385-8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41591-021-01385-8

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