Listen "2025 Highlights in Psychedelic Science with CPHR Director Dr. Claudio Soares"
Episode Synopsis
2025 was a pivotal year for psychedelic research at the Centre for Psychedelics Health & Research (CPHR) and across Canada. In this year-end finale of The Integration Session, host Dr. Elena Koning sits down with CPHR Director Dr. Claudio Soares for a reflective conversation on progress, breakthroughs, and the road ahead. Dr. Soares shares his professional journey in psychiatry, the evolution of CPHR into one of Canada’s leading multidisciplinary hubs for psychedelic science, education, and clinical innovation, and the centre’s key milestones to date. Major highlights include the launch of the first Health Canada-approved Phase 2 clinical trial of at-home, low-dose (non-hallucinogenic) psilocybin for generalized anxiety disorder, and a Phase 2, multi-center clinical trial of a rapid-acting DMT formulation (VLS-01 Buccal Film) for treatment-resistant depression. Looking to 2026, Dr. Soares shares CPHR’s exciting plans, including expanded research priorities, enhanced knowledge translation efforts, and strengthened national and international partnerships to responsibly advance psychedelic medicine. Dr. Claudio Soares is a physician, researcher, and educator with over 25 years of experience in mental health and women’s health. He is a Professor of Psychiatry at Queen’s University and Director of the Centre for Psychedelics Health and Research, leading innovative clinical research and knowledge dissemination initiatives. He also serves as Regional Clinical Co-Lead for Mental Health and Addictions at Ontario Health East and is President of The Menopause Society, a global organization dedicated to advancing women’s health at midlife and beyond. His expertise spans mood disorders, reproductive psychiatry, menopause, clinical trials, mobile health technologies, psychedelics research, and health innovation.
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