Stephen is Assistant Professor of Psychiatry and Child & Adolescent Psychiatry at the New York University (NYU) School of Medicine and Director of the Division of Alcoholism and Drug Abuse at Bellevue Hospital Center in New York City. His primary research interests now revolve around novel diagnostic and treatment approaches to addictive illnesses and psychological distress in patients with advanced or terminal cancer.
As the Principal Investigator of the NYU Psilocybin Cancer Project, he is exploring the potential therapeutic efficacy of psilocybin-assisted psychotherapy to treat distress in patients with advanced cancer. The primary objective of this double-blind, placebo-controlled pilot study is to assess the efficacy of psilocybin on psychosocial distress. Secondary outcome measures will look at the effect of psilocybin on symptoms of pain perception, depression, existential/psycho-spiritual distress, attitudes toward disease progression and quality of life.