smo.sagepub/content/1/2050312113508389.full To advance the ideas put forward in this article, scientists must overcome common misconceptions about shamanism and should engage with healers in a clear dialogue to foster communication and develop common research projects. This approach might help to improve the treatment available for and the quality of life of cancer patients and to avoid the possible underreported dangers of ayahuasca use by cancer patients, such as the dangers of the so-called drug tourism and issues created by outlawing ayahuasca, such as preventing safe contexts for use and fostering the dangerous practices of drug tourism. A holistic framework, such as the one presented here, may indeed spark even more interest in ayahuasca use, especially by cancer patients, and thus, to increase safety and efficacy, a responsible approach is necessary. Ayahuasca use for healing purposes is not allowed in most countries. Legislation tends to interfere with set and setting issues; in a prohibitionist culture, both set and setting are negatively affected because of anxieties, prejudices, and fears related exclusively to the penalties of infringing the law or using an unconventional healing path. If ayahuasca is scientifically proven to have the healing potentials long recorded by anthropologists, explorers, and ethnobotanists, outlawing ayahuasca or its medical use and denying people adequate access to its curative effects could be perceived as an infringement on human rights, a serious issue that demands careful and thorough discussion. In view of the current expansion of ayahuasca use, careful international regulation may also help to reduce the harm and maximize the benefit of ayahuasca use.
Posted on: Sat, 02 Nov 2013 15:30:00 +0000
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