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The active ingredient in magic mushrooms may soon be used to help people with a terminal illness come to terms with death.

A counsellor in Victoria is part of a team that wants to use the psychedelic substance psilocybin to treat a condition called end-of-life distress when someone suffers from a combination of anxiety, depression and demoralization.

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Bruce Tobin said that there are about 3,000 people with a terminal illness across the country whose end-of-life-distress is so severe that traditional treatments have been unable to alleviate it.

“We are being very restrictive about the clients we are seeking to treat,” he said. “We’re only seeking to treat those for whom all other treatments have failed. There is now growing scientific evidence that this is likely to be effective for them.”

On Tuesday, Tobin was part of an application to Health Canada seeking a Section 56 exemption to the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act. The exemption allows researchers, including physicians, veterinarians and others affiliated with universities and private industry, to use a controlled substance. Psilocybin is a controlled drug under Schedule III of the act.