Diamond Therapeutics wins ARPA-H funding for psilocybin anxiety trial

By AI, Created 11:11 AM UTC, May 20, 2026, /AGP/ – Diamond Therapeutics received a multi-million dollar ARPA-H award to expand its phase 2 generalized anxiety disorder study from Canada into the U.S. The funding is part of a broader federal push to validate faster, more measurable behavioral health treatments, including rapid-acting psychedelic therapies.

Why it matters: - The award gives Diamond Therapeutics non-dilutive federal support to expand a phase 2 anxiety trial into the U.S. - The funding could help speed development of rapid-acting behavioral health treatments and generate data on psilocybin-based therapy for generalized anxiety disorder. - ARPA-H’s broader EVIDENT initiative aims to fund up to $139.4 million for new behavioral health therapies.

What happened: - Diamond Therapeutics received a multi-million dollar funding award from ARPA-H for its phase 2 clinical trial in generalized anxiety disorder. - The company will expand an ongoing study in Canada into the U.S. with St. Petersburg, Florida-based Tactical Mind Research Coalition. - Diamond’s U.S. operations are headquartered in Birmingham, Alabama. - The trial is part of ARPA-H’s Evidence-Based Validation & Innovation for Rapid Therapeutics in Behavioral Health, or EVIDENT, initiative.

The details: - The phase 2 study is testing repeated administration of low doses of psilocybin in people with GAD. - Dr. Claudio Soares, director of the Centre for Psychedelics Health and Research in Kingston, Canada, leads the work. - Diamond said the ARPA-H support will help build a more comprehensive dataset to support biomarker identification. - Judy Blumstock, Diamond’s founder and CEO, said the company wants to provide data that supports ARPA-H’s work to validate the safety and effectiveness of rapid-acting therapies including psilocybin. - Michael McDonnell, Diamond’s chief medical officer, said Tactical Mind Solutions will play a key role in the expanded clinical trials, along with other partners. - ARPA-H Director Alicia Jackson said the agency wants objective, predictive measures that show sooner whether a therapy is working for a patient. - Jackson said EVIDENT is intended to reduce failed treatment attempts and help make behavioral health care more measurable and precise.

Between the lines: - The award aligns with a larger federal effort to move psychedelic research from discussion to clinical validation. - The White House issued an executive order on April 18, 2026, to accelerate research into psychedelics for mental health treatments. - The order calls for more clinical research, stronger coordination across regulatory agencies and responsible pathways to patient access. - Diamond’s focus on biomarkers suggests the company is aiming for evidence that could make psychedelic treatment more acceptable to regulators and clinicians.

What’s next: - Diamond will use the new funding to expand the trial and gather U.S.-based data. - The company and its partners will continue working on a larger dataset aimed at verifying efficacy and identifying biomarkers. - ARPA-H’s EVIDENT program will continue awarding funds to support behavioral health therapies.

The bottom line: - Federal funding is helping push Diamond Therapeutics’ psilocybin program from a Canada-based study toward broader U.S. clinical validation.