A new study from UNSW Sydney and the Black Dog Institute has found that generic ketamine is safe and effective in treating severe depression over the long term.
The research shows that this low-cost drug can reduce symptoms, improve quality of life, and offer hope for people who haven’t responded to other treatments.
The study was published in the Journal of Affective Disorders and looked at real-life clinical data from 65 patients treated between 2021 and 2024.
These patients had treatment-resistant depression, meaning they had tried at least two other antidepressants without success. The researchers found that ketamine helped ease symptoms and was generally well tolerated, with no serious side effects or misuse.
Generic ketamine is much cheaper than the newer S-ketamine nasal spray, Spravato. Spravato costs between $500 and $900 per dose, though patients in Australia can pay a lower price under the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS). Generic ketamine only costs $5 to $20 per dose, but it is not officially approved or subsidized.
In the study, patients received ketamine either by injection or orally, depending on what worked best for them. Treatment lasted two to six months and was given at different intervals, from twice a week to every three weeks.
More than a third of patients responded to treatment within eight weeks, and that number rose to over 44% by six months. About 26% went into remission, and 73% saw a drop in suicidal thoughts.
The treatment helped many patients who had felt hopeless after trying other therapies. It also improved their daily lives. The researchers used a tool called KSET to carefully monitor any side effects before, during, and after treatment. This helped ensure safety throughout the process.
This study builds on earlier research that showed short-term benefits of generic ketamine. Most drug studies only last a month and focus on new, patented drugs. But in the real world, people use treatments for longer periods. This study fills an important gap by showing how generic ketamine works over several months.
Still, the study had some limits. It didn’t include a control group, and some data was missing. Also, other treatments like antidepressants or therapy may have influenced the results. A new trial is underway to directly compare generic ketamine with S-ketamine in a more controlled setting.
One major issue is access. Even though the research shows that generic ketamine works, it’s not officially approved because it doesn’t have a commercial sponsor to push it through Australia’s TGA approval process. Without approval, Medicare can’t fund it.
Professor Colleen Loo, one of the lead researchers, says ketamine is one of the most important breakthroughs in depression treatment in the past 80 years. But without government support, many people still can’t access the lower-cost version.
The research team hopes their findings will help change that and bring this affordable, effective treatment to more people who need it.
If you care about mental health, please read studies about cannabis use disorder linked to increased risk of mental diseases and some mental health drugs can cause rapid weight gain.
For more health information, please read studies that one sleepless night can reverse depression for days and scientists find better treatment for older adults with depression.
The study is published in the Journal of Affective Disorders.
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