Whilst across the pond, Ecstasy is set to be used in a medical trial involving patients with post-traumatic stress. Final ethical approval has been given for the tests, based at the University of South Carolina in the US. Ecstasy, also known as MDMA, was originally created as a slimming aid - and was made illegal after an upsurge in recreational use in the 1980s. The trial will test the effects of the drug on traumatised crime victims, and is expected to start in the New Year. The use of MDMA therapeutically is controversial - many experts believe there already exist better ways of helping people with post-traumatic stress. Studies of the long-term effects of taking the drug also suggest there may be health risks, although this is not fully proven. Source: BBC News