For years, Joe Rogan’s podcast has been a platform where many guests have exchanged different ideas. However, a particular episode has allegedly increased self-treatment among cancer patients, prompting the doctors to start raising precautionary alarms across the country.

In an episode of The Joe Rogan Experience uploaded on January 09, 2025, famous Hollywood actor Mel Gibson joined Rogan as his guest. There, Gibson revealed that three of his friends who suffered from stage four cancer survived using medicines called Ivermectin and Fenbendazole. Both of these medicines contained a chemical compound called Benzimidazole, and Gibson reportedly claimed that it does not “afflict disease” in humans.

After the episode aired, many doctors and medical outlets started pointing out that many patients, including cancer patients in America, began purchasing ivermectin as a treatment for cancer without a prescription, and the purchasing rate reportedly doubled. According to a CIDRAP report, electronic medical records showed that 68,373,949 patients across 67 health systems searched for ivermectin and benzimidazole.

Then, UCLA Health’s report further stated that prescriptions doubled for all patients from January 1, 2025, to July 31, 2025, compared to January 1, 2024, to July 31, 2024. Also, the number increased 2.5 times for only cancer patients. After this growth, senior author Dr. John N. Mafi, an associate professor-in-residence of medicine, also noted the podcast’s effect, allegedly doubling the demand for alternative medicine.

“As a primary care doctor, I want my patients and people across the country to have the chance to get treatments we know can help them live longer, healthier lives,” Dr. John N. Mafi said, as per UCLA. “When prescribing for an unproven cancer treatment more than doubles after a single podcast, especially among men and people in the South, it raises a concern that patients may be skipping or delaying treatments we know work in favor of something that hasn’t been proven to help them.”

Now, as Rogan’s episode with Gibson is being linked to the increased selling of ivermectin, the commentator-podcaster also recently went to the Oval Office when the President of the United States signed an executive order for psychedelics. 

Donald Trump signed an executive order for psychedelic drug research endorsed by Joe Rogan 

On April 18, Joe Rogan attended a meeting at the Oval Office where the President of the United States, Donald Trump, signed an executive order on using psychedelics in drug treatment to help address mental illness. The UFC color commentator and podcaster has long been an advocate for the cause, so he detailed how Americans have been struggling with opioid use and how doses of ibogaine could help treat addiction.

“We have a gigantic opiate problem in this country,” Rogan said during the Oval Office speech. “In 2024, more than 80,000 people died of overdoses. It’s a horrible number. And there are more than 5 million people that are addicted to opiates right now in this country. With one dose of ibogaine, more than 80% of people are free of that addiction. With two doses, it’s more than 90%.”

To be fair, some reports have shown that doctors and clinics in several South American countries have used ibogaine treatments. However, Rogan’s renewed push for ibogaine sparked debate because the FDA has not approved the method, and critics continue to question the safety and effectiveness of alternative medicine treatments

That said, although there are many different views around medicine, people should consult doctors and specialists before making major decisions.