Why was Matthew Perry on ketamine? Tamoxifen's meaning explored in the wake of cause of death revelation

F.R.I.E.N.D.S. alum Matthew Perry’s official cause of death was finally revealed on Friday, December 15, by the Los Angeles County Coroner’s Office. “Acute effects of ketamine” was listed as the primary cause. Other contributing factors in his death were said to be the effects of the opioid drug buprenorphine, coronary artery disease, and drowning.

Perry’s autopsy report stated the drug ketamine likely made him unconscious, ultimately leading to his drowning. It further clarified the actor had been reportedly clean from using drugs for 19 months. He was undergoing ketamine infusion therapy, a potentially recreational drug that is typically used to treat anxiety and depression.

Matthew Perry previously shared his experience with ketamine infusion therapy in “Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing,” his 2022 memoir. He said the drug eased his pain and helped with his depression. The actor wrote:

“Ketamine felt like a giant exhale. They’d bring me into a room, sit me down, put headphones on me so I would listen to music, blindfold me, and put an IV in.”

In addition to the ketamine, Perry was said to be taking Tamoxifen for weight loss. An unnamed woman, who was interviewed according to the toxicology report, claimed he was receiving testosterone shots for a few weeks prior to his death. The woman also claimed Perry became “mean and angry” because of the shots.

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Matthew Perry's ketamine therapy and tamoxifen use explored

Tamoxifen is generally used as a SERM, i.e., selective estrogen receptor modulator that treats breast cancer in both women and men. Aside from this, Matthew Perry’s autopsy also mentions him receiving Tirzepatide injections.

Though it was stated that he was using Tamoxifen for weight loss, it is unclear why he might have been taking Tirzepatide shots. This medication is used to treat type 2 diabetes as well as weight loss.

Despite several other drugs potentially playing a role in Perry’s death, ketamine remains the primary medication that led to his sudden demise. A week and a half before the tragedy occurred, the actor had a ketamine therapy session.

In his memoir, Matthew Perry explained how the ketamine used to be infused into his body. He said the IV inserted into his body contained a very small amount of Ativan. A drip of ketamine was injected into the IV every hour throughout the session. By the time it ended, Perry said he felt like a pincushion. He wrote:

“As I lay there in the pitch dark, listening to Bon Iver, I would disassociate, see things — I’d been in therapy for so long that I wasn’t even freaked out by this. Oh, there’s a horse over there? Fine — might as well be ... As the music played and K ran through me, it all became about ego, and the death of ego.”

The late actor shared how he often thought he was on the verge of death during the therapy session. Despite the feeling, he continued to sign up for it, reasoning it was “something different.” He added that anything different was good.