BAY AREA (KRON) -- Drug addiction has been the plague of modern America. But that could now change forever. What started as a rumor may now actually be an incredible breakthrough in the battle against addictions of all kinds.

Ibogaine has a number of strikes against it:

It doesn't come from a modern laboratory, but from an ancient plant.
It was discovered not by a scientist, but by a heroin addict.
It is mildly hallucinogenic and completely illegal in the United States.
However, when it comes to curing addiction, a reputable scientist believes ibogaine is nothing short of a miracle. "I didn't believe it when I first heard about ibogaine. I thought it was something that needed to be debunked," admits Dr. Deborah Mash, professor of Neurology and Molecular and Cellular Pharmacology at University of Miami.