I'm not taking sides. I'm just reporting the facts.
Right about at the
midway point 2 years ago,
5 English stroke patients were given, in what has been termed a
revolutionary new approach, millions of embryonic stem cells in a clinical
trial from a 12-week-old aborted fetus. They injected the stem cells into their
brains and waited 18 months, after which the stroke survivors saw some
improvement in their mobility and speech. But the researchers, considering the
small number of survivors being tested and the lack of a control group for the
placebo, expressed some concern that people shouldn't get overly excited about
the results.
Michael Hunt, CEO of
ReNeuron, the company that supplied the stem cells, said, "The goal is to
help patients to live more independently and cut health and social care
costs," which makes so much sense to me. (Uh, I think I just chose a
side).
On the other side of
the fence are the religious crowd who thinks that injecting stem cells from
aborted fetuses is just plain wrong. One woman, Philippa Taylor, of the
Christian Medical Fellowship, said, "For many, it will be ethically
troubling that this treatment involves injecting several million cells from an
aborted fetus."
But if the mother
decides to abort the fetus, it might as well help a load of somebodies than
just wait for trash day to come and haul the fetus away. What are they going to
do with the fetus anyway? Use it for compost? (Oh, boy, have I gone too far?)
It is estimated that
around 250,000 Britons live with disability caused by a stroke, many of them
severe strokes, and finding a treatment that repairs brain damage is
life-changing. But the controversy continues: practical vs religious.
So, I wondered, can I
achieve the same thing as the five British men? I googled (recently becoming a
verb) "stroke stem cell," and variations of that search, and soon I
came upon Stem Cell of America (why is stem cell singular?) which purported to
have all the answers on stem cell therapy.
Does the Stem Cell
treatment have any age requirements?
No, Stem Cell Of
America accepts patients of all ages.
Do you accept
patients from outside of the United States?
Yes, we routinely
accept patients from Canada, England, Australia and other countries all over
the world.
Am I eligible for
Stem Cell treatment?
There are many
factors in determining whether a patient is a candidate for Fetal Stem Cell
treatment. We test for 14 different criteria, including viral, bacterial, and
fungal infections, as well as viability. Moreover, we use PCR DNA testing,
which is far more sophisticated and expensive than the screening tests routinely
used in the United States for other Stem Cell treatments.
Will my body reject
the Fetal Stem Cells?
No, Fetal Stem Cells
have no antigenicity, which is a cellular “fingerprint” that can cause a
dangerous and sometimes lethal rejection by the body. This phenomenon is called
graft-versus-host disease. Our Stem Cells are free of this “fingerprint”, there
is no threat of rejection and therefore no need for immunosuppressive drugs, which
can leave the body vulnerable to serious diseases and infection.
How quickly will I
see results after the Stem Cell treatment?
Every person is of
course different. Each of our body’s healing mechanisms work at a unique pace
as they are influenced by many factors. Commonly, significant positive changes
are seen between three to six months post treatment. At times, these changes
can occur in as little as weeks or even days after receiving treatment.
How many Stem Cell
treatments will I need?
After the first
treatment, the Fetal Stem Cells will continue to proliferate and repair. Some
patients choose to receive treatment more than one time to expedite the healing
process. The decision is yours. If you decide to repeat the treatment, usually
a waiting period of 6 months is recommended.
How do the Fetal Stem
Cells actually work to bring about healing?
Fetal Stem Cells are
the cellular building blocks of the 220 cell types within the body. The Fetal
Stem Cells used by Stem Cell Of America remain in an undifferentiated state and
therefore are capable of becoming any tissue, organ or cell type within the
body.
Fetal Stem Cells also
release Cytokines. Cytokines are cell-derived, hormone-like polypeptides that
regulate cellular replication, differentiation, and activation. Cytokines can
bring normal cells and tissues to a higher level of function, allowing the
body’s own healing mechanisms to partner with the transplanted Fetal Stem Cells
for repair and new growth.
How many people have
been treated with my specific disease or condition?
Stem Cell Of America
has treated over two thousand patients with Fetal Stem Cells.
What diseases and
conditions is the Stem Cell treatment available for?
A partial list of
disease and conditions that Stem Cell of America has successfully treated
includes:
Alzheimer's
Arthritis
Autism
Brain Damage
Cancer
Cerebral Palsy
Chronic Pain
Cystic Fibrosis
Diabetes
Epilepsy
Fibromyalgia
Heart Disease
Liver Disease
Lung Disease
Lupus
Multiple Sclerosis
Muscular Dystrophy
Parkinson's
Seizures
Spinal Cord Injury
Stroke
and others
Stroke! It was on the
list. So I called the number listed on the website. An amiable person spoke to
me about all the positive things that could come about if I got this stem cell
therapy from Stem Cell of America, repeating much of the same wording that was
on the website. I was waiting for the ball to drop, and it dropped twice about
thirty seconds later, going something like this:
"The cost is
$25,000 and the therapy is done in Mexico."
The cost was one
thing, but Mexico? Tiajuana, no less, the hotspot for all things bad? But I was
getting ahead of myself.
"Let me think
about it," I said, and I went directly to my computer to learn more.
Dear Joyce,
Thank you for your
email to EuroStemCell, I’m sorry to hear of your stroke.
EuroStemCell is not
directly involved in research, treatments or clinical trials. We are an online grouping of people who work
in stem cell research (didn't they say they were not involved in research?),
and have set up the website to provide more information about stem cell
research in Europe.
Have you seen our
information on 'What diseases and conditions can be treated with stem cells?'
You can read it here:
http://www.eurostemcell.org/faq/what-diseases-and-conditions-can-be-treated-stem-cells.
(The list was somewhat the same as Stem Cell of America). It gives a good
overview of what stem cell treatments are currently proven and available.
Stem cell therapies
are generally at an early stage of research and development. More work is needed
before safe and effective treatments can be made available for a condition such
as stroke. You can read more about current research on this condition here:
·
Our FAQ information
for patients about stem cell research and Stroke: http://www.eurostemcell.org/faq/what-stroke-and-can-stem-cells-help
The Stroke
Association provides specialist support and information for patients (including
on current stroke research): http://www.stroke.org.uk/
Unfortunately, we are
not able to offer advice on specific treatments or clinics.We
recommend that if you are concerned about your condition, you discuss this with
your doctor (who guesstimates anyway) and perhaps contact the Stroke
Association (who guesstimates, too).
I have also attached
a patient handbook on stem cell therapies produced by the International Society
for Stem Cell Research. It contains information and advice to help you assess
the reliability of any treatment offers you may receive. (They were all
pricey). More information for patients and other language versions of the
handbook are available at http://www.closerlookatstemcells.org.
I am sorry not to be
of more immediate help, but I hope this information is of some use. (It
wasn't).
Best wishes,
"Mary"
I continued to
research and found this article:
LAS VEGAS -- Dr.
Ralph Conti and Alfred Sapse were found guilty on all counts in federal court
Wednesday of defrauding patients out of more than $1 million in promising bogus
experimental stem cell treatments.
They faced charges for
an alleged scheme to defraud people with incurable diseases with a so-called
miracle stem cell cure that involved injections of placentas.
Sapse, 86, recruited
Conti, 51, a pediatrician, for the scheme. The problem entails his adult
patients who prosecutors say were given intoxicating promises. The pledges
included cures for multiple sclerosis, cerebral palsy and claims the
handicapped could walk again. Instead, prosecutors say Conti delivered infected
injections and unproven science.
Conti and Sapse were
accused of defrauding patients out of upwards of $1 million with a medical
practice that injected people with stem cells from placentas. They faced 24
felony charges for the financial part of the fraud.
Prosecutors say the
money paid by the incurable patients went to Sapse's personal accounts and to
pay for gambling.
He hired Conti to do
the injections on adults. Prosecutors say he did no follow-up with patients,
tracked no data and flatly told one patient the so-called treatment wouldn't
even work. He also allegedly injected cells he knew had been infected.
This whole treatment
could have been stopped five years ago. The I-Team found the U.S. Department of
Health and Human Services, the Food and Drug Administration and the Nevada Board
of Medical Examiners tried to shut Conti down.
Instead, the board
only gave him a public reprimand and a $7,000 fine for not responding to
questions.
Conti and Sapse were
each convicted of conspiracy to commit mail fraud and wire fraud. Conti was
convicted of two counts each of mail fraud and wire fraud.
Sapse was convicted
of seven counts of mail fraud and 11 counts of wire fraud. They face up to five
years in prison on the conspiracy count and up to 20 years on each fraud count.
They also face fines up to $250,000 for each count and must forfeit money and
property up to $913,748.
Their sentencing is
scheduled for Feb. 27.
Las Vegas, NV (KTNV)
-- A local pediatrician convicted of fraud has died.
The Clark County
Coroner said Dr. Ralph Conti of Henderson passed away Sunday, but the exact
cause of his death is under investigation.
Conti was convicted
of mail fraud, wire fraud and conspiracy charges connected to a million-dollar
stem cell scheme.
He was awaiting
sentencing on that conviction.
And more.
The following is a
script of "Stem Cell Fraud" which aired on Jan. 8, 2012, and was
rebroadcast on Aug. 26, 2012. Scott Pelley is the correspondent.
(CBS News) There's no
greater desperation than to be told that you, or your child, has a disease for
which there is no hope. Many people with incurable illness look forward to the
promise of stem cells. Stem cells have the potential to turn into any kind of
cell and, in theory, they could repair damaged cells, though, scientists tell
us that we are years away from realizing that dream.
There is no stem cell
miracle today, so con men, have moved in to offer the hope that science cannot.
Just look online and you will find hundreds of credible looking websites
offering stem cell cures in overseas clinics.
Two years ago we
began investigating stem cell charlatans. We worked with patients suffering
from incurable diseases, and we discovered con men, posing as doctors,
conducting dangerous medical experiments.
[Scott Pelley: You
know, Mr. Stowe, the trouble is that you're a con man.]
Our report started a
federal investigation and since that story, we have been digging into the
rapidly growing trade in fake stem cell cures. As we reported last January,
we've found something even more alarming: illegal stem cell transplants that
are dangerous and delivered to your doorstep. They are scams that often bilk
the desperate out of their last dollar of savings and their last ounce of hope.
[Brandon Susser: I
know you're tired.]
Adam and Brandon
Susser are 11-year-old twins. Adam has cerebral palsy, his brain was damaged by
a lack of oxygen before he and his brother were born.
Gary Susser: He's
confined to a wheelchair. He needs assistance with all his daily living
activities from cleanliness to feeding, to clothing.
Gary and Judy Susser
have searched for anything that might improve on the judgment handed down by
Adam's doctors.
Gary Susser: The
sentence of being a quadriplegic, the sentence of being totally blind, the
pronouncement by physicians that we should put him away.
Scott Pelley: Those
were the things that his regular doctors were telling you?
Gary Susser: Correct.
We were being advised literally, "Put him away. He's gonna destroy your
life."
So back in 2003, the
Sussers took a chance on the theory of stem cells. Adam was three. They brought
him to a doctor in Mexico who injected stem cells with no idea whether they
would work.
Judy Susser: We both
decided that in the severity of his condition that we'd have to try it.
Apparently, there was
no harm and no miracle.
Gary Susser: The
progress that he made after that was minimal at best and therefore we didn't
see any good coming out of it.
Today, people like
the Sussers can find hundreds of sophisticated websites offering stem cell
treatments for every hopeless disease.
Gary Susser: I see
how people are preyed upon by hucksters and charlatans. And people who have a
special child don't need any more expense, don't need any more heartache, and
don't need any more false promises. They need the truth and they need hope.
To help us learn the
truth about the illicit stem cell industry, the Sussers agreed to work with us
in an investigation of one stem cell laboratory. We focused on Stem Tech Labs
of Ecuador because it offers cures for cerebral palsy and a long list of 70
incurable diseases. The website claims a "modern day medical miracle"
and says "we are FDA registered," apparent approval from the Food and
Drug Administration.
The founder and
director of Stem Tech Labs is an Alabama doctor named Dan Ecklund. We've been
tracking Dr. Ecklund for months.
[Gary Susser: Hello,
is Dan Ecklund there please?]
In October, we asked
the Sussers to contact Dr. Ecklund. Ecklund sent them a letter which offered
the blind and paralyzed Adam the possibility of an improved level of
consciousness, improved ability to see, to speak, to stand and walk. What can
stem cells really do today? We asked a scientist who's doing some of the
world's most advanced studies in stem cells, Dr. Joanne Kurtzberg.
Dr. Joanne Kurtzberg:
I believe stem cells have a lot of promise. But we are way at the infancy.
Because real stem cells are very difficult to control as therapy. I personally
think we're 10 years away from seeing real cell therapies that are working and
are safe, but I do believe it will come.
Dr. Kurtzberg is a
physician and the chief scientific officer of a stem cell research program at
Duke University. She advises the federal government and she's co-director of
this multimillion dollar laboratory which works with stem cells harvested from
umbilical cord blood. Dr. Kurtzberg told us there's no evidence yet that stem
cells can treat cerebral palsy.
Pelley: Some of the
diseases that we see stem cell cures offered for on the Internet include
multiple sclerosis.
Kurtzberg: There are
no stem cell cures yet for multiple sclerosis.
Pelley: Lou Gehrig's
disease?
Kurtzberg: I wish
there were but there are not.
Pelley: You know, I
wonder how often it happens that you have to tell a patient, 'I'm sorry.
There's nothing we can do.' And then they come back to you two days later and
say, 'Well, I see all these cures on the Internet.'
Kurtzberg: I get many
of those calls and emails and, and, see many of those patients. But it's very
dishonest to mislead people when there's nothin' you can do.
But there's a lot
that can be done for Adam Susser according to Dr. Ecklund who spoke to the
Sussers from his lab in Ecuador.
[Gary Susser: Say
hello to Dr. Dan, Adam.]
Dr. Ecklund's only
examination of Adam came by teleconference. Ecklund didn't know we were
watching.
[Judy Susser: Do you
think it would help him, you know, make him improve?
Dr. Dan Ecklund: I
think it's likely to help him, yes. I would say 75 percent chance that if--
that he would have a noticeable improvement.]
Ecklund proposed four
treatments costing a total of $20,000. The Sussers asked Ecklund to treat Adam
near their Florida home.
[Ecklund: Again, my concern
would be the legalities of it.]
He's right to be
concerned. It would be a felony to use stem cells in an unapproved therapy or
to sell them for export to the U.S. That's why we were surprised to see this on
many websites: a shopping cart. We clicked on Ecklund's Stem Tech Labs cart and
- with no medical or scientific credentials - we bought 20 million umbilical
cord stem cells for $5,000; shipped to America.
We had the cells sent
by the highest medical standard. Duke University suggested we use something
called a dry shipper, cooled with liquid nitrogen. We sent the dry shipper to
Stem Tech. Stem Tech sent the frozen cells to us, and we forwarded them to
Joanne Kurtzberg. A computer chip inside our package, verified the cells were
properly frozen all the way.
Dr. Kurtzberg
analyzed the cells. For comparison, look under the microscope, healthy
umbilical cord stem cells look like this. The cells we got from Stem Tech had
disintegrated.
Kurtzberg: So these
are the cells you purchased. And they are dying, or dead.
Pelley: We see all of
these dead and disintegrating cells, and essentially cellular debris. Are there
dangers of injecting that into someone?
Kurtzberg: There are
huge dangers if you injected that into someone's blood or spinal fluid because
all these little fragments and debris would get trapped somewhere in the blood
stream and could cause a stroke, or in the brain could cause an inflammatory reaction.
Pelley: This could
actually do harm?
Kurtzberg: Yes. This
could do a great deal of harm.
Remember, the Sussers
asked Dr. Ecklund to treat Adam in the U.S. and last winter, he got out of a
van to meet Gary Susser at a Florida hotel where Ecklund planned to do the
transplant.
We dug into Dr.
Ecklund's background and we found things he hadn't told the Sussers. This is
the document in which the state of Alabama revoked his medical license in 2005.
The State Medical Commission said Dr. Ecklund admitted that he:
- Prescribed
controlled substances to a patient with whom he was having sex
- Prescribed
controlled substances to a patient who he knew was a drug addict
- And had sexual
experiences with young female children
We also tracked down
his laboratory in Ecuador, not exactly the state of the art facility claimed in
his website.
The hotel room Gary
Susser and Dan Ecklund headed for was set up with a number of cameras that were
tucked out of sight.
Susser excused
himself. Ecklund was expecting to meet Judy and Adam, the blind and paralyzed
11-year-old in whom he intended to transplant stem cells, cells from his lab
that sold us dangerous biomedical junk. Instead, we came in.
Pelley: Dr. Ecklund,
I'm Scott Pelley, with "60 Minutes."
Ecklund: Oh, great.
Pelley: How are you
today?
Ecklund: I am--uh-
surprised.
Pelley: We've been
working with the Sussers on a story, and I want you to know that we're being
recorded. And I wanted to ask you about the treatment that you propose for
Adam. What would that be?
Ecklund: The
treatment that he asked about was for stem cells. Human stem cells.
Pelley: And you think
they're applicable for cerebral palsy?
Ecklund: Yes. I have
seen them be effective in cases of cerebral palsy.
Peley: How does that
work, exactly?
Ecklund: Well, stem
cells contain-- excuse me, here. No one knows exactly. Okay? But stem-- stem
cells do contain and give off chemicals which cause other cells to repair
themselves.
Pelley: In the letter
that you sent the Sussers, you described possible effects for Adam. Which could
include improved ability to see, improved ability to speak, improved ability to
move arms and legs. You believe those things are possible?
Ecklund: I do.
Pelley: What is your
training in stem cells?
Ecklund: My training
in stem cells was I studied for about six years going over the literature. And
then I started producing stem-- stem cells, in my lab.
Pelley: You're
self-educated, self-taught?
Ecklund: Uh-huh
(affirm).
Pelley: Have you
published any research?
Ecklund: No.
Pelley: Frankly, Dr.
Ecklund, you have nothing to base your results on. There's no clinical trial,
there's no-- there's no blind study. There are no medical papers published.
Ecklund: That doesn't
make any difference.
Pelley: You know, you
say you-- it doesn't make any difference, that you haven't done these studies.
I would imagine--
Ecklund: The studies
have been done in other countries.
Pelley: I would
imagine it would make a big difference to the Sussers.
Ecklund: The studies
have been done in other countries. These are not published in the United
States, because they cannot be published in the United States.
Pelley: Where is this
seen in the medical literature, anywhere in the world? If you did the things
that you describe in this paper, you would win the Nobel Prize.
Ecklund: No, if I did
the things that are described in that paper, it would not be published, it
would be suppressed. And you wouldn't see-- you wouldn't hear about it.
Ecklund told us
breakthroughs with stem cells aren't published in scientific journals because
of a conspiracy of drug companies and governments that he had trouble defining.
That's when we told him we bought cells from his lab.
Pelley: When your
cells are delivered, they're functioning, living stem cells?
Ecklund: Yes.
Pelley: We purchased
some stem cells from Stem Tech Labs six months, or so, ago. And had them
delivered to Duke University, which did tests on the stem cells. And they
determined that the stem cells were dead.
Ecklund: Well, they
must not have handled them appropriately, then.
Pelley: You're
thinking that you handled them appropriately, but the stem cell laboratories at
Duke University did not?
Ecklund: That would
be my assumption, yeah.
Kurtzberg: I don't think
that there's any chance they were damaged in shipment.
We asked Dr.
Kurtzberg to listen to Ecklund's theories.
Ecklund: Yes. I have
seen them be effective in cases of cerebral palsy.
Kurtzberg: This is
pretty scary actually that he would be saying these things, that he would be
leading them on this way because what he's talking about is very dangerous.
Pelley: Is this a
con, Dr. Ecklund?
Ecklund: No, it's not
a con. I have taken the stem cells myself. Would I take the stem cells if I
thought that they were a con? No.
Pelley: Putting them
in an 11-year-old boy is entirely a different matter.
Ecklund: That's why I
took care to explain the remotest possible difficulties, which have never been
reported.
Pelley: Without any
medical studies that have been published in major journals, that have suggested
that stem cells have any efficacy in cerebral palsy--
Ecklund: You keep
going back to this point. That they're not published in major eth-- in major
medical journals. I'm telling you--
Pelley: It is the
standard of the world. I do keep going to that point.
Ecklund: I'm telling
you that they are not going to be published in this country. Because when
someone does try to do it, then they have "60 Minutes" come and visit
them. And I think that's enough for me, thank you.
We don't know where
Dan Ecklund went, but we do know the whereabouts of the two con men, who were
the subjects of our first stem cell story two years ago.
In that
investigation, we worked with patients, Steven Watters and Michael Martin, who
suffered with ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig's disease. They were promised
miracles from Frank Morales and Lawrence Stowe who offered a $125,000 stem cell
therapy.
[Steve Watters: Will
it keep me out of a wheelchair?
Lawrence Stowe: Oh,
yeah, absolutely.]
Our story launched a
federal investigation. And last January, Morales and Stowe were indicted. The
indictment alleges they made $1.5 million with stem cell fraud. If convicted,
they could face 20 years in prison.
The patients who
helped us, Steven Watters and Michael Martin, lost their lives to ALS last
year.
Anthony Atala, M.D.,
director of the Wake Forest Institute of Regenerative Medicine and editor of
Stem Cells Translational Medicine, commented on the situation. "As with
any treatment," he said, "it is imperative for patients to seek
medical advice only from licensed physicians at reputable medical centers.
Patients need to be aware of the safety and efficacy of any treatment
offered."
"This is even
more important when dealing with newer treatments, such as any type of stem
cell therapy."
Jan Nolta, PhD, is
editor of SCTM's sister journal, STEM CELLS. She also directs the University of
California Davis's Stem Cell Program. She noted, "Without regulations and
reputable centers, desperate patients could be infused with a simple saline
solution or worse: infected, dead, or dangerously mismatched cells that could
cause terrible infusion reactions and later side effects. The public is
cautioned to seek more information on these centers and their associated
clinicians than that which appears on their websites."
"The leaders of
reputable clinics and hospital centers should have trials ongoing that have
received FDA clearance, as can be found at the clincialtrials.gov
website," she added. "There should also be a history of scientific
and medical publications from the associated scientists and physicians related
to the proposed therapy in scholarly journals such as STEM CELLS and
others."
I was starting to
think that this was a bad idea. I researched more, and I came upon this
article:
Scottdale, AR--Stem
Cells Fraud Scheme in U.S. Leads to Arrests
Four people were
recently indicted on federal charges in the United States for selling
unapproved stem cell treatments and other biological products to seriously ill
patients. The patients were falsely told that the treatments were approved by
the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, according to the indictment.
Francisco Morales,
Larry Stowe, Jesus Alberto Ramon and Dr. Vincent Dammai are charged with
collecting in excess of $1.5 million from people suffering from Lou Gehrig's
disease, Parkinson's, muscular dystrophy and cancer over a period from 2007 to
2010. Ramon, a licensed midwife and owner of the Maternity Care Clinic in Del
Rio, Mexico, allegedly sold the umbilical cords of women giving birth at his
clinic to Global Laboratories LLC, in Scottsdale, Ariz., which forwarded them
to Dammai, an assistant professor at the University of South Carolina's medical
school. Dammai harvested the stem cells for Global using university facilities.
He did this without FDA or university knowledge or approval, the indictment
says.
It then alleges that
Morales falsely represented to the public that he was a physician licensed to
practice medicine in the United States and provided medical advice to
individuals regarding the benefits of stem cell treatments. Morales also
falsely represented that he operated a medical clinic in Brownsville, Texas,
according to the indictment, to convince the public that he specialized in
using stem cells to treat incurable diseases. He would then take patients
across the border into Mexico to perform the stem cell procedures, the
indictment says.
Stowe allegedly ran
the companies that marketed and sold the stem cells and other biological
products.
The four are facing
39 counts including conspiracy, mail fraud and illegally manufacturing,
distributing and selling stem cells and related procedures. Dammai, who has
worked at the University of South Carolina since 2001, has been placed on
administrative leave pending resolution of the matter.
And more.
Los Angeles--Six
residents of Los Angeles, California, are suing South Korean company RNL Bio
and associates in a Californian court for alleged fraud. They claim the company
convinced them to travel to clinics in South Korea, China or Mexico to donate
fat tissue and have stem cells from it re-administered to cure diseases and
even reverse ageing.
Stem cells hold great
medical promise, but only one treatment is licensed in the US and that is for a
rare blood disorder. Others are experimental and offering them commercially is
in a legal grey area, subject to investigation, and possible shut-down, by US regulatory
authorities. Some companies avoid this risk by touting stem-cell
"cures" performed outside the US. RNL Bio calls its fat-tissue stem
cells "safe technologies" for treating various disorders.
There have been
protests against these treatments for years, but this is the first civil
lawsuit for damages, says Paul Knoepfler of the University of California at
Davis. It "serves notice to the purveyors of unproven stem-cell
treatments" that they may face litigation if they market in the US, says
Bernard Siegel of the Genetics Policy Institute, a stem-cell watchdog in Palm
Beach, Florida.
And this:
San Diego--Cow stem
cell fraudsters sent to jail for almost killing human patients: some patients
still support them
Two women in San
Diego County are heading to jail after being convicted and sentenced for fraud
related to stem cell treatments.The women injected concoctions of bovine stem
cells from Germany and DMSO into patients. You can read the details of the
original arrest here on the FBI website. Kathleen Ann HelmsAccording to a
Modesto Bee article, Kathleen Ann Helms (aka Catherine Bright-Helms) pictured
at right (photo from News10.com) of Encinitas, CA will spend 18 months in jail
and have 18 months of supervised release.
The article says:
City News Service
says a judge told 57-year-old Kathleen Ann Helms that she endangered people’s
lives and nearly killed two.
Helms pretended to be
a doctor and treated patients as such. Helms’ nurse, Jacqueline Smith, who pleaded
guilty to practicing medicine without a license, will spend a year in jail.
Remarkably, despite
the fraud and dangers treatments, some patients still support Helms.
A News10.com piece
says:
“There are as many of
us who really believe she saved us and sent us on the right path to being able
to someday get rid of this bad disease,” said Fallbrook resident Franzie
Epperson. “I’m just very supportive of her. We feel like she saved our lives.”
I find it astounding
how some patients will support fraudulent stem cell practitioners who break the
law and take large sums of money from them. I just don’t get it.
The News10 piece goes
on to report:
Helms was charged in
connection with the treatment of four patients along with a fifth uncharged
victim.
According to an
affidavit filed in the case, Helms diagnosed a patient with the inflammatory
illness after looking at a sample of blood under a microscope, then prescribed
a treatment plan that included shots of bovine stem cells from Germany.
Helms directed the
patient to go to a Tijuana hospital to have a peripherally inserted central
line put into one of her arms so Helms could give treatments intravenously. The
patient agreed to pay $300 for the insertion of the line and $30,000 for the
treatment Helms recommended, according to the affidavit.
Another patient was
misdiagnosed by Helms as having Lyme Disease when he really had prostate
cancer, illustrating just reckless and dangers this situation was.
The criminal case
began after patients complained to the California State Medical Board.
OK. Enough already. I
had a bad taste in my mouth, metaphorically speaking.
And I'll present one
more thing about stem cells, but it's not about humans. Rats injected with stem
cells 30 minutes after a stroke had almost normal brain function restored
within 2 weeks. The research team from Bolivia said the method has potential in
human trials, but not yet. The team from La Paz University Hospital
"extracted stem cells from fat and bone marrow, then injected them into the
blood vessels of rats shortly after they had suffered an artificially-induced
stroke."
Translated, that
means stem cell therapies for humans are a long way off. It also means, I was
born too soon.
