Stem cell therapy is being touted as the latest cure-all by some of the more unprincipled members of the medical profession. The procedure involves removing cells from a patient's body, manipulating them, and then re-injecting them into the patient, supposedly to promote regeneration and healing. The scientific consensus is that the treatments are unproven and not ready for public consumption, and that in some cases they may even be dangerous.
Nevertheless, there are now hundreds of stem cell clinics across North America, despite the lack of scientific evidence of their efficacy, other than in a few very specific areas like bone marrow stem cells to treat some forms of blood cancer. This has not stopped stem cell clinics marketing regenerative treatments for any number of conditions, from multiple sclerosis to congestive heart failure to autism to spinal cord injuries, from pain relief to anti-aging treatments to orthopedic injuries.
Not only is there no evidence of the efficacy of stem cell treatments in these areas, there is a distinct risk of actual injury from them, and there have been numerous reports of serious injuries - including blindness, infections and tumour growth - as a result of ill-advised stem cell therapies. Gullible patients are wasting large amounts of money on treatments that may be no more effective than a placebo, and in some cases may even cause injuries. The media, always keen to be in on the next big thing, is complicit in boosting the spurious claims of stem cell therapists, and of course the even less reliable social media is even more to blame (just look at the steady stream of patient testimonials and unproven anecdotal claims on YouTube).
But doesn't the health system have built-in controls over this kind of thing, you say? Well, yes and no. The Food and Drug Administration in the USA has belatedly started to clamp down on the unproven claims of stem cell clinics, and Health Canada has also issued warnings against them too. There are various class action lawsuits going on in the USA against some prominent clinics. But reversing the hype will not be easy, after years of pop-culture enthusiasm, and much more needs to be done.
And then there are cases like the Sudbury doctor (yes, let's name names: Dr. Scott Barr at the Ontario Stem Cell Treatment Centre) who says he plans to defy a Health Canada injunction and continue giving stem cell injections to desperate people for all manner of ailments, despite the complete lack of high-quality scientific evidence. Dr. Barr claims they are effective against ALS, MS, congestive heart failure, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, Crohn's disease, and many other conditions, and he claims it is "the right of patients to have these procedures".
Health Canada has recently served injunctions on dozens of clinics performing stem cell treatments, as well as the equally dodgy practice of platelet-rich plasma injections. It also issued a policy statement stating that cells extracted from patients qualify as drugs, and so must submit to rigorous clinical trials and federal approval like any other drug. This seems pretty clear to me, but Dr. Barr seems intent on his lonely crusade, and the case will presumably end up in the courts.
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