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Consumer Health Digest #15-14
April 5, 2015

Consumer Health Digest is a free weekly e-mail newsletter edited by Stephen Barrett, M.D., with help from William M. London, Ed.D. It summarizes scientific reports; legislative developments; enforcement actions; news reports; Web site evaluations; recommended and nonrecommended books; and other information relevant to consumer protection and consumer decision-making. If you enjoy this newsletter, please recommend it to your friends.

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Major stem cell marketer loses medical license

The Medical Board of California has revoked the license of William C. Rader, M.D
http://www.casewatch.org/board/med/rader/revocation.pdf
,a psychiatrist who had been supplying fetal stem cell therapy through foreign clinics since the late 1990s. Documents from the medical board proceedings state:

Rader had formed and operated three companies that provided stem-cell therapy through clinics outside of the United States: Dulcinea Institute, Medra, Inc., and Stem Cell of America, Inc.
His first clinic, located in Nassau, Bahamas, was moved to the Dominican Republic after Bahamas officials requested he perform double-blind studies. In 2007, after changing locations twice in the Dominican Republic, he moved his operation to Tijuana, Mexico.
The cost of his treatment—payable in advance—was $25,000 initially but was raised to $30,000.
Rader's 2010 book, Blocked in the U.S.A., contains many promotional statements that Rader admitted were false. For example, although the book stated that 96% of 1,500 patients he had treated had a positive outcome, he admitted that the figure was only a "general statement" and not the result of a statistical analysis.
The medical board assessment of Rader was quite severe:

[Rader's] dishonest conduct can only be described as self-serving, showing poor character, a lack of integrity, and an unwillingness to follow the law. The Board has reviewed the disciplinary guidelines, and can find no term or condition that could aid Respondent's rehabilitation and still provide protection to the public. Under these circumstances, protection of the public trumps rehabilitation efforts and the Board finds that Respondent's physician and surgeon certificate must be revoked.

Stem cell therapy is a promising area for research. Stem cells have the ability to give rise to many specialized cells in an organism. Certain types of stem cells are already used to restore blood-forming and immune system function after high-dose chemotherapy for some types of cancer, and several other restorative uses have been demonstrated. If scientists can learn how to control stem cell conversion into new, functionally mature cells, doctors might be able to cure many diseases for which therapy is currently inadequate. However, the claims made by commercial promoters go way beyond what is now likely and should be regarded with extreme skepticism.
[Barrett S. The shady side of embryonic stem cell therapy
http://www.quackwatch.org/06ResearchProjects/stemcell.html
Quackwatch, April 5, 2015]

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Free online vaccine course coming

The Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania is offering a free 6-week online course on vaccines
https://www.coursera.org/course/vaccines
that is scheduled to begin on April 13. The course will be taught through Coursera by Paul Offit, M.D., Director of the Vaccine Education Center at The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia. The course will discuss vaccine history, science, benefits, risks, and "controversies" plus updates on new vaccines and recent outbreaks of previously controlled diseases. Each week's content will include video lectures plus quizzes and assessment questions.

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“Free footwear" mill broken up

Four medical doctors, one osteopathic physician, and four podiatrists were among 23 defendants named in a 199-count indictment which alleges that they participated in a scheme that lured people to corrupt medical clinics for unnecessary services. The indictment <http://www.casewatch.org/crim/sneaker/indictment.pdf> states:

Recruiters for the scheme approached people outside of homeless shelters and welfare offices, and offered them free sneakers if they could produce a Medicaid card and agreed to have their feet examined at a clinic.

The schemers collected more than $6.9 million from Medicaid and Medicare programs.

The Brooklyn District Attorney
http://brooklynda.org/2015/03/31/twenty-three-defendants-including-nine-doctors-charged-with-enterprise-corruption-in-massive-7-million-medicaid-fraud/
began investigating in 2012 after a woman reported being taken to one of the clinics where she met a podiatrist and was given a knee brace and sneakers. When she said she did not need the knee brace, she was told she had to take it to get the sneakers.

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Continuing request for help from Dr. Barrett

In June 2010, Doctor's Data, Inc. sued Dr. Barrett because it didn't like what he wrote about them on Quackwatch and in this newsletter. The events leading up to the suit are described at
http://www.quackwatch.org/14Legal/dd_suit.html
In November, 2011, about half of the allegations were dismissed, but discovery was permitted for more than a year. The rest of the suit is ripe for dismissal (the court is now considering another motion to dismiss), but the proceedings have cost hundreds of thousands of dollars. Even small donations, if sent by enough subscribers to this newsletter, will be very helpful. Contributions to reduce the cost can be made by mail or through
http://www.quackwatch.org/00AboutQuackwatch/donations.html
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Stephen Barrett, M.D.
Consumer Advocate
Chatham Crossing, Suite 107/208
11312 U.S. 15 501 North
Chapel Hill, NC 27517

Telephone: (919) 533-6009

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http://www.fibrowatch.org (guide to the fibromyalgia marketplace)
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Editor, Consumer Health Digest
http://www.quackwatch.org/00AboutQuackwatch/chd.html

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