The current issue of Kennedy Institute of Ethics Journal contains the first installment in a two part series on the ethics of stem cell tourism, by long time stem cell watcher Cynthia Cohen and Peter Cohen. The Cohens pull together a large body of news reports and internet posts on Russian and Indian private clinics… Continue reading Information: Stem Cell Tourism Redux (part 1)
Tag: medical tourism
Expectation is a Vascular Condition: Thoughts on Media Coverage of "Liberation Procedures" for Multiple Sclerosis
Disclaimer to all readers: I am not expert in multiple sclerosis. I am not intimately familiar with recent research findings on a novel surgical treatment (“liberation procedure”) for multiple sclerosis that have received wide coverage in the Canadian media. Now here are my “claimers:” recent media accounts of this novel approach border on the irresponsible,… Continue reading Expectation is a Vascular Condition: Thoughts on Media Coverage of "Liberation Procedures" for Multiple Sclerosis
Quack You! Medical Tourism and Stem Cells
In the September 2009 issue of Nature Biotechnology, Jane Qiu reports on a thriving trade in nonvalidated stem cell interventions for incurable illnesses (“Trading on Hope”). The article provides numerous examples of overseas clinics that cater primarily to North American and European clientele in offering pricey, unproven stem cell transplants for incurable conditions like spinal… Continue reading Quack You! Medical Tourism and Stem Cells
A Thick Frosting of Science…
On September 2, the Washington Post ran a story (“Injections of Hope: Doctors Promote Offshore Stem Cell Shots, but Some Patients Cry Foul”) on an emerging global economy of stem cell medical tourism. It described how patients with conditions ranging from ALS to spinal cord injury travel to offshore clinics to receive unvalidated cell “therapies”–embryonic… Continue reading A Thick Frosting of Science…
Sell Therapy, European Style
Two side-by-side news reports in the August 21 issue of Nature spell more trouble for cell therapy in Europe. The first story follows on previous reports about Austrian urologist Hannes Strasser (see postings on Jul 23 and May 27, 2008). According to an Austrian government report, Strasser “failed to get appropriate approval for the trial… Continue reading Sell Therapy, European Style
Stemming Medical Tourism (part 1)
The July 17 issue of Nature reports that a patient participating in a Vienna-based cell transfer study for urinary incontinence won a lawsuit against the University Hospital in Innsbruck for not being “told… the procedure was experimental.” The case was described in an earlier post in my blog (May 27, 2008: Bladder Trouble at the… Continue reading Stemming Medical Tourism (part 1)