Category: Complementary and alternative medicine

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Complementary and alternative medicine Medicine Naturopathy Politics Popular culture Pseudoscience Quackery Skepticism/critical thinking

The Supreme Court of Canada grants a new trial to the parents who let Ezekiel Stephan die

Crown appeals Justice Terry Clackson's decision
Ezekiel Stephan: A victim of his parents' antivaccine and pro-quackery ideology.

David and Collet Stephan were convicted in 2016 for failure to provide the necessities of life for their son Ezekiel Stephan, who died of bacterial meningitis after his parents treated him with natural remedies, supplements, and naturopathy. Unfortunately, as a result of their appeal, the Canadian Supreme Court has granted them a new trial. Predictably, they are claiming vindication. The verdict is nothing of the sort. The Stephans got off on a technicality, but this ruling will serve as propaganda for quacks for years to come.

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Complementary and alternative medicine Computers and social media Medicine Popular culture Pseudoscience Quackery Science

Crowdfunding for unproven stem cell treatments: Taking advantage of the generosity of strangers to pay for quackery

Online crowdfunding for quackery
Crowdfunding for quackery

With the rise of quack stem cell clinics, there has been a rise of crowdfunding campaigns to assist patients in paying for expensive stem cell treatments of unproven efficacy. Unfortunately, as a recent study shows, these crowdfunding campaigns nearly always oversell efficacy and ignore potential risks of the treatments, while making powerful emotional appeals.

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Complementary and alternative medicine Medicine Politics Pseudoscience Quackery

The case of Tan Qindong shows that in China traditional Chinese medicine is big pharma

Hongmao Liquor criticized by Tan Qindong
Hongmao Liquor criticized by Tan Qindong

Proponents of integrating quackery like most traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) into real medicine portray themselves as underdogs being persecuted by big pharma and the FDA. In China, however, the case of Tan Qindong shows that in China TCM is big pharma.

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Complementary and alternative medicine Homeopathy Integrative medicine Medicine Pseudoscience Quackery

Orac basks in the adoration of Gary Null

Gary Null
Gary Null

Orac loves to bask in the adulation of his “fans.” This time around, one of the old men of quackery, Gary Null, has decided that he really, really doesn’t like science-based medicine. That includes Steve Novella, Susan Gerbic, and…Orac.

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Cancer Complementary and alternative medicine Medicine Pseudoscience Quackery

The dubious cancer “virotherapy” Rigvir returns with an equally dubious case report

Rigvir virotherapy
This is how Rigvir kills cancer cells, according to its proponents. Unfortunately, the evidence to support this model is close to nonexistent in the peer-reviewed biomedical literature. Evidence that it actually works in humans is even more scarce, although the International Virotherapy Center claims it has it. Oddly enough, it hasn't published it and admits its evidence doesn't live up to current expected standards. Yet it sells Rigvir anyway.

Rigvir is a “virotherapy” from Latvia promoted by the International Virotherapy Center and, increasingly, by alternative cancer clinics. There is no convincing scientific evidence for its efficacy. That didn’t stop its advocates from presenting a case report. Not surprisingly, the case report isn’t convincing either.