For those who missed it, 60 Minutes recently aired an investigation into fake stem cell therapies and the “doctors” that offer them. It was a terribly sad story of snake oil in the 21^st century. The story focused on the family of a young boy suffering from cerebral palsey, quadriplegia, and blindness. This family, the Sussers, began searching online for answers when their son’s doctors had none. As any of us could do, they stumbled upon the theory of stem cells online and even took their son to a clinic in Mexico for treatment with no clue whether or not it would work. When 60 Minutes got involved, the story of a “disgraced doctor” as they called him was put into view. Some of the claims he made, and the basis on which he made them are shocking to say the least.

The Sussers cooperated with the investigation and began looking into a stem cell lab they found online based in Ecuador (stem cell procedures are still illegal in the US) called StemTech Labs. The doctor who ran the lab, Dan Ecklund sent a letter to the Sussers after they had contacted his labs in which he said he believed their son would receive improvements to his consciousness, vision, speech, and even the ability to stand or walk. Later, during an interview Ecklund revealed that his “expertise” in stem cell research and treatment was completely self taught, and he has never published a single research paper or study. In fact, his medical license was revoked in 2005! Some of the reasons for losing his license include that he prescribed controlled substances to a patient he know was a drug addict, prescribed controlled substances to a patient that he was having sex with, and that he had sexual experiences with young female children. Not exactly the person you’d want injecting illegal stem cells into your 11 year old son to the tune of $20,000 is it?

To further prove the con that was taking place here, the investigation enlisted the help of Dr. Joanne Kurtzberg, who is a physician and also the chief scientific officer of Duke University’s stem cell research program. She believes in the future of stem cells, which theoretically can replicate other cells in the body, however she refutes any of Ecklund’s claims that he’s seen stem cell procedures cure multiple sclerosis and Lou Gehrig’s disease. They even went as far as to purchase stem cells from Ecklunds Ecuadorian research facility for $5,000 and had them transported in the safest of medical transport methods. Upon arrival, the cells were either dead or dying – and they were even proven to be frozen properly the entire time via computer chip.

It’s a shame that incurable diseases like these exist, but it’s completely disgusting that people like Dan Ecklund exist to prey upon the weak. You can view the entire transcript and video at the link below, courtesy of CBS.

Sources:

CBS/60 Minutes