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Autism Bad science Bioethics Clinical trials Medicine

Pay-to-play stem cell clinical trials: Abuse of the clinical trial process

Stem cell therapies show great promise, but as yet the vast majority of that promise has not been validated in rigorous clinical trials. Unfortunately, for-profit stem cell clinics are running clinical trials that require patients to pay to be part of them (“pay-to-play”). These trials are not rigorous. Even more unfortunately, it appears that some universities are also running “pay-to-play” clinical trials that bear an uncomfortable resemblance to those run by for-profit clinics.

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Autism Bad science Popular culture Quackery

William Shatner: New celebrity pitch man for dubious anti-aging stem cell treatments?

A week ago, William Shatner Tweeted that he had received an anti-aging stem cell therapy. Perusal of the website of the clinic where he got the cells reveals yet another for-profit dubious stem cell clinic. Is
William Shatner the new stem cell clinic pitchman?

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Bad science Medicine Quackery Skepticism/critical thinking

Paddison Program: Dietary quackery for rheumatoid arthritis

Clint Paddison is an Australian comedian with a science degree who developed rheumatoid arthritis at age 31. He now claims to have controlled it with a diet he developed to alter the gut microbiome. How plausible is his story, and does his “Paddison Program” work? Answer: Not very and almost certainly no.

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Friday Woo Medicine Pseudoscience Quackery Skepticism/critical thinking

Seqex: Ion Cyclotron Resonance quackery boogaloo

Meet Seqex. It’s like a Scientology E-meter, only so much more unscientifically complicated, complete with over 2 million waveforms! That must mean it’s better! Actually, Segex is based on decades old pseudoscience.

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Cancer Medicine Popular culture Religion

Roxli Doss: A deadly brain tumor shrinks to undetectable without quackery

Roxli Doss is an 11-year-old girl from Texas diagnosed with the deadly brain cancer DIPG. After radiation therapy, her deadly cancer is undetectable, no alternative cancer cures sought or used. What happened?