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Antivaccine nonsense Autism Medicine Quackery

Ivermectin goes from being the new hydroxychloroquine to being the new MMS

A recent VICE story described a Telegram channel devoted to promoting veterinary ivermectin to treat autism. It has echoes of autism quackery going back at least to the use of MMS (a kind of bleach) to “cure” autism by eliminating “parasites.”

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Antivaccine nonsense Bad science Cancer Medicine Quackery

Tess Lawrie: “You might not believe this, little fella, but it’ll cure your cancer too”

In a turn that should surprise exactly no one, the BIRD Group’s Tess Lawrie effortlessly pivots from promoting ivermectin as a cure for COVID-19 to promoting it as a cure for cancer. It’s another example of how single-issue quacks almost inevitably embrace more diverse quackery.

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Clinical trials Medicine Pseudoscience Quackery

Aromatase inhibitors and acupuncture in breast cancer

Four years ago, I wrote about an essentially negative study looking at whether acupuncture could alleviate joint pain caused by aromatase inhibitors, a common treatment for estrogen-sensitive breast cancer. The study’s back, and it doesn’t look any more positive.

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Antivaccine nonsense Medicine Politics Quackery

It’s still always about the grift—and the grifters

Early in the pandemic, America’s Frontline Doctors made a splash promoting hydroxychloroquine. They then turned to running an ivermectin prescription mill. Now they’re suing each other. It’s always about the grift.

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Antivaccine nonsense Medicine Pseudoscience Quackery

America’s Quack Dr. Oz, Dr. Joseph Ladapo, and the failure of medical academia

Earlier this week, Mother Jones published an article about Pennsylvania GOP Senate candidate Dr. Oz’s (a.k.a. America’s Quack) promotion of antivax quack Joe Mercola, who is now a leading source of COVID-19 disinformation. We warned you about this when it happened. Few listened.