Clinics that sell stem cell and exosome treatments have turned their attention to long COVID patients, researchers found.
Among 38 businesses selling such treatments for COVID-19, the majority (36) marketed those therapies for long COVID, stated Leigh Turner, PhD, of the University of California Irvine, and colleagues in Stem Cell Reports.
"We didn't think the pattern was going to emerge as strongly as it did," Turner told MedPage Today.
Turner and his team have tracked stem cell clinics for years, building a database of clinics that operate in this arena. When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, they logged how these businesses were taking advantage of patients' fears by selling purported treatments for COVID.
They revisited some of those businesses last fall to see whether anything had changed as the pandemic shifted -- and lo and behold, it had.
"The pandemic has changed over time, and now there's a whole population of individuals who have had COVID-19, and they haven't completely recovered," Turner said. "They have lingering symptoms that are sometimes quite serious, sometimes life-altering" -- and that can make people desperate to find treatments, he added.
"We have a population of patients who are looking for symptomatic relief," Turner continued. "While we have long COVID clinics, people may not have an easy time getting access to them. There are long waits. And the interventions themselves may be rather limited in their effects."
That has left the door wide open for stem cell marketers to try to reach these people, Turner said.
For their study, the researchers used three strategies to find stem cell and exosome clinics marketing to COVID patients online. They looked at an earlier database of 1,480 stem cell or exosome businesses in the U.S., searched Google for additional companies both in the U.S. and abroad, and looked at businesses mentioned in Turner's 2021 Cell Stem Cell paper on companies selling stem cell treatments for COVID.
They revisited and re-analyzed all company websites in September 2022, with a final fact-check in October 2022.
Overall, they found 38 businesses that were advertising stem cell and exosome treatments for COVID, which were connected to 60 clinics.
Most of them were specifically marketing these therapies to patients with long COVID, while six businesses marketed their therapies as "immune boosters," five claimed to treat acute COVID infection, and two claimed their products could prevent COVID.
The vast majority of these businesses were based in the U.S. (40%) and Mexico (37%), while four were in Ukraine, two were in the Cayman Islands, and other countries appeared to have one business each: Guatemala, Malaysia, Panama, Philippines, Poland, Spain, Thailand, and the United Arab Emirates.
Turner and colleagues found that these products weren't cheap. Among the nine businesses that provided information on how much they charged, the least expensive product was $2,950, while the most expensive product cost $25,000. The average listed cost was $11,322, they found.
Turner said there are "plenty of things that can go wrong" when it comes to purported stem cell treatments for long COVID. These treatments are investigational and don't have scientific evidence behind them proving their success for the condition, he said.
A patient's "situation can be made dramatically worse if they're given an infusion of a product that hasn't been carefully studied or tested," Turner told MedPage Today. "There's a real possibility for serious injury in that situation, whether it's pulmonary embolism, an infection, or something else."
Indeed, many examples of stem cell treatments causing infections and other problems have been reported. The hit podcast "Bad Batch" examined an instance in which 12 people were hospitalized after getting contaminated stem cell injections. Nebraska health officials reported an outbreak of severe infections after exosome therapies. And researchers reported on three patients who had severe vision loss after intravitreal injections of autologous adipose tissue-derived stem cells.
There's also "an obvious possibility for financial scams," Turner said. "At an average price of $11,000, it's not like going to the store and buying some dietary supplements."
Turner said regulators should get tougher on companies peddling stem cell and exosome treatments for long COVID.
"I think it's a modest number," he said, referring to the 36 businesses his team discovered. "This seems like activity that probably deserves to be prioritized and seems like the kind of challenge the FDA and FTC [Federal Trade Commission] could actually do something about in a comprehensive way."
The FDA and FTC have pursued stem cell companies in the past, with both regulators issuing warning letters to such companies. One healthcare professional was even sentenced to jail time for selling a fake stem cell therapy.
Still, many businesses have avoided attracting regulators' attention, Turner said: "There's a lot the FDA has done, but there's still a massive marketplace."
The study was limited because it likely identified only some companies operating in this space. Also, the researchers searched only in English, and searches in other languages may reveal additional companies. In addition, businesses may have used other forms of advertising -- including billboards, newspaper or magazine ads, and radio or TV commercials -- to reach their potential customers.
"It is understandable that individuals seeking relief from shortness of breath, fatigue, 'brain fog,' heart palpitations, loss of smell, and other symptoms search for interventions that might help them," Turner and colleagues wrote. "Acknowledging the suffering and agency of such persons, members of this patient population are vulnerable to having their suffering, desperation, and hope exploited by entities making appealing therapeutic claims without having the scientific evidence needed to make such representations."
Kristina Fiore leads MedPages enterprise & investigative reporting team. Shes been a medical journalist for more than a decade and her work has been recognized by Barlett & Steele, AHCJ, SABEW, and others. Send story tips to k.fiore@medpagetoday.com. Follow
Disclosures
The project is supported by the Pew Charitable Trusts.
Turner disclosed serving as an expert witness in cases regarding unapproved stem cell treatments, as well as relationships with the International Society for Stem Cell Research and the International Society for Cell and Gene Therapy.
Primary Source
Stem Cell Reports
Source Reference: Turner L, et al "Businesses marketing purported stem cell treatments and exosome therapies for COVID-19: An analysis of direct-to-consumer online advertising claims" Stem Cell Rep 2023; DOI: 10.1016/j.stemcr.2023.09.015.
See the original post here:
Companies Market Stem Cell Treatments to Long COVID Patients - Medpage Today
- Politics of Stem Cell Research - May 7th, 2011 [May 7th, 2011]
- Obama Ends Funding Ban for Stem Cell Research - May 8th, 2011 [May 8th, 2011]
- Stem Cell Research: A Father's Fight - May 10th, 2011 [May 10th, 2011]
- Human Embryonic stem cell research - May 11th, 2011 [May 11th, 2011]
- Frost Over The World - Stem Cell Research and Turkey -26 Oct - May 20th, 2011 [May 20th, 2011]
- McCain Favors Embryonic Stem Cell Research - May 20th, 2011 [May 20th, 2011]
- US divided over stem cell research reversal - 09 Mar 09 - May 21st, 2011 [May 21st, 2011]
- The Politics and Promise of Stem Cell Research - May 22nd, 2011 [May 22nd, 2011]
- Inside Story - Obama to end stem cell research ban - March 9 - Part1 - May 30th, 2011 [May 30th, 2011]
- Cardiovascular Therapies: Spotlight on Stem Cell Research - Douglas Boyd - June 3rd, 2011 [June 3rd, 2011]
- The Human Embryo and Embryonic Stem Cell Biology: Spotlight on Stem Cell Research - June 3rd, 2011 [June 3rd, 2011]
- US appeals court lifts stem cell research ban - June 7th, 2011 [June 7th, 2011]
- Trailer for Mapping Stem Cell Research: Terra Incognita - June 9th, 2011 [June 9th, 2011]
- Politics: President Obama on Stem Cell Research - June 10th, 2011 [June 10th, 2011]
- Stem Cell Research Documentary - June 11th, 2011 [June 11th, 2011]
- TEDxSingapore - Susan Lim - Hype and hope of stem cell research - June 13th, 2011 [June 13th, 2011]
- Lou Gehrig's Disease (ALS): Spotlight on Stem Cell Research - Wrapup - June 14th, 2011 [June 14th, 2011]
- The Next Frontier in Stem Cell Research - June 17th, 2011 [June 17th, 2011]
- Robert Klein: Stem Cell Research - June 22nd, 2011 [June 22nd, 2011]
- Fibrocell Stem-Cell Wrinkle Smoother Wins FDA Clearance - June 23rd, 2011 [June 23rd, 2011]
- The Politics of Stem Cell Research - June 23rd, 2011 [June 23rd, 2011]
- A Dose of Reality on Alternative Stem Cell Treatments: What you don't know can hurt you - June 28th, 2011 [June 28th, 2011]
- Governor Tim Pawlenty Discusses Stem Cell Research - June 30th, 2011 [June 30th, 2011]
- The EU and stem cell research - July 5th, 2011 [July 5th, 2011]
- Parkinson's Disease: Spotlight on Stem Cell Research - Jeff Bronstein - July 6th, 2011 [July 6th, 2011]
- Cardiovascular Therapies: Spotlight on Stem Cell Research - Yung-Wei Chi - July 7th, 2011 [July 7th, 2011]
- Spotlight on Cancer Stem Cell Research - July 11th, 2011 [July 11th, 2011]
- A Stem Cell Story - July 12th, 2011 [July 12th, 2011]
- Bishop Blair bars support for Komen breast cancer group - July 13th, 2011 [July 13th, 2011]
- Stem Cell Research In Toronto - July 14th, 2011 [July 14th, 2011]
- Arthritis: Spotlight on Stem Cell Research - Introduction - July 14th, 2011 [July 14th, 2011]
- Huntington's Disease: Spotlight on Stem Cell Research 2007 - Han Keirstead - July 15th, 2011 [July 15th, 2011]
- TMconfUK2011-08 - Stem Cell Research in the UK - Prof Charles Ffrench-Constant - July 16th, 2011 [July 16th, 2011]
- UCSF opens stem cell research building - July 16th, 2011 [July 16th, 2011]
- HIV/AIDS: Spotlight on Stem Cell Research - John Zaia - July 17th, 2011 [July 17th, 2011]
- Deafness: Spotlight on Stem Cell Research - Ebenezer Yamoah - July 22nd, 2011 [July 22nd, 2011]
- Spotlight on Basic Stem Cell Research - Irv Weissman - July 25th, 2011 [July 25th, 2011]
- Diabetes: Spotlight on Stem Cell Research - Peter Butler - July 27th, 2011 [July 27th, 2011]
- Parkinson's Disease: Spotlight on Stem Cell Research - Arnold Kriegstein - July 27th, 2011 [July 27th, 2011]
- HIV/AIDS: Spotlight on Stem Cell Research - Loren Leeds - July 27th, 2011 [July 27th, 2011]
- Alzheimer's Disease: Spotlight on Stem Cell Research - Leeza Gibbons - August 2nd, 2011 [August 2nd, 2011]
- Geron's Embryonic Stem Cell Clinical Trial for Spinal Cord Injury - August 3rd, 2011 [August 3rd, 2011]
- The Skin Gun stem cell research - August 10th, 2011 [August 10th, 2011]
- Deafness: Spotlight on Stem Cell Research - Karen Doyle - August 10th, 2011 [August 10th, 2011]
- Stem Cell Research: Huntington's Disease - August 14th, 2011 [August 14th, 2011]
- Adult and Non-Embryonic Stem Cell Research Conference at Notre Dame - August 20th, 2011 [August 20th, 2011]
- Stemcell Research and Aging - Panel 1 - August 22nd, 2011 [August 22nd, 2011]
- Texans for Stem Cell Research Learn for Life: KXAN Coverage Aired August 16th, 2011 - August 24th, 2011 [August 24th, 2011]
- Stem Cell Research: Macular Degeneration - September 18th, 2011 [September 18th, 2011]
- Brilliant Minds - Stem Cell Research | Tomorrow Today - September 25th, 2011 [September 25th, 2011]
- Ethics of Stem Cell Research (1) - September 29th, 2011 [September 29th, 2011]
- Legal and Public Policy Dimensions of Stem Cell Research - September 29th, 2011 [September 29th, 2011]
- Stem cell symposium - October 2nd, 2011 [October 2nd, 2011]
- StemCONN 2011, The Latest in Stem Cell Research - October 6th, 2011 [October 6th, 2011]
- Arthritis: Spotlight on Stem Cell Research - Mark Genovese - October 7th, 2011 [October 7th, 2011]
- Judy Roberson: Patient advocates drive stem cell scientists - October 8th, 2011 [October 8th, 2011]
- Sam Harris - Stem Cells and Morality - October 8th, 2011 [October 8th, 2011]
- Stem Cell Research, Ethics and Religion - October 9th, 2011 [October 9th, 2011]
- Stem Cells: Fulfilling the Promise - 2011 CIRM Grantee Meeting - October 10th, 2011 [October 10th, 2011]
- The Skin Gun (Stem Cell research to replace burnt off skin. Done in 3 days!) - October 13th, 2011 [October 13th, 2011]
- Alzheimer's Stem Cell Research Patient Advocate Spotlight: The Faces of Neurodegenerative Disease - Video - October 18th, 2011 [October 18th, 2011]
- Life in the Balance: Perspectives on Stem Cell Research - Video - October 18th, 2011 [October 18th, 2011]
- Stem Cell Research Funding Halt - Video - October 19th, 2011 [October 19th, 2011]
- Vatican lending hand in adult stem cell research - Video - October 20th, 2011 [October 20th, 2011]
- First Spinal-Cord Surgery With Stem Cells - Video - October 21st, 2011 [October 21st, 2011]
- Michael J. Fox Embryonic Stem Cell Research - Video - October 22nd, 2011 [October 22nd, 2011]
- stem cell research - Video - October 22nd, 2011 [October 22nd, 2011]
- Gayle Atteberry - Cloning - November 5th, 2011 [November 5th, 2011]
- It Takes Nerve: UC Irvine - Sue - November 6th, 2011 [November 6th, 2011]
- Embryonic Stem Cell Research - Video - November 9th, 2011 [November 9th, 2011]
- Adult Stem Cell Research Far Ahead of Embryonic - Video - November 10th, 2011 [November 10th, 2011]
- Is stem cell research a growing concern .flv - Video - November 10th, 2011 [November 10th, 2011]
- Forbes Discusses Stem Cell Research - Video - November 14th, 2011 [November 14th, 2011]
- Stem Cell Research Presentation - Video - November 16th, 2011 [November 16th, 2011]
- Benedict XVI: No embryonic stem cell research - Video - November 28th, 2011 [November 28th, 2011]
- Batten Disease: Spotlight on Stem Cell Research - A Father's Story - Video - November 30th, 2011 [November 30th, 2011]
- CIS 111 Digital Media Project - Stem Cell Research - Video - December 13th, 2011 [December 13th, 2011]
- Regenerative Medicine and Applications of Stem Cell Research - Video - December 20th, 2011 [December 20th, 2011]
- Stem Cell Research Today: Larry Goldstein - CIRM Science Writer's Seminar - Video - December 22nd, 2011 [December 22nd, 2011]
- CIRM Bridges Award: Building California's Stem Cell Research Workforce - Video - December 22nd, 2011 [December 22nd, 2011]