Unproven medical devices and cancer therapy: big claims but no evidence

The scientific method is an affront to the advocates of the irrational, magical or pseudo-scientific belief systems that characterise " alternative " or " complementary " therapies such as homeopathy, craniosacral therapy and ear candling, to name but a few of the less credible varieties. Practitioners of these so-called therapies are unable to provide any verifiable explanations as to how these might work but they nevertheless claim that they can restore or improve health with their natural and gentle healing methods. Some practitioners claim that they can cure or control cancer and they are often sought out by desperate patients or their families. Unfortunately, no consistent bodies of high-quality evidence exist to show that their therapies or methods work as claimed or are better than the placebo effect. In fact, the claimed benefits of alternative medicines are most often described in glowing testimonials and advertisements rather than in scientific papers. Despite the fact that many alternative or complementary therapies are claimed to embody ancient wisdom, there is a surprising lack of well-conducted research, carried out to see if these therapies actually work. When rigorous testing is done, the benefits of alternative therapies are swiftly reduced to the placebo effect. If a treatment has a sound scientific basis and is proven to work reproducibly, then it is not alternative medicine – it is just medicine. Many herbal medicines are effective because they contain pharmacologically active substances derived from plants. For example, St John's Wort has been shown to be helpful for some patients with depression. Unlike modern pharmaceuticals, herbal medicines vary in their strength from batch to batch because they may contain unpredictable amounts of the active substance that produces the therapeutic effect. Herbal medicines may also contain other substances that are toxic or antagonistic to the effects of the therapeutic components of the plant. Many modern medicines were first isolated from plants used in herbal medicine, but are now produced by the pharmaceutical industry in pure form, in metered doses and uncontaminated by other molecules. However, in societies where modern medicine is unavailable or available only to the rich, a consultation with a herbalist or other non-medical practitioner may be the only source of healthcare. It is easy to understand why alternative and complementary therapies flourish when no other help can be found. However, such therapies are also popular in prosperous countries with relatively well-educated populations. When conventional cancer treatments …