In announcing that it has filed charges against five companies selling herbal remedies claimed to be cures for cancer, a spokesperson for the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) said that, as long as somebody has been willing to buy it, somebody else has been willing to sell snake oil to cure an untold list of ailments large and small, including cancer.  To alert consumers to the dangers of these and similar products, the FTC has teamed up with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and governmental authorities in Canada to launch a campaign developed to warn consumers against the dangers of bogus cures while emphasizing the need for traditional medical treatment whenever cancer is diagnosed.

After a series of warning letters went unheeded, the FTC has filed charges against these companies:

• Daniel Chapter One, Portsmouth, Rhode Island;
• Gemtronics, Inc., Franklin, North Carolina;
• Herbs for Cancer, Surprise, Arizona;
• Native Essence Herb Company, El Prado, New Mexico; and
• Omega Supply, San Diego, California.

Settlements, with restitution payments ranging from $9,000 to $250,000, were reached with an additional six companies making similar claims of their products.  The FTC says there was no reliable scientific evidence to back these companies’ claims that their products prevent, treat, or cure cancer and to hint, on packaging labels, that these products do so is either false or misleading.

Herbal mixtures, including essiac teas, laetrile, a corrosive ointment known as black salve, and extracts from mushrooms are just some of the products in question.  An attorney representing one of the companies charged claims the government is using censorship against his client.  The company he represents says some of the herbs used by the company have been used for centuries to treat cancer and other medical conditions as well.  By citing the herbs’ historic use, he says the company is making a statement of truth even though most consumers understand that herbal remedies used by Native Americans or the ancient Chinese don’t necessarily work.

A spokesperson for the FDA has voiced concerns that people may be tempted to use these bogus cancer-curing remedies in lieu of proven, medically sound, traditional treatments.  Another concern is that these herbal remedies may produce dangerous interactions with prescription drugs.

In addition to stopping the statements deemed false and misleading by the FTC, the agency would like to ban the mention of studies, conducted outside US jurisdiction, that imply a cure as part of a product’s advertising literature.