By Michael Hiltzik – Business Columnist Los Angeles Times
For years, California cosmetic surgeon Mark Berman was a leader of that corner of the healthcare world pushing unproven and unapproved stem cell treatments for a host of medical conditions.
Berman aired his claims for what he called “magic cells” in a book, video appearances and through a network of affiliated clinics around the country. Those claims caught the attention of the Food and Drug Administration, which has been trying to stamp out clinics claiming that stem cell injections can treat diseases and conditions such as Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, autism and even— most recently — COVID-19.
I cannot condone exploitation of desperate people who are led to believe that they will be cured or even helped by a clinic or a pill or any purported therapy that is not based in science.
— Jeanne Loring, Scripps Research Institute
A 2018 lawsuit the FDA filed against Berman, his professional partner Elliot Lander and their two stem cell businesses is awaiting a verdict from U.S. District Judge Jesus Bernal in Riverside. Whichever way it goes, Bernal’s ruling would set the stage for the next phase of the FDA’s campaign against stem cell clinics….