Turner – Page 2 – UC Irvine Wen Public Health

WIRED, May 1, 2023

Inside the Secretive Life-Extension Clinic

"The details that have come out have not been reassuring in terms of the credentials and qualifications of clinicians involved, the clinical facilities that people go to, or the protocols that are in place." ( Leigh Turner)

WebMD, April 28, 2023

‘Snake Oil’ Fake Cures for Long COVID Leave Patients at Risk

"The search for cell-based COVID-19 treatments has also been fraught with hyperbolic claims; flouting of crucial regulatory, scientific, and ethical norms; and distorted communication of research findings." (Leigh Turner)

BioEdge, April 25, 2023

China’s revised regulation on human genome editing: the good news and the bad news

"Well-defined, carefully crafted regulatory exceptions are often abused and exploited by commercial actors that engage in activities falling outside such narrow exceptions. For financial gain, such entities try to evade regulators and determine what they are able to get away with without suffering significant consequences." (Leigh Turner)

ABC News, April 25, 2023

Be wary of unproven eye drop treatment with amniotic fluid, FDA says

"The problem with such commercial activity is that such companies haven't tested their products in controlled clinical trials and the safety and efficacy of such amniotic fluid products in the treatment of individuals with dry eye disease and other diseases have not yet been established." (Leigh Turner)

MedPage Today, April 24, 2023

Be Wary of Amniotic Fluid Eye Drops, FDA Says

"The drops likely contain hundreds of different fetal proteins and other substances, which don't necessary just do helpful things, so there are definite risks." (Leigh Turner)

Vice, April 17, 2023

Duke Has Quietly Discontinued a Costly, Unproven Autism Treatment

"Are parents who are convinced this is a treatment they want to get for their children going to go to Panama or other jurisdictions? That’s a possibility. But there is also the possibility, It may also reduce the numbers. There may be individuals who aren’t willing to get on a plane to go to Panama. There could be a diminution." (Leigh Turner)

Leaps.org, February 27, 2023

Breakthrough therapies are breaking patients’ banks. Key changes could improve access, experts say.

"[...] seeking to maximize profits by charging as much as the market will bear for cell and gene therapy products and other medical interventions, and payers trying to control costs while also attempting to provide access to medical products with promising safety and efficacy profiles." (Leigh Turner)

MIT Technology Review, February 13, 2023

This biohacking company is using a crypto city to test controversial gene therapies

"There can be clinics and hospitals that no one's really paying much attention to, in terms of what kinds of marketing claims they're making, or what clinical practices they're engaged in." (Leigh Turner)

Los Angeles Times, August 31, 2022

Column: In blow to public health, judge tosses FDA lawsuit targeting a clinic offering unproven stem cell treatments

"Bioethicist [and public health professor] Leigh Turner of UC Irvine, who has collaborated with [Paul S.] Knoepfler on tracking the growth of the stem cell clinic industry, agreed that [Judge Jesus G.] Bernal’s ruling is “an enormous setback for the FDA in an area where they’ve struggled for many years" (Leigh Turner)

Medpage, July 6, 2022

FDA Getting Tougher on Birth Tissue Companies

"I hope FDA, FTC, and state Attorney General offices continue to pursue such businesses and get more aggressive in their enforcement actions," (Leigh Turner)