bias
‘Yes to Life’ is a UK cancer charity that promotes so-called alternative medicine (SCAM). It has featured before on my blog:
Uncharitable charities? The example of ‘YES TO LIFE’
‘Yes to Life’ also runs a radio show:
The Yes to Life Show is presented by Robin Daly, Founder and Chairman of the UK registered charity Yes to Life. Robin set up Yes to Life nearly two decades ago, following the experience of supporting his youngest daughter Bryony through cancer three times. The extraordinary difficulties he found that faced people in finding and obtaining the help they wanted, spurred him into creating a charity to make a difference to this tragic predicament.
Although very familiar with the territory, Robin is not a cancer specialist or any kind of health expert. In presenting the show, he is always looking for a ‘layman’s’ understanding of the complexities of cancer and the issues surrounding it that is accessible to all…
… As we rapidly approach the point where half of us will get cancer, there are some pretty stark questions facing us that the show attempts to throw light on:
- What are we doing wrong?
- Why has the colossal investment in research produced so few answers?
- What are we missing?
- And crucially to all the above – What is cancer?
_________________
The website of Yes to Life Show offers a wide range of previous broadcasts, many featuring individuals who are also familiar to this blog such as Michael Dixon or Elizabeth Thompson. I listened to sections of Elizabeth’s recordings:
I find this recording and many others recordings available on the Yes to Life Show (please do make the effort and listen to some of them!) concerning and at times outright irresponsible and dangerous – no wonder that the Yes to Life Show includes this ‘Disclaimer’:
Please note that all information and content on the UK Health Radio Network and all its radio broadcasts and all its publications and all its websites are provided by the authors, producers, presenters and companies themselves and is only intended as additional information to your general knowledge. As a service to our listeners/readers our programs/content are for general information and entertainment only. The UK Health Radio Network does not recommend, endorse, or object to the views, products or topics expressed or discussed by show hosts or their guests, authors and interviewees. We suggest you always consult with your own professional – personal, medical, financial or legal advisor. So please do not delay or disregard any professional – personal, medical, financial or legal advice received due to something you have heard or read on the UK Health Radio Network.
The UK Health Radio Network makes no warranties or representations of any kind that the services provided on the radio broadcasts or web sites will be uninterrupted, error-free or that the radio broadcasts or web sites, or the servers that hosts the radio broadcasts or web sites are free from viruses or other forms of harmful computer codes. In no event will the UK Health Radio Network, its employees, distributors, advertisers, syndicators or agents be liable for any direct, indirect or consequential damages resulting from the use of this web site. This exclusion and limitation only applies to the extent permitted by law.
So, the show is “for entertainment only”. I can easily see why:
as advice for cancer patients (or carers), it would be outright dangerous!
Some research have suggested that aromatherapy with lavender essential oil can be effective in reducing pain and anxiety in various medical settings. Yet, the efficacy of lavender aromatherapy in the postoperative setting after cesarean delivery is less well-studied. This study aimed to assess the effectiveness of lavender essential oil therapy in the management of pain and anxiety after cesarean delivery.
This was a monocentric randomized controlled double-blind trial conducted over a period of five months during 2023. A hundred women undergoing c-sections under spinal anesthesia were enrolled and randomly assigned; using block randomization of 4 items per block with allocation ratio 1:1, into two groups:
- The aromatherapy group received inhaled Lavender essential oil.
- The placebo group received distilled water instead.
The primary outcomes were pain (at rest and after mobilization) and anxiety levels and after the intervention.
A total of 100 women were included (50 women in each group aromatherapy and the placebo group). The two groups were comparable regarding baseline characteristics and pre-intervention parameters with no statistically significant difference. After the intervention, the pain at rest (38,76 ± 22,9 vs. 23,84 ± 18,01; p < 0.001), the pain after mobilization (60,28 ± 23,72 vs. 40,12 ± 22,18; p < 0.001), and degree of anxiety (46,76 ± 6,59 vs. 44,3 ± 5,17; p = 0.03) were all significantly lower in the aromatherapy group. No adverse effects were reported by participants in both groups.
The authors concluded that aromatherapy using Lavender essential oil is effective in reducing pain and anxiety after cesarean delivery without adverse effects.
I beg to differ!
The authors point out that, to address the potential for participants to differentiate between the lavender and the placebo based on olfactory cues, they were informed that they would receive a natural inhalation product; however, they were not informed that it was an essential oil or specifically lavender. This is a lame attemp to prevent patients from guessing in which group they were. I doubt that it was successful. As a minimum, the authors should have checked whether binding was achieved!
Yes, it is difficult to patient-blind such studies. But it is possible. For instance, the control arm might have received an arificial oil with a lavender scent which aromatherapists claim to be ineffective. Alternatively two different essential oils could have been tested – lavender against an oil that is not said to affect pain and anxiety. These options are fairly obvious and well-known to aromatherapists. Why then were they not incorporated? I suspect because the trialists suspect that this would not produce the desired result.
As it stands, the honest conclusion should be something like this: aromatherapy using Lavender essential oil might reduce pain and anxiety after cesarean delivery. Whether this is due to a specific effect of the oil or the non-specific effects of expectation needs to be seen.
This pragmatic, randomised controlled trial was conducted between September 2018 and February 2021 and compared the difference between primary homoeopathic and conventional paediatric care in treating acute illnesses in children in their first 24 months of life. It was conducted at the Central Council for Research in Homoeopathy (CCRH) Collaborative Outpatient Department of the Jeeyar Integrated Medical Services (JIMS) Hospital in Telangana, India, a tertiary-care hospital that provides integrated patient-centric care, using homoeopathy and Ayurveda alongside conventional medicine.
One hundred eight Indian singleton newborns delivered at 37 to 42 weeks gestation were randomised at birth (1:1) to receive either homoeopathic or conventional primary care for any acute illness over the study period. In the homoeopathic group, conventional medical treatment was added when medically indicated. Clinicians and parents were unblinded.
The study’s primary outcome was a comparison of the number of sick days due to an acute illness experienced during the first 24 months of life by children receiving homoeopathic vs. conventional treatment. Sick days were defined as days with any acute illness (febrile or afebrile) reported by the parent and confirmed by the physician. Febrile illness was recorded when body temperature, measured via the ear canal, exceeded 37.5 °C.
The secondary outcomes compared were as follows:
- The number of sickness episodes, defined as illness events (febrile or afebrile), reported by the parent and confirmed by the physician.
- Number of respiratory illness episodes and days during the 24 months. Respiratory illnesses included infections in any part of the respiratory tract (nose, middle ear, pharynx, larynx, trachea, bronchi, bronchioles, and lungs) .
- Number of diarrhoeal episodes and days during the 24 months. Diarrhoea was defined as three or more episodes of watery stool/day, with or without vomiting, with indications of dehydration, weight loss, or defective weight gain.
- Anthropometric data included weight (measured by electronic scales to the nearest 5 g), height (measured in triplicate to the nearest 0.2 cm using a rigid-length board), head circumference (HC), and mid-upper arm circumference (MUAC) (measured with a standard measuring tape to the nearest 0.2 cm every 3 months until the 24th month).
- Developmental status was evaluated according to the Developmental Assessment Scales for Indian Infants (DASII) every 6 months from the age of 6 to 24 months.
- Direct cost of treatment for illnesses during the 24 months, including cost of medications, inpatient admissions, investigations, supplements, and treatment outside the hospital facility or study site (consultation and/or medicines).
- Use of antibiotics during the 24 months, defined as the number of antibiotic episodes during the study.
- Mortality: death due to any acute illness episode.
The results show that children in the homoeopathic group experienced significantly fewer sick days than those in the conventional group (RR: 0.37, 95% CI: 0.24-0.58; p < 0.001), with correspondingly fewer sickness episodes (RR: 0.53, 95% CI: 0.32-0.87; p = .013), as well as fewer respiratory illnesses over the 24-month period. They were taller (F (1, 97) = 8.92, p = .004, partial eta squared = 0.84) but not heavier than their conventionally treated counterparts. They required fewer antibiotics, and their treatment cost was lower.
The authors concluded that homoeopathy, using conventional medicine as a safety backdrop, was more effective than conventional treatment in preventing sick days, sickness episodes, and respiratory illnesses in the first 24 months of life. It necessitated fewer antibiotics and its overall cost was lower. This study supports homoeopathy, using conventional medicine as a safety backdrop, as a safe and cost-effective primary care modality during the first 2 years of life.
Here we have another study designed in such a way that a positive result was inevitable. Both groups of children received the necessary conventional care and treatment. The verum group received homeopathy in addition. There were no placebo controls and everyone knew which child belonged to which group. Thus the verum group benefitted from a poweful placebo effect, while the control group experience disappointment over not receiving the extra attention and medication. One might argue that newborn babies cannot experience a placebo response nor disappointment. Yet, one would be wrong and in need of reading up about placebo effects by proxy.
A+B is always more than B alone
To boldy entitle the paper ‘Homoeopathy vs. conventional primary care in children during the first 24 months of life’ and state that the trial aimed to “compared the difference between primary homoeopathic and conventional paediatric care in treating acute illnesses in children in their first 24 months of life”, is as close to scientific misconduct as one can get, in my view!
Yet again, I might ask: what do we call a study that is designed in such a way that a positive result was inevitable?
- misleading?
- waste of resources?
- unethical?
- fraud?
And again, I let you decide.
PS
I feel disappointed that a decent journal published this paper without even a critical comment!
In China, acupuncture has been employed as an adjunctive therapy for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Press needle acupuncture is a special type of acupuncture that provides prolonged stimulation to acupuncture points. This study assessed the effectiveness of integrating press needles alongside pharmacologic treatment in patients with mild-to-moderate COVID-19.
Patients hospitalized with mild-to-moderate COVID-19 symptoms between December 2022 and January 2023 were included in the study. The enrolled patients were randomly assigned to receive:
- pharmacologic treatment alone (control group),
- or both pharmacologic treatment and press needle acupuncture (intervention group).
Patients were evaluated for clinical outcomes, including symptom scores, deterioration rates, fever durations, and nucleic acid test results. The patients’ complete blood count and C-reactive protein levels were also analyzed using venous blood samples both before and after treatment.
Both groups exhibited a reduction in clinical symptom scores, but symptoms regressed faster in the intervention group. Nucleic acid test negativity was achieved faster in the intervention group than in the control group. The intervention group also had a lower deterioration rate. Furthermore, the increase in the lymphocyte count and decrease in C-reactive protein levels following treatment were more pronounced in the intervention group than in the control group.
The authors concluded that this study suggests that utilizing press needle acupuncture as an adjunct to pharmacologic treatment can be effective in patients with mild-to-moderate COVID-19 symptoms.
To understand this study better, we need to comprehend the nature of the therapeutic ritual. This is how the authors describe it:
For each session, press needles were inserted into acupoints and kept in place for approximately 24 hours. Only 1 side of the body (left or right) was treated in each session. The following day, press needles were removed from 1 side of the body, and new press needles were placed on acupoints on the other side of the body. Press needle acupuncture was performed by a qualified physician who had completed comprehensive acupuncture training. By contrast, patients in the control group solely received daily pharmacologic treatment, such as Lianhua Qingwen granules, with ibuprofen added as needed for fever management. Study participants were instructed to notify researchers of the appearance of clinical symptoms, and they were prohibited from participating in other studies during the trial period.
So, neither the patients nor the therapists were blinded. To call such a study “single-blind” is a bit odd! And are we really supposed to assume that the verum therapy did not generate placebo effects?
What we have here, I fear, is a classic example of a study designed such that it cannot possibly produce a negative result. It followed the A+B versus B design and employed a treatment that is bound to generate a sizable placebo response. What is even worse, the authors do discuss the limitations of their study but ignore the ‘elefant in the room’: ” this study had several limitations. The sample size was modest, and basic randomization was used without stratification based on comorbidities, which could have introduced bias.”
What do we call a study that cannot possibly produce a negative result?
- A waste of resources?
- Fraud?
- Misleading?
- Naive?
- Unethical?
I leave the answer to you.
The objective of the present double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled, feasibility trial was to identify the effects of individualized homeopathic medicinal products (IHMPs) against placebos in post-COVID-19 conditions. Sixty participants with post-COVID-19 conditions were randomised into either:
- group verum (n = 30; IHMPs plus concomitant care),
- group control (n = 30; placebos plus concomitant care).
Feasibility issues; primary—post-COVID-19 symptoms checklist; secondary—Measure Yourself Medical Outcomes Profile version 2 (MYMOP-2); all of them were measured at baseline, and monthly intervals, up to 3 months. The intention-to-treat sample was analyzed; group differences were reported using descriptive statistics: means, 95% confidence intervals (CIs), and between group effect sizes (Cohen’s d).
Feasibility concerns showed promise; recruitment, retention, and attrition rates were 34.2%, 95%, and 5%, respectively. Group differences in both primary and secondary outcomes favored IHMPs against placebos: symptoms checklist score mean difference after 3 months: −4.2, 95% CI −4.9 to −3.4, d = 2.854 and MYMOP-2 mean difference after 3 months: −2.2, 95% CI −2.8 to −1.7, d = 2.082, respectively. Natrum muriaticum (11.7%), Pulsatilla nigricans (10%), Rhus toxicodendron (8.3%), and Calcarea carbonica (8.3%) were the most frequently prescribed remedies.
The authors concluded that IHMPs produced better results than placebos in reducing symptoms checklist scores and MYMOP-2 scores in the treatment of post-COVID-19 conditions. Definitive trials are warranted to confirm the findings.
A feasibility study (the authors employ this term repeatedly) has – as I have often pointed out – the purpose of testing whether a trial disign, set-up, etc. is FEASIBLE. It is not meant to report other outcome data.
Why?
Mainly because such studies are far too underpowered for generating reliable results!
This means that the present findings can be ignored. They are most likely caused by chance.
Why are they published anyway, and why could the authors find a journal that goes along with such nonsense?
Are they too stupid or are they biased or both?
The nature of the journal might provide a hint for answering these questions (J Integr Complement Med), and so does the list of authors and their affiliations:
- 1Department of Organon of Medicine and Homoeopathic Philosophy, D. N. De Homoeopathic Medical College and Hospital, Govt. of West Bengal, Kolkata, India.
- 2Department of Pathology and Microbiology, D. N. De Homoeopathic Medical College & Hospital, Govt. of West Bengal, Kolkata, India.
- 3Department of Practice of Medicine, D. N. De Homoeopathic Medical College and Hospital, Govt. of West Bengal, Kolkata, India.
- 4Department of Homeopathy, East Bishnupur State Homoeopathic Dispensary, Chandi Daulatabad Block Primary Health Centre, Department of Health & Family Welfare, Govt. of West, Kolkata, India.
- 5Department of Repertory, D. N. De Homoeopathic Medical College and Hospital, Govt. of West Bengal, Kolkata, India.
- 6Department of Community Medicine, D. N. De Homoeopathic Medical College and Hospital, Govt. of West Bengal, Kolkata, India.
I rest my case.
An article entitled “The use of ayurvedic medicine in the management of hypertension” was recently published in the ‘Journal of Ayurveda and Naturopathy’ (no, I did not know either that this journal existed). Here I show you merely its conclusion, but encourage you to read the entire paper.
Hypertension, a significant risk factor for cardiovascular diseases, necessitates effective and sustainable management strategies. Ayurveda, with its holistic approach, offers a comprehensive framework for managing hypertension by addressing the underlying dosha imbalances through dietary and lifestyle modifications, herbal formulations, and therapeutic procedures. This review has highlighted the
efficacy of various Ayurvedic interventions, including the use of specific herbs like Ashwagandha, Arjuna, Brahmi, Gokshura, and Sarpagandha, which have demonstrated significant benefits in reducing blood pressure and improving overall health. Panchakarma therapies such as Virechana, Basti, Nasya, and Shirodhara have also been shown to detoxify the body, restore balance, and promote
long-term well-being.
Integrating Ayurvedic practices with modern medical approaches can enhance treatment outcomes, offering a more personalized and holistic approach to hypertension management. This synergy can potentially reduce the reliance on pharmaceuticals, minimize side effects, and improve patient compliance and quality of life. Future research should focus on rigorous clinical trials and the standardization of Ayurvedic formulations to further validate their efficacy and facilitate their integration into mainstream healthcare.
By embracing the principles of Ayurveda, individuals can achieve better control over hypertension, reduce the risk of associated complications, and enhance their overall health and well-being. This comprehensive approach not only addresses the symptoms but also tackles the root causes, promoting a sustainable and balanced lifestyle.
END OF QUOTE
Not only does the author, Dr. Zafar Siddiqa (from the Faculty of Natural Medicine and Holistic Sciences, Rajshahi Holistic Health College, Rajshahi, Bangladesh) re-write the current knowledge of hypertonology, he also provides no evidence for any of the far-reaching statements he makes in this paper. In particular, he cites no rigorous studies that “highlighted the efficacy of various Ayurvedic interventions” (most likely because such studies do not exist).
The autor is correct in the 1st sentence of his conclusion: “Hypertension, a significant risk factor for cardiovascular diseases, necessitates effective and sustainable management strategies”. But he is wrong in almost everything else! Because hypertension is such an important risk factor for stroke and ischaemic heart disease, we MUST treat it effectively.
Today, we fortunately have many conventional treatments that control hypertension well and with no or just minimal adverse effects. Advocating quackary or unproven therapies for managing hypertension is thus deeply unethical. It could contribute to the premature deaths of millions. I thus fear that the ‘Faculty of Natural Medicine and Holistic Sciences, Rajshahi Holistic Health College’ is in urgent need of taking a few courses in proper science and medical ethics.
If I remember correctly, I was – some 20 years ago – a founding member of the editorial board of the journal Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine (EBCAM). I also published several papers there, but eventually I became concerned about what seemed to be going on at the journal (it seemed a money-making scam to me) and withdrew my cooperation. Since then, I have repeatedly posted on this blog about this strange journal, e.g.:
- EBCAM: an alt med journal that puzzles me a great deal
- Some alternative medicine journals should be de-listed
- Fraud and greed can cause enormous harm
Yesterday,I came across this announcement by John Wiley & Sons, now the publisher of EBCAM:
Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine ceased publishing as of September 2024.
Trying to find out more about this surprising action, I found this little note:
John Wiley & Sons, a global publication house with revenues north of $2 billion, announced on May 19, 2024, that it was closing 19 journals it acquired as part of its 2021 purchase of Egypt-based Hindawi publishing company, citing large-scale research fraud.
Next, I went on to Medline and saw that EBCAM had to retract 744 (!) of its papers.
That amount of retractions must be a world record!
I thus understand that the journal was no longer tenable. But what exactly did happen? What brought about the decision to cease publication?
I have no idea (various searches for answers were unsuccessful) and would be most grateful, if someone in the know could fill me in.
- complement conventional and supportive care,
- be complemented with other supportive therapies,
- substitute for supportive drugs,
- replace other supportive therapies,
- not be suitable to replace all supportive therapies,
- be the only supportive option available in some situations.
Nearly every time that I talk to proponents of so-called alternative medicine (SCAM) I hear a lot about diet. Diet is a central theme to almost all of them, it seems. In such conversations, several issues often emerge and frequently take the form of accusations, e.g.:
- Conventional medicine neglects the importance of diet for our health.
- Medical students learn next to nothing about the subject.
- In conventional medicine, hardly any research is focussed on diet.
- By contrast, practitioners of SCAM know a lot about diet.
- Many are experts in the subject.
- Patients are well-advised to consult SCAM practitioners if they want to learn how to eat healthily.
- SCAM practitioners have developed a wide range of diets that keep their patients fit and healthy.
I usually try to object to some of these points. The truth is that medical students do learn about diet, that doctors are aware of its importance, and that research into diets is highly active.
Particularly about the last point, I can get rather irritated. Sadly, this impresses the SCAM fans very little. They have their opinion and rarely budge.
After one such conversation, I decided to go on Medline and produce some figures. Here they are:
- As of 6 October, there are 1 453 clinical trials listed on Medline as published in 2024.*
- Between 1957 and today, around 57 000 such trials have been published.
- Their number shows an almost exponential growth during this period.
- The diets tested range widely and include, for instance, the Mediteranean diet, the ketogenic diet, intermittent fasting, vegetarian diet, energy restricted diet, gluten-free diet.
- There are as good as no trials on any of the SCAM diets.
- The researchers doing the diet trials are almost exclusively conventional medics or nutritionist.
- I did not find any SCAM practitioners in the list of authors.
So, the next time a SCAM proponent bullshits you about diet, you can tell him or her to get lost!
*Not all are, in fact, clinical trials
RAND claims to be “a research organization that develops solutions to public policy challenges to help make communities throughout the world safer and more secure, healthier and more prosperous. RAND is nonprofit, nonpartisan, and committed to the public interest.” Recently, RAND has published an extensive report entitled ‘THE STATE OF HOMEOPATHIC RESEARCH“. Here I show you a few interesting passages from this document [the number in square brackets refer to short comments of mine that I appended at the end]:
In this report on the state of homeopathic research, we encapsulate the outcomes of our comprehensive review and the deliberations of our expert panel. These findings and recommendations can guide the homeopathic research community, governmental agencies, and philanthropic organizations in how to best allocate research effort and fund quality and pertinent clinical research endeavors in the field of homeopathy [1].
This research was funded by the Samueli Foundation [2] and carried out by the RAND Research Across Complementary and Integrative Health Institutions (REACH) Center within the Quality Measurement and Improvement Program in RAND Health Care. The RAND REACH Center is a collaboration of researchers across institutions that educate complementary and integrative health practitioners in the United States (www.rand.org/reachcenter); several of these researchers and their students participated in this project…
We examined the state of homeopathic research by critically [3] assessing the overall quality of homeopathic clinical research literature and convening an expert panel to identify gaps in research quality [4] and in areas studied. Our assessment of research quality used a sample of studies from the most comprehensive database of published research on homeopathic research…
There were many areas in which the quality of the studies could be improved. About two-thirds of the 85 controlled trials had either high (42 percent) or unclear (24 percent) risk of bias according to internationally recognized standards for internal validity. Trials with a placebo arm were less likely than those with other comparators to have high risk of bias (29 percent versus 73 percent), primarily because of the ease of blinding patients and outcome assessors. Of the 14 observational (cohort) studies included in our sample, more than one-third did not control for important confounders in the outcome analyses. Regarding external validity, adherence was reported in less than one-third of the studies. Homeopathic consultations took place in 44 studies (the others were studies of routine homeopathy in which all patients received the same remedy [5]); almost half did not describe the experience and training of the practitioners. Forty percent of all studies did not report on safety; 79 percent of observational studies did not. Regarding model validity, which is essential for replicability and interpretability, fewer than two-thirds of the reviewed studies were consistent with homeopathic principles…
Recommendations
Drawing from the outcomes of our homeopathic clinical research literature review and the deliberations of our expert panel, we and the panelists developed the following six recommendations:
1. Funders, researchers, and journal editors and reviewers should require authors to follow the Consolidated Standards of Reporting Trials (CONSORT) and guidelines specific to reporting homeopathic studies, such as the Reporting Data on Homeopathic Treatments (RedHot) criteria for trials, and develop guidelines, as needed. In addition, training institutions should include training on the early use and reference to these guidelines in homeopathic research curricula.
2. All homeopathic studies should proactively monitor and report on adverse events as recommended in CONSORT and several other guidelines for the study of homeopathy [6].
3. Organizations with credibility and acceptability within the homeopathic research community [7] should identify methodological exemplar studies and make them known to researchers, so that these studies can be used to guide future research.
4. Training and support for homeopathic researchers should be increased, and where possible, research teams examining homeopathy should include experienced medical researchers who have an excellent track record for high-quality research. [7]
5. Funders and researchers should consider studies determining the validity of the Critical Appraisal Tool for Homeopathic Intervention Studies (CATHIS) tool as a quality measure for studies of homeopathy.
6. An organization with credibility and acceptability within the homeopathic research community [7] should assemble representative panels of stakeholders to obtain agreement about a small number of areas of focus for future research, with each area reflecting a specific population, treatment or prevention of a condition, and type of homeopathy in a particular country. These stakeholder panels could also address such research quality issues as determining the level of quality sufficient for making clinical decisions and setting policy guidelines, weighting the relative importance of different aspects of external and model validity, and establishing how to describe homeopathic practice [8]…
Conclusion
The goal of this project was to develop recommendations for the future of homeopathic research to ensure higher-quality evidence on the most relevant uses of homeopathy [9]. We accomplished this goal through a review of recent homeopathic clinical research literature, input from an expert panel, and a synthesis of results from both. We found that the state of homeopathic research could be greatly improved in terms of internal, external, and model validity. Strict adherence to reporting guidelines, with attention to quality criteria during study design, would likely result in most of the needed improvement. However, there is also a need for the homeopathic community to decide where to focus future research in terms of conditions, populations, and types of homeopathy studied. These focus areas could take many forms and should align with the community’s research goals. An appropriate focus (or set of focuses) should also balance answering questions to improve homeopathic treatment with the requirements for coverage by payers and desired inclusion in the broader health care system. [10]
We are grateful for the important feedback from members of our expert panel:
- Iris Bell, M.D., Ph.D., University of Arizona College of Medicine (Retired) and Sonoran University of Health
Sciences; - Dan Cherkin, Ph.D., Osher Center for Integrative Health, Department of Family Medicine, University of Washington;
- Roger Chou, M.D., Department of Medical Informatics & Clinical Epidemiology and Department of Medicine, Oregon Health & Science University;
- Katharina Gaertner, MBBS, Research Faculty of Health, University Witten/Herdecke;
- Klaus Linde, M.D., Ph.D., Scientific Coordinator, Technische Universität München, Institute of General Practice and Health Services Research;
- Alexander Tournier, Ph.D., Homeopathy Research Institute and Institute of Complementary and Integrative Medicine, University of Bern;
- Esther van der Werf, M.Sc., Ph.D., Clinical Research Lead, Homeopathy Research Institute, and Honorary Senior Lecturer, Primary
Care Infection, Bristol Medical School, University of Bristol; - Harald Walach, Ph.D., CHS Institute. [11]
The project’s steering committee: Wayne B. Jonas, M.D., President, Healing Works Foundation [11]; and Jennifer Jacobs, M.D., M.P.H., Clinical Assistant Professor, Epidemiology, University of Washington School of Public Health [11].
_______________________________
- The fundamentally important question whether more research of homeopathy is required was studiously ignored.
- Not exactly an organisation that is known to be impartial.
- After reading the entire document, I found very little critical input.
- I am not sure what “gaps in research quality” are; do they mean deficits?
- I think that’s normally called ‘clinical homeopathy’.
- Failure to do so is not merely a little lapse but a violation of research ethics!
- They do not exist.
- This is not realistic.
- There is a wide consensus that “relevant uses of homeopathy” do not exist.
- The crucial question was avoided, whether it is ethical to waste money and effort on researching something that, by a general consensus, is nonsense.
- Member of our ALTERNATIVE MEDICINE HALL OF FAME!
My final comment: imagine the ‘Flat Earth Society’ convenes an expert panel to decide about the shape of our planet …