Translated from: Südwest Presse
http://m.swp.de/ulm/lokales/ulm_neu_ulm/klinikum-stellt-forscherin-kalt-15395244.htmlGermany:
Methadone in the cancer therapy - Clinic censors researcher.The board of the university clinic clears press releases on methadone projects in the cancer therapy of Dr. Claudia Friesen from the homepage.
"Sorry, the clinic guidance has on 05.07.2017 eradicates the questions and answers on the subject of methadone in the pain and tumor therapy unauthorized."
Who as a patient or doctor so far landed on the homepage of the institute for legal medicine at the university clinic can be there since Wednesday of last week. What is Methadone? How was the growth inhibitory effect of methadone on cancer cells discovered?
Is it possible to cure cancer with methadone? What side effects may occur?
The Board of the Clinic has taken answers to these questions from the homepage.
"For this, the management is legally authorized, but ...." More Prof. Erich Miltner - the director of the Institute of Legal Medicine
has put the excuse on the side - currently does not say.
Apart from the fact that the patients, who hoped for help, had been massively complaining for days.
The background for this debate: Since 2007, Dr. Claudia Friesen on this approach - with promising success. In laboratory tests, it has been shown that methadone, an opioid which is actually used as a means to counteract physical withdrawal symptoms in heroin addicts, causes leukemia cells to die, says the director of the molecular biology research laboratory at the Institute of Legal Medicine. In a research project funded by the German Cancer Aid (EUR 299,000), Friesen demonstrated that methadone, in combination with chemotherapy, also works in the treatment of malignant brain tumors, so-called glioblastomas. Their findings could be applied to other types of cancer, says the chemist. And: "Methadone spares the healthy tissue."
The clinic has been reporting on all the successes since 2008. The titles of the press releases:
"Researchers find new approach in cancer therapy", "Dr. Claudia Friesen and her team succeeded in further breakthroughs "or" painkillers provide for possible improvement in therapy ".
But all the press releases dealing with the topic of methadone in cancer therapy can no longer be found on the homepage of the clinic; The board of directors under Prof. Kaisers has also been able to delete the announcements in the past months.
"We need clinical trials"Friesen talks about her research and about the fact that she receives hundreds of inquiries from patients every day after several television appearances.
"I answer all." She is silent on the proceedings about her person just as persistently as her boss Miltner.
Her, who received two awards for her research in 2016, is only important to emphasize that methadone is not a miracle,
but "an option, especially in patients who are considered exhausted.
We urgently need clinical trials on methadone in cancer therapy. "
Update: After the discussion at the Ulmer university clinic, there was a meeting of the affected doctors on Monday. The management wants to promote study series to a cancer therapy with methadone.
Methadone in cancer therapy: Ulmer Klinikum wants to promote study seriesAfter the discussion at the Ulm university clinic about a possible cancer therapy with methadone, there was a meeting of the affected doctors.
The management wants to promote study series to a cancer therapy with methadone.
According to a SWP report on clashes at the university clinic on possible cancer therapy with methadone,
a meeting of the doctors concerned took place on the Monday afternoon.
After the presentation of Prof. Udo Kaisers, Senior Medical Director of the Ulm University Hospital, a discussion was held with the chemist Dr. Claudia Friesen, who has been researching a methadone project for years,
and Prof. Erich Miltner, Director of the Institute of Legal Medicine.
It had been agreed that the clinic management "actively supports" the scientist, especially with the provision of the test series, without which no medication could get an admission.
On the basis of several media reports on the possible growth-inhibitory effect of methadone in cancer cells, the telephone system of the clinic was temporarily paralyzed because of the large number of calls. There were many questions, such as whether to cure methadone cancer. Or what side effects may be associated with treatment with the drug substitute.
Threats from patientsHowever, also very unpleasant calls were under it, according to Udo Kaisers, such as threats and verbal abuse.
He also refers to reports from established cancer doctors, who were ultimately invited by patients to use methadone.
In return, ill-treated patients have rejected "therapies that are known to be effective".
Kaisers warns, "The belief that methadone could be the hoped-for panacea is dangerous."
Finally, there are currently no "controlled" clinical studies demonstrating the efficacy of methadone in cancer which could cause great damage.
Now efforts are being stepped up to test methadone in test series as an anti-cancer drug.
At the same time, Dr. Claudia Friesen for research grants from the pharmaceutical industry to start tests.
The proceedings shall not be publicly advertised until these are available.
Kaisers' clinical team denied the assumption that the drug could be rejected by the industry because it could not bring the sales such as current cancer drugs: "There is no justification for these claims.
Südwest Presse:
http://m.swp.de/ulm/lokales/ulm_neu_ulm/klinikum-spricht-mit-forscherin-15401444.html