Results for: quacks
Study laundering: IPAK, antivax “scientists,” and the return of living dead antivax studies
Antivaxxers don't like it when one of their crappy studies that they somehow managed to sneak into a decent peer-reviewed journal is deservedly retracted, as happened to Mark Skidmore's paper that estimated that 278K people might have died from COVID-19 vaccines. Fortunately for Skidmore and others, there exist fake journals that will launder their study by republishing it so that antivaxxers can...
Has MSU economics professor Mark Skidmore been “exonerated” over his retracted paper claiming that COVID vaccines killed 278,000?
Tech bro turned antivax influencer Steve Kirsch is claiming that Michigan State University economist Mark Skidmore has been "exonerated" after having had a paper retracted claiming 278K deaths from COVID-19 vaccines in 2021 alone. In reality, Skidmore just republished a revised version of his retracted paper in an antivax journal after the MSU IRB failed miserably in its oversight duties.
Alternative medicine and antivax: Two crappy tastes that taste crappy together—particularly when among physicians
A recent study reaffirms the high degree of correlation among physicians between antivax views and an embrace of quackery. This is an old finding that needs to be documented periodically and shows why the acceptance of non-science-based treatments by physicians endangers vaccination efforts.
Dr. William Makis and “turbo cancer”: Falsely blaming COVID-19 vaccines for cancer
A prominent oncologist and cancer biologist, Wafik El-Deiry, recently amplified claims that COVID-19 vaccines cause "turbo cancer," wanting a "civil discourse about science and actual answers that are missing." Unfortunately, calls for "civil discourse" by an eminent oncologist about unfounded claims only lends undeserved credibility to them. So, once more into the fray...
Health misinformation now has powerful allies
Misinformation and conspiracy theories about health had long been a growing problem before the pandemic, but it took COVID-19 to get the government and researchers to take it seriously. Now, a new report in The Washington Post adds to previous reporting from multiple sources describing how allies of misinformation—and not just health misinformation—are striking back under the guise of defending "free speech."
Doctors on Measles: “NEVER Listen to the Anti-Vax Cult When They Say This ‘Natural’ Disease is Harmless”. Doctors on COVID: 😂
Measles and COVID are different, of course, but they are not categorically different. With both viruses, unvaccinated children suffer the most. Yet, doctors who rightly said "measles can be a devastating childhood illness" also said it was "breathless fear-mongering" to acknowledge that COVID can also be a devastating childhood illness.
Cancer quack Stanislaw Burzynski continues to prey on cancer patients in 2023
This year, cancer quack Dr. Stanislaw Burzynski turned 80. Unfortunately, he doesn't seem to be slowing down charging patients with advanced cancer huge sums for false hope.
The Ohio State Medical Board has finally suspended the medical license of antivax quack Sherri Tenpenny
Last week, the Ohio State Medical Board suspended the medical license of Dr. Sherri Tenpenny, a longtime antivax quack. The only question is: What took them so long, and why did it take the pandemic for them to act? Also, is there less to this action than meets the eye?
The American Board of Internal Medicine finally acts against two misinformation-spreading doctors
Last week, I wrote about how COVID-19 has exposed the toothlessness of state medical boards. Last week, the American Board of Internal Medicine announced that it was going to permanently revoke the board certifications of two COVID-19 contrarian doctors, Drs. Paul Marik and Pierre Kory. Can medical specialty boards make up for the failure of state medical boards, at least partially?
COVID-19 has exposed the toothlessness of state medical boards
A report in The Washington Post last week revealed just how badly state medical boards have been failing when dealing with physicians spreading COVID-19 misinformation and using quackery to prevent and treat the disease. None of this is anything new, unfortunately. The pandemic has merely stress tested state medical boards, and most have failed because of political choices made long ago.