If It Quacks Like a … Quack

One thing that angers me is that snake-oil peddlers of bogus “cancer cures” are allowed to advertise and sell their products in the United States with seemingly no regulation and little fear that they will be prosecuted.

Things are different in Australia, apparently. A Melbourne businessman and his two sons are being sued by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission for allegedly selling a “system” of vitamins, massage, and “energy zappers” as a cure for cancer.

The government organization is also prosecuting several companies that sold the so-called “alternative therapy,” the RANA System, which costs $35,000, to the terminally ill. According to recent press reports, five companies, all using the NuEra name, were selling the product.

The three men who are being sued are Paul Rana and his two sons, and the ACCC also is seeking an injunction to shut down the companies and to force them to remove their claims from various Web sites that sell both the products and RANA System franchises.

As of today, however, the Web sites are still live, preying on desperate people with cancer.

To read more: ACCC sues over cancer cure claims

Finding a Cure on the Web—Beware
Back in 2003, as part of a cover story for Seattle Weekly, I wrote a Soapbox on this topic, and Google’s role in promoting bogus cancer cures through its sponsored links, which are paid ads.

The ad that I mentioned in my rant is still my all-time-favorite snake-oil cancer “cure”: the "New Marine-Grade Coral Calcium Complex From Okinawa," which, according to the ad, is a cure for cancer and the reason the people of Okinawa live so long.

Well, I’ve visited Okinawa, and I certainly didn’t see any of the locals gobbling down “marine-grade coral calcium complex.” But I did see people eating a healthy diet of fish and lots of fruit and vegetables.

I wrote to Google, complaining that it was irresponsible of the company to accept ads like this to run on cancer search pages.

I received a very polite, but somewhat garbled, reply from a woman identified only as "Heather from the GoogleAdWords Team" that said, in part:

“Google believes strongly in freedom of expression and therefore offers broad access to content across the Web without censoring results. . . . You may be aware that a different set of laws and regulations apply to commercial speech (advertising) than to the search results we show when you do a Google search. As a business, Google must make decisions about where we draw the line in regards to the advertising we accept, both from a legal and company values perspective. . . .”

This is hogwash, of course. I realize that the Web is still the Wild West of publishing, and buyer-beware seems to be the standard. Reputable print publications would never accept ads for the kinds of products Google promotes, however.

After I received this letter, Google announced that it would hire a third-party company to verify online pharmacies before allowing them to advertise on the site. Google has done nothing about the companies selling phony cancer cures, however. There are more than ever.

Write to Google, and ask the company to stop accepting ads for bogus products that prey on the hopes of people who are dangerously ill. Here's the e-mail address: adwords-pr@google.com.

Please forward me any replies that you receive--it amuses me to see how Google continues to justify this shaky business practice. I wonder, could I sue Google if I tried one of these "cures" and it didn't work? Maybe I should move to Australia, and then sue Google.

@ Jeanne Sather 2006

Comments

[Alex Roberts]

This brings to mind the last-ditch treatment my friend, Roger tried just before succumbing to metastatic melanoma several years back. He was at least aware that it might not work and didn't have kids to worry about when it came to shelling out thousand$, but the poor guy couldn't even hold down the gross green macrobiotic drink they recommended. He never finished the "treatment" and came home to die. But Roger undertook this notion fully cognizant of the risks, knowing it was a last hope. The ads you speak of prey on much more vulnerable sick people and I appreciate you bringing the issue to light.