Sam Chachoua
Dr. Samir "Sam" Chachoua is an Australian, trained as a medical doctor but not actively licensed to practice medicine,[1] currently offering treatments in Mexico[2] that he claims to be effective alternative medicine vaccine therapies for cancer, diabetes and HIV among other diseases [3]. His claims are disputed by conventional medical authorities.[4]
Theories
Dr. Chachoua's treatments depend on theories he names "The Nemesis Theory", i.e. "for every disease there is an anti-disease organism capable of destroying it and restoring health,"[2] and "Induced Remission Therapy".[5][4]
For treatment of HIV, Dr. Chachoua vaccinates patients with Caprine arthritis encephalitis virus[2], which is known to cross-react immunologically with HIV.[6] He claims to have eradicated HIV from the nation of Comoros[2] in 2006.[7] As of 2012, the Adult HIV prevalence in Cormoros was 2.1%.[8]
Lawsuit
In 1997, Dr. Chachoua filed a lawsuit in the Los Angeles US District Court against Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. Chachoua had charged that he had shared his expertise and cell cultures with them, but when the therapies had proved highly effective, the medical center had claimed both the material and the credit. However, this lawsuit was dismissed by Judge Margaret M. Morrow on November 13, 2001, due to Chachoua's “history of repeatedly disobeying court orders and resort to other dilatory tactics” and his “pattern of misconduct [that] spanned the tenures of several different attorneys.” [9] Chachoua was later successfully sued by one of his lawyers for unpaid legal fees and costs, losing a counterclaim in which he accused her of legal malpractice.[10]
Chachoua is being sued by the estate of one of his clients, Richard Nieto, who died after being unsuccessfully treated with Chachoua's Induced Remission Therapy.[11]
Charlie Sheen
In an episode of The Dr. Oz Show taped in late 2015 and aired January 12, 2016, Charlie Sheen said he had been receiving alternative treatment for HIV in Mexico from Dr. Chachoua, stating "I'm [sic] been off my meds for about a week now"; according to his manager, however, after the episode was taped he resumed taking his medications.[12][13]
In the course of his unsuccessful treatment of Sheen, Chachoua claims that he injected himself with Sheen's blood.[14] Chachoua has claimed that his treatments rendered Sheen HIV negative, despite the fact that Sheen continues to be HIV positive.[15][16]
References
- ^ "Registration Details, Samir Chachoua". Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency. Retrieved January 30, 2016.
- ^ a b c d "Dr. Sam Chachoua Official Website"
- ^ "About Dr. Samir Chachoua"
- ^ a b "Induced Remission Therapy (IRT)", Stephen Barrett, M.D., Quackwatch
- ^ "Induced remission therapy patent"
- ^ Tesoro-Cruz E, Hernández-González R, Kretschmer-Schmid R, Aguilar-Setién A (2003). "Cross-reactivity between caprine arthritis-encephalitis virus and type 1 human immunodeficiency virus". Arch. Med. Res. 34 (5): 362–6. doi:10.1016/j.arcmed.2003.08.001. PMID 14602501.
{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ Parry, Hannah (January 31, 2016). "'I've cured countries!' Doctor who injected himself with Charlie Sheen's HIV-positive blood makes astonishing claims of goat's milk treatment". Daily Mail. Retrieved January 31, 2016.
- ^ "UNICEF Cormoros Statistics". UNICEF. United Nations. Retrieved January 31, 2016.
- ^ "Opinion and order granting plaintiff's motion for default judgment as to complaint and denying as moot plaintiff's motion to dismiss counterclaim",US Government Printing Office
- ^ "Hansen v. Chachoua". Google Scholar. Google. Retrieved January 31, 2016.
- ^ Osborne, Duncan. "Richard Nieto". Retrieved January 30, 2016.
- ^ "Charlie Sheen Temporarily Went Off HIV Medications to Seek Alternative Treatment in Mexico: 'So What? I Was Born Dead'", Aaron Couch, People Magazine, January 12, 2016
- ^ http://gawker.com/supposed-doctor-who-injected-himself-with-charlie-sheen-1756141228
- ^ Alexander, Harriet (January 16, 2016). "Charlie Sheen's HIV doctor injected himself with Sheen's blood". The Telegraph. Retrieved January 30, 2016.
- ^ Juzwiak, Rich (January 29, 2016). "Supposed Doctor Who Injected Himself With Charlie Sheen's HIV-Positive Blood: "I've Cured Countries!"". Gawker. Retrieved January 30, 2016.
- ^ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dYiq0-M1MDU