When a patient receives a cancer diagnosis, it can feel like a death sentence. Though cancer treatments have improved and more people are beating the disease, others unfortunately succumb.
There are many variables that affect cancer patient survival rates. One is the stage at which the cancer is diagnosed, and the second is the type of cancer the patient is diagnosed with. If you were told you had cancer, you’d probably be open to traditional and experimental treatments. If you were promised that a new drug would wipe the cancer from your body, wouldn’t you want to try it?
This is what immoral charlatans are betting on. According to the FDA, “rogue operations exploiting [cancer] fears [are] peddl[ing] untested and potentially dangerous products, particularly on the internet.” Some of these malicious campaigns are even targeting doctor’s offices.
The devious actors selling the fake miracle drugs regularly change the name of the drug and the “distribution company” to keep the FDA and law enforcement off their backs. The FDA warns medical professionals that “these companies use slick ads, videos and other sophisticated marketing techniques, including testimonials about miraculous outcomes. Often a single product is promoted as a treatment or cure for multiple diseases in humans and animals. Hope to skirt the law on a technicality, some sellers make false claims and then in small print provide a disclaimer that their products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.”
If you’re promised that a drug will cure you, how likely are you to read the small print?
As a doctor, you want to provide the best care that you can for patients. A new drug promising to reduce cancer cells sounds like a dream come true. However, if you don’t do your research and you prescribe a treatment that doesn’t work or does harm to your patient, you can get into a lot of trouble. Medical professional insurance will protect you in these instances.
You should maintain an insurance policy to cover your practice regardless, but you should also steer clear of situations that may call you to use it. If a prescription drug representative comes to your office to discuss a new treatment, you will need to look into who the representative is, what they company they represent specializes in and how the drug works. What is the science behind it? Are there case studies? Have the case studies been peer-reviewed?
You wouldn’t diagnose a patient by referencing a Wikipedia page, so why would you take chances on an alleged “miracle drug” that doesn’t have the research to back it?
The FDA has uncovered (and continues to uncover) 187 fake cancer cures, noting the name of the drug and the company that supposedly developed it.
These drug companies are making profits off of sick people. Don’t get lost in talks of a cure when there isn’t one to be found. Protect your patients by doing your due diligence and protect your practice with medical professional insurance from CoverHound.
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Insurance shopping simplified
