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'Misleading' doctor allowed to work
A DOCTOR who encouraged terminally ill patients to buy £271-a-month pills with promotional material claiming they could cure cancer has been allowed to carry on working.
Vivienne Balonwu gave patients marketing material which claimed glyconutrients could cause 'spectacular' recoveries from illnesses like cancer and chronic pulmonary disease.
The General Medical Council (GMC) heard, yesterday, how she believed some of the claims made about the pills were "ridiculous" and how she stood to gain financially from selling them.
The GMC decided Balonwu's behaviour was inappropriate, not in the best interests of patients and an abuse of her position as a doctor.
But the panel still allowed her to stay on the medical register.
Dr Robin Knill-Jones, its chairman, told Balonwu she had not been deliberately dishonest, and had shown she was sorry, but her poor judgment caused them 'serious concern'.
He said: "Your actions should be seen in the context of a misguided belief that you were not acting in a medical capacity when you gave patients misleading information about glyconutrients.
"You knew that some of the claims made about glyconutrients were, in your words, 'ridiculous'.
"Yet you encouraged vulnerable patients, in one case a terminally ill patient, to consider using them."
The panel ruled Balonwu, who worked for Harmoni, a GP cooperative based in Southall, must not work either outside the NHS or in out-of-hours work.
She must arrange a supervisor at any GP practice she works at and must also work with mentors on a personal development plan, as well as improving her approach to 'evidence-based medicine'.
Dr Knill-Jones said: "It was not in the best interests of vulnerable patients to be given misleading information in DVDs and CDs which implied their conditions could be cured.
"Patients could be given false hope and could possibly stop their medication."
However, Balonwu was cleared of telling terminally ill cancer patient Angela Hickey, of Harrow, glyconutrients were a 'superdrug', which could cure her cancer, due to insufficient evidence.
Martin Forde QC, Balonwu's defence lawyer, said there was negligible financial gain and she had her patients' interests at heart.
The panel also heard glowing references from her colleagues about her clinical skills, and decided she did not pose a future risk to the public.
It had earlier cleared her of dishonesty.
She bought the pills, which are made up of natural sugars from plant extracts, through Mannotech, an American pyramid-selling company.
9:37pm Friday 21st March 2008
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CommentPosted by: ginny somers, Canada on 12:04am Mon 24 Mar 08
There is so much misinformation in your report about the company and glyconutrients that it is not worth the time to comment much on your article. I would suggest that the writer of this article do some research on glyconutients, discover the difference between pyramid schemes and network marketing, for example. I have been using glyconutrients for over 4 years now and have experienced a trememndous improvement in my health as a result. I do not work for the company , nor was I paid to write this. I am just a consumer who who has difficulty understanding why people who choose to be ignorant of facts can be so quick to make comments that have no basis in reality.
There is so much misinformation in your report about the company and glyconutrients that it is not worth the time to comment much on your article. I would suggest that the writer of this article do some research on glyconutients, discover the difference between pyramid schemes and network marketing, for example. I have been using glyconutrients for over 4 years now and have experienced a trememndous improvement in my health as a result. I do not work for the company , nor was I paid to write this. I am just a consumer who who has difficulty understanding why people who choose to be ignorant of facts can be so quick to make comments that have no basis in reality.
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