Chinese quack tricks cancer patient into bizarre 'cement treatment', investigation launched

A woman in China has alleged that a sham "tumour research institute" had duped her mother and her into paying over 200,000 yuan ($27,000) for treatments that involved bloodletting and even the application of cement to the skin.

The woman, surnamed Wang, learned that her mother was suffering from late-stage cancer towards the end of 2021. In a weak moment, the duo decided to give traditional medicine a shot, and that's when they approached a traditional Chinese medicine practitioner in Wuhan, situated in central China's Hubei province.

The practitioner surnamed Yuclaimed he had specialised knowledge of cancer treatment, according to the South China Morning Post.

He convinced the mother-daughter duo with seemingly credible patent documents and awards he had received for his treatments in the past.

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Wang's mother's first round of treatment started with her purchasing a batch of liquid medication for 20,000 yuan ($2,752), which Yu assured her was a simple oral remedy.

Wang and her mother made several trips to the clinic over the following year, spending huge amounts on travel from their already dwindling resources.

And the bizarre treatment began.

The in-person treatment started with the practitioner subjecting Wang's mother to injections to make her lose blood from her body.

Next came the most baffling of all approaches. He advised Wang's mother to apply a mixture of cement and lime to the skin under her armpits, claiming it would dissolve the cancerous cells in the area.

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Her skin began festering after two months of the bizarre treatment.

In April 2023, when the mother's condition worsened, local doctors told them that the cancer had started to spread to other organs of the body.

Despite that, the practitioner stayed adamant on his line of treatment,convincing Wang and her mother to continue thetreatment. The mother succumbed to cancer two months later.

The practitioner later confessed that neither he nor his institute possessed any medical qualifications. "I am not practicing medicine. I just sold them health-enhancing products. My method of bloodletting is aimed at promoting good health; it is not acupuncture," Yu admitted to the South China Morning Post.

Furthermore, he said that the certificates and documents presented to Wang and her mother were all fabricated.

(with input from agencies)