IT’S nerve-wracking to speak up when you see something medically , ethically or legally questionable.

The Department of Health (DOH) on Wednesday ( January 17 ) said it was investigating the clinic that administered intravenous (IV) glutathione and stem cell therapy to a 39-year-old woman in Quezon City, who reportedly later died. News reports say that an unsuspecting woman allegedly died from complications from the unsafe therapy.

The Philippine Food and Drug Administration (FDA) warns the public on the dangers associated with the use of injectable lightening agents such as glutathione.

In the Philippines, several health and beauty salons, wellness spa and beauty clinics are offering all kinds of beauty enhancements, services and skin treatments. The DOH and FDA should inspect, regulate , and stop these dangerous establishments prying on the ignorance of the people.

The worst drug or product is the one that does not work, does not heal, or save one’s life.

It is alarming that they also offer illegal services such as intravenous drip or infusion using skin lightening agents including reduced glutathione, vitamin C and other injections. These are being shown in social media platforms by well known medical professionals and movie personalities.

To date there are no published clinical trials that have evaluated the use of injectable glutathione for skin lightening. There are also no published guidelines for appropriate dosing regimens and duration of treatment. The FDA has not approved any injectable products for skin lightening. Injectable glutathione is approved by FDA Philippines as an adjunct treatment in cisplatin chemotherapy.

DOH steps up to warn public

Health Secretary Ted Herbosa said that while stem cell therapy is being done in the Philippines, not all clinics are licensed to perform the procedure.

“IV glutathione will whiten your skin and make you look really like Caucasian, but it can damage your kidneys and kill you,” said Health Secretary Ted Herbosa at the Kapihan forum last week.

Herbosa emphasized that IV glutathione is not safe to be used in clinics and is rather designed for hospitals because it is being used as a rescue medicine for chemotherapeutic complications of cancer.

“May license ba sila to use stem cell? Meron kaming listahan ng mga clinic na licensed by the DOH to give stem cell. Chine-check namin yung machine, yung sterility, yung protocols doon sa clinic.

So pinapa-check ko pa yan,” he said in a briefing with reporters,

Only six facilities have been accredited by the DOH to perform human stem cell and cell-based or cellular therapies, namely, the Lung Center of the Philippines, Makati Medical Center, National Kidney and Transplant Institute, Asian Stem Cell Institute and St. Luke’s Medical Center Inc.

“I’m telling you from the Department of Health. It is not safe. The FDA has not registered it for skin whitening. If there’s someone using it, it is illegal,” said Sec Herbosa.

SIDE EFFECTS

A 2013 circular from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recognizes only hematopoietic stem cell transplantation, corneal resurfacing with limbal stem cells, and skin regeneration with epidermal stem cells as accepted applications of stem cell therapy.

Side effects on the use of injectable glutathione for skin lightening include toxic effects on the liver, kidneys, and nervous system. Also of concern is the possibility of Stevens Johnson Syndrome. Injectable glutathione is sometimes paired with intravenous Vitamin C. Vitamin C injection may form kidney stones if the urine is acidic. Large doses of Vitamin C have resulted in hemodialysis in patients with glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD) deficiency.

Given that glutathione affects the production of melanin (the pigment that gives the human skin, hair and eyes their color) — there are theoretical concerns about the long term skin cancer risk.

Other potential risks include transmission of infectious agents, such as HIV, hepatitis C and B. This is of particular concern when non-medical practitioner administers this treatment or done in a non-sterile facility.

FDA WARNING

To assure that your skin conditions are treated, consult only a board-certified dermatologist. Avoid buying injectable products online and from being lured to a promising effect of medicines as beauty products.

Seek medical attention immediately if you experience any side effects and report it to FDA at [email protected] or via online reporting through our website: www.fda.gov.ph. You may also call the Center for Drug Regulation and Research at their hotline numbers.

We all have fears. To grow and get better, we must have the courage to face our fears. Vanity can kill.

To end, I’d like to quote J. Michael Straczynsk , an American filmmaker and comic book writer.

“There comes a time when you look into the mirror and you realize that what you see is all that you will ever be. And then you accept it. Or you kill yourself. Or you stop looking in mirrors.”

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Anthony C. Leachon, M. D.

Independent Health Reform Advocate

Past President ,
Philippine College of Physicians

Department of Internal Medicine
Manila Doctors Hospital