FALSE HOPE – AN INVESTIGATION INTO THE SELLING OF BOGUS STEM CELL TREATMENTS

FALSE HOPE – AN INVESTIGATION INTO THE SELLING OF BOGUS STEM CELL TREATMENTS

Sitting in a smart office on London’s prestigious Harley Street, the patient explains to Dr. Stephen Ray his long list of ailments: a melanoma scar, chronic sports injuries, and diabetes.  The man, desperately seeking answers, listens intently as Ray spins an enticing tale of cutting-edge science. “Our treatment is revolutionary,” he says, leaning in for effect. “It’s not just about fixing what’s wrong—it’s about protecting you from future damage too.”

Dr Ray explains his company, Wellbeing International Foundation Ltd (WIFL), use secretions from stem cells called extracellular vesicles (EVs) to heal the body. “We take your blood, send it to our labs in Germany, and put the cells under controlled stress to produce these miraculous EVs,” he says, his tone calm and confident. The price for the cure? £37,000.

Dr Ray also claims his company can prevent life-threatening diseases.  “If you think of a disease like Parkinson’s, the tremors are not the start of Parkinson’s”, he tells the potential patient.  “Usually these patients have had the disease for 15-20 years before they get a symptom.  And so 65 percent of the brain area involved is already dead.  So, the idea is, don’t wait for the symptoms.  Let’s teach the body to repair itself and prevent these diseases”

The man nods apparently impressed.  But this is no ordinary consultation. The patient sitting across from Ray is in fact an undercover private detective and former police officer who is filming and recording every word.  Hired by a businessman, the covert operative’s mission is to expose the practices of a company that markets hope at an extraordinary cost. What emerges from these secret recordings, expert analysis, and legal opinion is a damning picture of unproven therapies, pseudoscience, exploitation and offering false hope to vulnerable people.

These videos as part of an exclusive and independent investigation into stem cell products and unregulated therapies that exploit scientific legitimacy to market unproven treatments.  We are publishing this article in the public interest as a warning sign to the public.

THE SCIENCE IS NOT THERE

WIFL, registered in Bermuda, markets itself as a pioneer in regenerative medicine, offering treatments for everything from sports injuries to terminal cancer. Its website brims with glowing testimonials from professional athletes like American football player Jimmy Graham, who claims: “For the first time in 18 months, my knee didn’t hurt.” Another success story features a wave surfer who declares after a decade of pain, WIFL’s therapies allowed him to return to his sport.

The secret to WIFL’s purported success lies in its cell-free therapy. Unlike traditional stem cell treatments, Ray claims, WIFL uses extracellular vesicles secreted by stressed cells. These EVs, according to WIFL, can stimulate tissue repair, modulate inflammation, and even destroy rogue cancer cells. “It’s cutting-edge science,” Ray boasts in one recording. “We’re the future of medicine.”

One of WIFL’s boldest claims is its treatments can slow, or even reverse, diseases like Parkinson’s and Multiple Sclerosis. “We’ve had patients who’ve seen remarkable improvements,” Ray says in one video.  “Some have even experienced reversals in their conditions.” But when pressed by an undercover operative for supporting evidence, Ray admits: “There’s no primary research on neurodegenerative diseases, but there are a few smatterings of papers showing benefits.”

We asked an expert scientist who specializes in stem cell research and has a PhD in medical biotechnology to assess Ray’s claims.  He was not surprised by the lack of evidence. “You can’t just throw around terms like ‘extracellular vesicles’ and expect people to believe in miracles,” he says. “There is exciting preclinical research on EVs, but the leap to clinical treatment—especially for something as complex as Parkinson’s—is enormous. What WIFL is doing is dangerous and completely unproven.”

“It is outrageous - £37,000 for a rogue EV injection.  These bandits should be stopped.  They use ambiguous technical terminology and benefit from innocent people’s ignorance to sell them rogue treatment that has no scientific evidence based on clinical trial results or approval by the regulators.  At best it is a very expensive physiological saline.

“Ray’s claims are all lies.  He claims he has a Brain Research Laboratory at Brookes University in Oxford, conducted a big clinical trial in South Africa and done tumor research on rats and experiments on all kinds of animals.  In fact, a literature search shows he has only done some behavioral studies on honeybees and limited experiments on rats.  These are all lies to deceive desperate people and take their money.  They are snake oil salesman”   

“The blood taken from these patients is not treated in any way that would give it a therapeutic effect. The labs don’t even have the equipment to do what they claim. What Stephen Ray says—it’s his imagination.”

The scientist’s criticisms go deeper than pseudoscience. “These people are desperate,” he says, his voice heavy with frustration. “They’re sold false hope at a cost of tens of thousands. It’s immoral, and it’s dangerous.”

For a second opinion, we played the videos to Dr Darius Widera, who specializes in stem cell research at Reading University. “I have listened to all the recordings carefully and it is quite shocking”, he said.  “Their promises are nonsense.  There is no proof that this can be used for neurodegenerative conditions because there are no clinical trials.  There are no therapies that can improve longevity.  This is science fiction.  This is pretty much what all these dodgy companies are doing…They are selling well if they apply secretomes at all”.

Dr. Widera has spent years scrutinising the claims and practices of companies like WIFL.  He is sceptical about the evidence base for these therapies and the regulatory frameworks that allow them to thrive.  And he is unequivocal when discussing the claims made by companies like WIFL that they can treat diseases such as Parkinson’s and Multiple Sclerosis. “There’s not a single proof this can be used for these conditions because there are no clinical trials”, he said.  “With the knowledge of what they’re doing, this is obviously nonsense.”

Similarly, WIFL’s suggestion their therapies can improve longevity provokes a sharp rebuke. “There are no therapies that can improve longevity,” he said.

Even in areas where some research exists, such as sports injuries, Dr Widera is sceptical: “If it comes to sports injuries, this is sort of a grey area since there have been clinical trials where EVs have been injected into knees. But there is no conclusive evidence.”

The breadth of conditions these therapies are marketed for, from autism to cancer, compounds the issue. “What is very worrying is actually the broad spectrum of indications they are selling this intervention for,” he said. “This goes way too far.”

“The science might sound impressive, but it’s science fiction. These therapies have not undergone the rigorous testing required to prove safety and efficacy.  They’re exploiting regulatory gaps to market treatments that are essentially experimental,”. 

Widera also critiques the language used in WIFL’s promotional materials, describing it as intentionally ambiguous. “Regarding the therapy process, this is so vague it could be written by artificial intelligence,” he says. “They refer to highly qualified medical practitioners, but they don’t talk about the process itself.” The lack of transparency in how these therapies are delivered and the absence of clear protocols raise significant concerns about their legitimacy.

A GROWING INDUSTRY

WIFL is just one player in a rapidly expanding market. The global stem cell industry is worth an estimated £27.5 billion, fueled by promises of regenerative cures and a lack of regulatory enforcement. In the United States, the FDA has issued warnings about unproven stem cell therapies but has struggled to police the hundreds of clinics offering them.

Dr. Perry Wilson, a specialist clinician based at Yale University, said: “If you look at the actual data—the actual trials of stem cell therapy for things like osteoarthritis—you will be very underwhelmed. These clinics are making promises that the science simply doesn’t support.”

“There is no guidance at this point about removing something from a patient and putting it back into a patient.  This does not constitute a medical therapy.  It’s this classic pseudo-scientific thing when you are applying legitimate terms for marketing purposes but the actual procedures lack scientific validity.

“By telling someone when you are giving them what amounts to a placebo that ‘this is incredibly advanced’, then it’s almost hypnosis…When it comes to arthritis, injecting plasma improves pain scores no more than injecting saline.  There is also a risk of infection.  As this industry grows, someone could contract something serious like hepatitis or HIV.  There are real risks”

Research by Dr Widera shows WIF is not the only company involved in controversial stem cell treatments. Part of the reason these firms operate with impunity lies in regulatory gaps, especially in the UK. “The regulatory bodies in the UK don’t feel responsible,” Widera explains.   “Something like this in Europe would be borderline criminal”.

The problem extends to how these therapies are marketed and delivered. “They are exploiting a regulatory loophole,” he says. “It’s not even disclosed what they are doing—where they are getting those exosomes from, how they process them, what quality control they perform or don’t perform.”

Companies use unverifiable testimonials and celebrity endorsements to project legitimacy, despite lacking scientific backing, according to several scientists. Without proper regulations, the risks of severe side effects are high. Worse, these unproven treatments can lead patients to delay effective medical care, allowing their conditions to progress unchecked.

THE LEGAL RECKONING:

A commissioned legal opinion suggests WIFL may have violated multiple laws, including the Fraud Act 2006 and the Cancer Act 1939, which prohibits the advertisement of unproven cancer treatments.  “Their majestic promises come at a high price, both financially and emotionally”, stated the advice by a senior barrister.   “Vulnerable patients have been manipulated, and the law has been flagrantly disregarded.”

The legal advice concluded WIF was involved in fraud: “These covert operations shine a light into the activities of the fraudsters…WIF is taking advantage of regulatory confusion and inertia.  They have been able to keep under the radar so far.  But the claims made to the covert agents clearly show the whole business is designed around the deception of the vulnerable and the sick.  The activities of this company are despicable, and it is clearly in the public interest they are speedily brought to book”.

The barrister’s advice also highlights the systemic failures that allow companies like WIFL to operate: “The regulatory framework is riddled with loopholes.  The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) often doesn’t intervene because these treatments are classified as ‘cell-free, avoiding stricter oversight”.

Dr Widera believes the persistence of these companies is also tied to a lack of public understanding. “The website looks very slippery,” he says of WIFL’s marketing. “I really wonder how they do patient acquisition or customer acquisition. It’s so vague.  These businesses are very active on social media. They know where to find vulnerable people,” he said.  While he personally avoids TikTok, he notes similar tactics have been observed in Facebook groups targeting parents of autistic children or patients with chronic illnesses. “It might be worth infiltrating those groups,” he suggests.

Dr. Widera’s insights reveal an industry that thrives on vagueness, desperation, and loopholes. His assessment of WIFL and similar companies is stark: “They are selling hope with no proof that what they are offering is safe or effective. Without proper oversight, these businesses will continue to exploit the most vulnerable.”

For Dr Widera, the solution lies in tighter regulations: “Until stricter standards are enforced, the burden of proof will remain on patients and their families—leaving them to pay the price, both financially and emotionally.

“Until regulators close loopholes and enforce stricter standards, companies like WIFL will continue to profit from desperation, leaving patients to pay the price”

“This is not medicine—it’s a business model”, said the expert scientist. “And the currency is false hope.”