“At the doses we were studying, the product was not effective enough to recommend.” This is how physician Paulo Hoff, CEO of the São Paulo State Cancer Institute (ICESP), justified ending clinical trials of phosphoethanolamine, the so-called “cure for cancer,” during a press conference on March 31. The study began in July 2016, and researchers determined in the first phase that the substance is non-toxic. The medication was then given to 72 patients with 10 different types of tumor, of whom 59 have already been re-examined. Only one of them, a patient with melanoma, showed a partial response after two re-examinations and will continue with the study. Of the 21 patients with colorectal cancer, which saw the largest number of volunteers, none showed the expected response according to international standards: a tumor reduction of at least 30%. Based on these results, the ICESP team considers it unethical to include any new patients in the study.
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