Mor Saeng’s herbs don’t cure cancer, tests show
Brews do have positive results, healer says
The herbal medicines of folk healer Saengchai “Mor Saeng” Haelerttrakul do not hold anti-cancer properties, the Department of Medical Services says.
Department director-general Narong Aphikulvanich said yesterday that laboratory studies indicated traditional medicines derived from Mr Saengchai’s homebrew herbs are unable to cure cancer.
The results were unveiled this month after tests were conducted to determine the effects of samples derived from Mr Saengchai’s medicines on seven types of cancer cells, of which three were from breast cancer and the remainder from pancreatic, lung, gastric and colorectal cancers.
The tests indicated that Mr Saengchai’s herbal drugs are unable to stop or inhibit the growth of cancer cells. Nevertheless, they can improve the general health condition of cancer patients, it was concluded.
“Mr Saengchai’s herbal medicines hold no poisonous properties. They are harmless to those who consume them.
“However, the point of the tests were that the medicines can’t kill cancer cells. Therefore, the public should receive treatment in both traditional and conventional ways,” he said.
Asked if tests will be conducted on humans, Dr Narong said it would take time to reach that stage as the department needed to discuss that issue with relevant agencies first.
He also said the department has been unable to classify Mr Saengchai’s herbal medicines as a health product yet.
In response, Mr Saengchai said yesterday that despite the test results showed his medicines were unable to cure cancers, they could produce positive results when consumed by people.
“The government only conducted the study in a laboratory. They can’t test them on humans for ethical reasons.”
“On the contrary, I earlier conducted tests on bed-ridden patients suffering from latter stages of cancer after seeking permission from their families,” he said.
The folk healer insisted he would continue supplying his herbal medicines to the public as long as it was not against the law because patients pinned their hopes on his herbal drugs.
Also, he would not divide his medicines according to cancer types as he did not have a specific formula for each cancer.
Mr Saengchai said he also agreed with Dr Narong’s advice that cancer patients should receive both traditional and Western medical treatments.
All patients who take his medicine should also be treated in a conventional way, he said, adding, around 40,000 herbal pills a month have been given away to patients.
Mr Saengchai, a provincial electricity authority official in Prachin Buri province, became famous almost a decade ago after patients claimed his homegrown herbs had helped cure their cancer.
Thousands of people queued up at his home in Prachin Buri each month to receive free medicine.
The Department of Thai Traditional and Alternative Medicines later issued a certificate to Mr Saengchai early this month, making him a folk healer, which enables him to continue handing out free herbal medicines to help cancer sufferers.