Herbalist given suspended sentence after selling cancer-causing pills
A medicinal herbalist has been given a 2 year suspended sentence after selling pills that left one of her customers with kidney failure and cancer. The supposedly safe pills she had sold were analysed and found to contain the cancer-causing chemical aristolochic acid. The case has raised concerns about the potential risks of alternative medicines, and their potential to cause severe injuries.
This particular case, which came to a head in court at the Old Bailey in London, involved the sale of pills over a period of years by the herbalist to a 58 year-old woman as treatment for a skin complaint the woman had been suffering. Despite the pills being labelled as “Safe and Natural”, they left the woman seriously ill and requiring regular dialysis after her kidneys failed.
The herbalist admitted to five charges including selling a banned substance, but the judge in the case dismissed one other charge of ‘administering a noxious substance.’ The judge also ruled that due to the lack of regulation of traditional homeopathic, Chinese and alternative medicines, there was no evidence that the herbalist had even known of the potentially harmful effects of the tablets she had sold to her customer.
Food poisoning and chemical injuries compensation
Whilst the case above was a criminal matter, not a civil one, it may be possible, in similar circumstances, to also bring a civil compensation claim against a shop or business for selling foods or medicines that cause illness or injury. The principle in these cases would be very similar to those involving food poisoning, which is something the solicitors here at Camps have helped our clients to claim compensation for many times.
If you have been injured or made ill by a food or medicine you have been sold from a shop, then call Camps Solicitors for a free initial assessment of your case. Our claims advisors will go through the circumstances relating to your injuries and if we think you have grounds to make a claim, we can handle it for you on a No-Win No-Fee basis.
Call 0800 092 8586
Speak to one of our claims advisors about your claim.
