Shark Cartilage and Cancer Treatment

February 22, 2005

Earlier this month, the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) issued US 6,855,338 to Canadian research company Les Labs Aeterna, Inc. The patent is titled, “Anti-tumor therapies comprising a combination of a cartilage extract and an anti-neoplastic agent providing high efficacy and low toxic side effects.” The ‘338 is the latest addition to Aeterna’s family of patents on shark cartilage and its controversial use in treating cancer.

The use of shark cartilage as a treatment for cancer was popularized by I. William Lane’s appearance on CNN in 1993 to discuss his newly-published book, “Sharks Don’t Get Cancer.” Lane’s son, Andrew Lane founded Lane Labs and began marketing the shark cartilage product Benefin. Lane Labs promotional material indicated that the supplement could treat, cure and/or prevent cancer. However, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) never approved these claims. Federal Trade Commission charged Lane Labs and William and Andrew Lane with “making false and unsubstantiated claims” and false representation of clinical trials. The parties settled the charges on June 29, 2000. In settling the FTC filed two Stipulated Final Orders, prohibiting the defendants from “representing that BeneFin or any other shark cartilage product prevents, treats or cures cancer, unless they have evidence to substantiate such claims”.

The patent on anti-cancer uses of shark cartilage (US 5,075,112) that had been issued to I. William Lane in 1991 was now of little use to him or Lane Labs. After passing to several other companies, Les Labs Aeterna took ownership of the patent on October 2, 2000. Les Labs Aeterna has additionally been granted ten patents from the USPTO, including the ’338 patent, as a result of its own work.

Still, the evidence that shark cartilage can be useful in treating cancer is scarce. According to Dr. Stephen Barrett, a retired physician and owner of quackwatch.org, the combination therapy disclosed in the ‘338 patent does not provide strong evidence that shark cartilage administered together with other anti-cancer agents would be any safer or more effective than anti-cancer drugs alone. “To be marketed legally, products have to be recognized by experts as generally safe and effective for the claimed purpose. In most cases that means FDA approval. In this case, it would also mean clinical trials if they’re making any claim at all that the combination has a benefit. I don’t think they can get it approved,” explained Dr. Barrett.

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