Doctor banned from giving experimental stem cell treatment

A 51-year-old anaesthetist in Veldhoven has been ordered to stop giving experimental umbilical cord blood transfusions to children and adults after carrying out the procedures without a licence, broadcaster NOS reported on Thursday.

The health inspectorate IGJ claims he had treated around 200 children and 20 adults over the past two years, mostly in hotel rooms near Veldhoven, NOS said.

The therapy, which the doctor claimed could cure autism and cerebral palsy, is not part of standard healthcare in the Netherlands and has not been proven effective. In the Netherlands, umbilical cord blood transfusions only take place in university hospitals, and then only in limited cases such as the treatment of leukaemia.

The IGJ began an investigation at the end of 2024 after receiving reports that transfusions with cord blood were being carried out in the Netherlands.

The man was linked to a Swiss healthcare provider with clinics in several countries and used supplies from a cord blood bank in Slovakia. Most of his patients came from abroad, with only five from the Netherlands.

The inspectorate said patients were told the treatment was experimental, but stressed the doctor had no permit to carry it out.

Inspectors also found a used bag of cord blood stored in a fridge at one of the two Brabant dental practices where the man works as a freelance anaesthetist, though it is unclear if treatments took place there.

The doctor, named in Dutch media as Jens Fischer, told Omroep Brabant he is convinced of the treatment’s effectiveness and said he hoped to resume in the future.

“We are working to do it the way the inspectorate wants. I find it strange that we are not allowed to do this. A lot of research has been done. Children waiting for this therapy are disappointed now,” he said.

The IGJ said it will monitor whether he really halts all procedures. As long as its investigation continues, it will not provide further details.