Shirley Checkos This is Me

Education

 Web References

1. 1. Multiple Sclerosis & Quackery

   www.ncahf.org/Mis/resources/ms - [Cached]

   Published on: 12/26/1999   Last Visited: 9/17/2000

   Shirley Checkos of Granada Hills, California, has been treating MS patient with bee stings ever since her husband, Larry, felt better immediately following bee sting treatment by a woman in Maryland. Checkos treats about 10 MS sufferers giving them as many as 25 stings at a time, three times a week. She has given Larry nearly 500 stings altogether. Larry's neurologist, Dr. Ronald Lawrence, a professor at UCLA School of Medicine says that since Checkos was stung his leg muscles are slightly stronger and his vision has improved somewhat, but he have not noticed any remarkable changes. Checkos still has MS and he is still going to have remissions and exacerbations. There is no way to tell if Checkos' mild improvements were the result of the bee venom or natural fluctuations in the disease. Checkos himself is adamant that he can tell the difference between spontaneous remission and therapeutic benefit. A spokesman for the California Medical Board said that Checkos activities could be construed as practicing medicine without a license, but that they were unlikely to seek prosecution because she operates on a small scale and has not been the target of consumer complaints. In another story, three MS patients residing in the Milwaukee, Wisconsin area have tried bee sting therapy. None attributed improvement in their conditions in this story, but two reported swelling and discomfort from the venom. Two stated that they had tried the therapy after reading about people who claimed benefit from the method. The Lawrence Review of Natural Products (February, 1995) states that Despite widespread reports of true effectiveness of bee venom for MS, there is no scientific consensus as to its safety and true effectiveness in the management of this disorder. The report states that bee venoms are complex mixtures of amino acids and polysaccharides. Melittin, a phospholipase activating protein in bee venom, has been shown to induce neutrophil degranulation and to both increase and inhibit the formation of superoxide. Hypersensitivity to honeybee venom is mediated by a number of antibodies and immunomodulators, the most important of which appears to be IgE.

2. 2. Multiple Sclerosis & Quackery

   www.ncrhi.org/Mis/resources/ms - [Cached]

   Published on: 12/23/1999   Last Visited: 9/17/2000

   Shirley Checkos of Granada Hills, California, has been treating MS patient with bee stings ever since her husband, Larry, felt better immediately following bee sting treatment by a woman in Maryland. Checkos treats about 10 MS sufferers giving them as many as 25 stings at a time, three times a week. She has given Larry nearly 500 stings altogether. Larry's neurologist, Dr. Ronald Lawrence, a professor at UCLA School of Medicine says that since Checkos was stung his leg muscles are slightly stronger and his vision has improved somewhat, but he have not noticed any remarkable changes. Checkos still has MS and he is still going to have remissions and exacerbations. There is no way to tell if Checkos' mild improvements were the result of the bee venom or natural fluctuations in the disease. Checkos himself is adamant that he can tell the difference between spontaneous remission and therapeutic benefit. A spokesman for the California Medical Board said that Checkos activities could be construed as practicing medicine without a license, but that they were unlikely to seek prosecution because she operates on a small scale and has not been the target of consumer complaints. In another story, three MS patients residing in the Milwaukee, Wisconsin area have tried bee sting therapy. None attributed improvement in their conditions in this story, but two reported swelling and discomfort from the venom. Two stated that they had tried the therapy after reading about people who claimed benefit from the method. The Lawrence Review of Natural Products (February, 1995) states that Despite widespread reports of true effectiveness of bee venom for MS, there is no scientific consensus as to its safety and true effectiveness in the management of this disorder. The report states that bee venoms are complex mixtures of amino acids and polysaccharides. Melittin, a phospholipase activating protein in bee venom, has been shown to induce neutrophil degranulation and to both increase and inhibit the formation of superoxide. Hypersensitivity to honeybee venom is mediated by a number of antibodies and immunomodulators, the most important of which appears to be IgE.