Boycott of Chemist Warehouse

Boycott Originator

DamianL | Email this user

Boycott Title

STOP SELLING Shark Cartilage.

Boycott Description

The aim of the boycott is to tell Chemist Warehouse that selling products containing Shark Cartilage.

Sharks are being hit hard in the ocean with shark finning and for their cartilage now because of an old folklore tradition that “Sharks Don’t Get Cancer So If You Eat Them You Won’t”.  Sharks are not protected and are endangered and need us to help stop the production and sale of shark cartilage products.

THE FACTS:
•    There is no scientific or medical basis for the use of shark cartilage!
•    Cancer patients are being diverted from proven, effective treatments!
•    There have been 40 examples of tumors in sharks and related species, dating back to the mid-1800s.
•    Over 100 MILLION sharks are killed annually as part of this industry!
•    The death rate is: 275,000/day - 12,000/hour - 190/minute – 3/second
•    18 shark species have already been listed as endangered!

FROM THE EXPERTS:
“Crude shark cartilage is marketed as a cancer cure on the premise that sharks don’t get cancer. That’s not true, and the fact that people believe it is an illustration of just how harmful the public’s irrationality can be. It is worth noting that despite more than a decade of evaluation of shark cartilage, not a single controlled clinical study has established that it works as an anti-cancer agent.”
- Gary K. Ostrander, research professor of Biology and Comparative Medicine at The Johns Hopkins University

“Toxicity related to shark cartilage resulted in significant trial drop out after one month. There was no suggestion that shark cartilage caused any improvement in overall survival nor any significant improvement in quality of life. In fact, some quality of life measurements tended to worsen among patients treated with shark cartilage.”
- Mayo Clinic Oncologist Charles L. Loprinzi, M.D., and colleagues in the North Central Cancer Treatment Group (NCCTG)

February 2000 - British Columbia Cancer Agency reports states, "Shark cartilage proved worthless in the first careful scientific study for such products last year involving shark cartilage treatment for cancer."

A clinical trial published in the July 1, 2005 issue of CANCER, a peer-reviewed journal of the American Cancer Society, finds there was no difference in overall survival or quality of life between patients who received shark cartilage and those who received a placebo. 

WHO’S LEADING THIS BOGUS CURE?
I. William Lane, author of "Sharks Don't Get Cancer" and a leading proponent of shark cartilage as an effective cancer treatment. Potential consumers should be aware that the effectiveness of shark cartilage has not been demonstrated scientifically or medically. They should also know that although I. William Lane is popularly known as "Dr. Lane", he has a Ph.D. in agricultural biochemistry rather than a M.D. Also, he was a vice-president at W.R. Grace, which is an important defendant in many asbestos cancer lawsuits. In December 1999, the U.S. Department of Justice filed a lawsuit against Lane Labs-USA. The FDA sought to stop them from marketing shark cartilage with claims that it is an effective cancer therapy.

WHAT YOU CAN DO:

CALL AND WRITE TO THESE COMPANIES:  

Monday to Friday - 7:30am to 7pm
Saturday - 8am to 4pm
Sunday - Closed 

For internet ordering enquiries 1300 367 283 For your local Chemist Warehouse store 1300 734 876 Fax 1300 363 879 Email [email protected] Post Chemist Warehouse
PO BOX 612,
Virginia 4014

Boycott Demands

Stop selling the products containing Shark Cartilage immediately and permanently.