Brych’s defence will fly witnesses from Australia

Press, 25 November 1982, Page 11

Brych’s defence will fly witnesses from Australia

NZPA staff correspondent ■ Washington Australian patients of the cancer therapist, Milan Brych, would be brought to the United States to give evidence in his defence be- , fore a Los Angeles Superior,. Court jury, defence counsel;s Mr Godfrey Isaac,- has said: '. Brych is charged with practising medicine ('without a licence, grand theft, .(arid J conspiring with the late' Dr. Richard O’Connor to defraud cancer patients. At least eight of Brych’s former patients would be summoned from Australia to testify how their lives had improved under his) treat 1 ment, Mr Isaac said. He had also spoken to Queensland’s Premier, Mr Joh Bjelke-Petersen, and did not rule out the possibility that he would also be asked to testify. Brych left New Zealand after failing to provide proof of medical qualifications from his native Czechoslovakia and moved on to the Cook Islands before a change of government made him unwelcome there. He then moved on to California, where Dr O’Connor engaged him as an associate at a reported salary of SUSISO,OOO, a year. Brych treated Dr O’Connor for lung cancer, but, the latter died of it two*:

months after the two men were arrested in 1980. After leaving New Zealand, Brych planned to set up in : practice .in Queensland and was supported by Mr Bjelke-Petersen, but he was refused permission. > Dr Malcolm Mitchell, chief -pf the .oncology division of the'; Cancer Centre of the University of Southern California, said yesterday that experimental work was under way there on examination of blood samples as a possible treatment for cancer? The process involved 'removing blood from cancer treating the plasma, 'and then reinjecting it back into their systems. The defence maintains that Brych and Dr O’Connor per-

formed similar treatment in Los Angeles before their ar- < rest. ■ ■ . The university experiments were restricted mainly to. patients.. with breast cancer and brain tumours, Dr Mitchell said. Mr Isaac also asked Dr Mitchell how often doctors offered .novel cancer treatments to patients. “Experimental treatment is the only thing you can try if standard treatment does not work,”; 'Dr Mitchell ; said. Asked what he would do if a patient expressed opposition to standard chemoth- . erapy without first giving it a try, Dr Mitchell said, “I would ask him to see another physician.” ..