Google will now allow ads for stem cell treatment therapy and some gene or cell therapy, marking a reversal from its previous policy that banned all ads promoting experimental medical treatment, reported The Verge May 10.
The platform will only allow for advertisements for stem cell therapy treatments that are approved by the FDA and will also allow gene and cell therapy ads for products that aren't FDA approved if they are "exclusively educational or informational in nature".
While there are 23 FDA approved stem cell treatments, many other treatments are unproven and potentially dangerous.
"Google’s continuing stem cell problem is emblematic of a serious, broader problem with unproven biomedical offerings the company needs to address," said Paul Knoepfler, PhD, a professor at the UC Davis School of Medicine in Sacramento.