Thomas Borody
Professor Thomas J Borody FRSN is an Australian gastroenterologist.
In the 1980s Borody developed what became the standard treatment for peptic ulcer treatment; during the COVID-19 pandemic he became embroiled in controversy for advocating an ivermectin-based purported "cure" for COVID-19 without properly declaring his financial interest in it.[1][2]
Life
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Thomas Borody was born in Krakow, Poland and migrated to Australia with his family in 1960. He completed both his BSc(Med) and later MB BS degrees at the University of New South Wales, graduating in 1974. He studied Tropical Medicine at Sydney University and later gained practical experience in the Solomon Islands in 1978 in general parasitology and the treatment of malaria, tuberculosis and leprosy before working at St Vincent's Hospital. He undertook postgraduate research at Sydney's Garvan Institute of Medical Research, culminating in his MD, then at the renowned Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota. After further research on return to Sydney, he was awarded his PhD and then Doctorate in Science.
In 1984, Professor Borody founded the Centre for Digestive Diseases (CDD) in Five Dock, NSW, a private day procedure hospital specialising in the diagnosis and treatment of diseases and disorders of the digestive system, with a focus on infective diseases and novel and innovative treatment solutions.
Borody was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of New South Wales in 2018.[3]
Peptic ulcers
In the 1980s Borody developed a treatment for peptic ulcers that became world-established as the standard treatment.[1]
Fecal microbiota transplantation
Body has used fecal microbiota transplantation as as treatment for clostridium difficile infection.[4]
COVID-19
In 2020 Borody announced that he had discovered a "cure" for COVID-19: a cocktail of ivermectin, zinc and doxycycline. In a media interview Borody stated "The biggest thing about this is no one will make money from this".[2]
It later emerged that Topelia Australia, Borody's company, had filed a patent for the drug cocktail.[2][5] Borody was publicly accused of not adequately disclosing his conflict of interest.[1] The University of Sydney's Health Ethics Centre described his behaviour as "blatantly unethical".[1] Borody, via lawyers, denied wrongdoing.[5]
There is no good evidence that ivermectin has any benefit in preventing or treating COVID-19, and Borody's drug cocktail is supported only by a small clinical trial with differing demographics for control and ivermectin groups.[2]
Publications
He has authored over 300 publications and regularly presents at gastroenterology conferences. He is a reviewer for a number of medical journals, including:[citation needed]
- Journal of Clinical Gastroenterology
- World Journal of Gastrointestinal Pharmacology and Therapeutics (Editorial Board)
- American Journal of Gastroenterology
- Digestive Diseases and Sciences Endoscopy
- Journal of Gastroenterology and Hepatology
- Medical Journal of Australia
- Digestive and Liver Diseases
See also
References
- ^ a b c d "Doctor who advocated Covid-19 therapy including ivermectin applied for patent on same unproven treatment". The Guardian. 18 October 2021. Retrieved 18 October 2021.
- ^ a b c d Alexander, Harriet (22 October 2021). "How a false science 'cure' became Australia's contribution to the pandemic". Sydney Morning Herald.
- ^ "Fellows of the Royal Society of NSW (B)". Royal Society of New South Wales. Archived from the original on 30 June 2021. Retrieved 2 July 2021.
- ^ Kremer, William (27 May 2014). "The brave new world of DIY faecal transplant". BBC World Service.
- ^ a b "Topelia Australia launches US$25M Series A call for COVID-19 ATT Ziverdox". BioSpace. Retrieved 18 October 2021.
