Get A Chip Implant Plus This Lovely Malignant Tumor!
You know, I am not one to jump on board the latest "scientific" study that purports to prove that there is a huge crisis in (fill in the blank). But this one appears to be a cause for at least some serious further study. The FDA just approved the implanting of microchips into humans - supposedly this was the next big thing for doctors to be able to tell if someone had a serious medical condition if they were unable to speak. After all, microchip implanting has been done for years to identify pets and such.
Only it may be causing malignant tumors in at least some implanted animals.
When the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved implanting microchips in humans, the manufacturer said it would save lives, letting doctors scan the tiny transponders to access patients' medical records almost instantly. The FDA found "reasonable assurance" the device was safe, and a sub-agency even called it one of 2005's top "innovative technologies."
But neither the company nor the regulators publicly mentioned this: A series of veterinary and toxicology studies, dating to the mid-1990s, stated that chip implants had "induced" malignant tumors in some lab mice and rats.
"The transponders were the cause of the tumors," said Keith Johnson, a retired toxicologic pathologist, explaining in a phone interview the findings of a 1996 study he led at the Dow Chemical Co. in Midland, Mich.
Leading cancer specialists reviewed the research for The Associated Press and, while cautioning that animal test results do not necessarily apply to humans, said the findings troubled them. Some said they would not allow family members to receive implants, and all urged further research before the glass-encased transponders are widely implanted in people.
To date, about 2,000 of the so-called radio frequency identification, or RFID, devices have been implanted in humans worldwide, according to VeriChip Corp. The company, which sees a target market of 45 million Americans for its medical monitoring chips, insists the devices are safe, as does its parent company, Applied Digital Solutions, of Delray Beach, Fla.
"We stand by our implantable products which have been approved by the FDA and/or other U.S. regulatory authorities," Scott Silverman, VeriChip Corp. chairman and chief executive officer, said in a written response to AP questions.
First off, I would never tolerate something like this for myself. Period. So I am not unbiased here. But if there are cautionary studies out there that the FDA ignored, somebody has some explaining to do on how these things get approved. The AP may be reacting to some less-than-credible information here, but it certainly bears some investigation. If only to disprove it.
By Thomas, Sunday, 9 September , 2007 @ 3:43 pm
I’m incredulous, but will keep my eyes open. I’m more concerned about other things. Huckabee wants to tag aliens and tourists, presumably with implants, to allow tracking them. That use might expand. And then there are the Dreamcity illusions in the upcoming movie “Nightmare City 2035″, but that might be a little extreme. Hmmm, the bad guys in the movie also used the implants for tracking people, so it might apply more than I initially thought.