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Bitter truth of Dakshitha & Rajapaksa’s ‘bitter gourd’ cancer meds

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The Opposition is planning to raise a question in Parliament about two institutions that have obtained licenses from the Department of Ayurveda for the production of a medicine and a dietary supplement claiming to be for cancer by showing the same research results, Sri Lanka Mirror learns.

They are a capsule by the name ‘α-Elostera’ marketed by Ceylon Green Ayurveda Company as a solution for cancer and made from bitter gourd seeds and a food supplement released to the market as ‘LivingMo 600’ by Prime Health Herbal Products.

However, both the medicine and the food supplement have been made by using the research conducted by a team including Prof. Jayantha Rajapaksa and Professor Anura Jayasuriya of the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine at the Peradeniya University where they have purportedly discovered anticancer activity of bitter gourd seeds.

When Professor Jayantha Rajapaksa is producing the capsule as a food supplement, one Dakshitha Thilanga Sumathipala, a businessman who has no relation to the research, has obtained a license to manufacture the capsule as a medicine.

Experts in the Ayurvedic field said that giving approval by the Ayurveda Formulary Committee for both these endeavors is ludicrous.

Meanwhile, Ceylon Green Ayurveda has blatantly violated several terms set by the Department of Ayurveda when manufacturing the capsule.

The sign board of the ‘Ceylon Green Cancer Wellness Center’ operated by the company located near the Apeksha Hospital to sell this capsule, has not mentioned that it is an Ayurvedic medicine shop.

Accordingly, they have deliberately misled the patients.

An Ayurvedic dispensary must have personnel registered with the Ayurvedic Department and only they can prescribe medicine.

However, the clip below shows how those who contact the company’s phone number can get medicines prescribed by one of its salespersons.

Dakshitha’s Ceylon Green Ayurveda has published advertisements to promote the capsule on the internet without the permission of the Ministry of Health.

Meanwhile, the Ayurveda Formulary Committee has given permission for the capsule and the food supplement when there has been no mention in traditional books on indigenous medicine that bitter gourd has anticancer qualities.

If Professor Rajapaksa intends to use the research results for a product with commercial purposes, he must obtain the permission from the University of Peradeniya which facilitated the research.

Doing so would enable the university to receive an economic advantage but it was revealed during our investigation that there has been no such advantage.

Although Professor Rajapaksa said that the capsule was subjected to a clinical trial post-production, the Ministry of Health and the National Medicines Regulatory Authority (NMRA) told us that they do not have any evidence of such a clinical trial.

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Weather Alert: Showers to ease in Southwest, strong winds forecast in North

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Prevailing showery condition in the southwestern part of the island is expected to reduced gradually from today (01st)

Showers or thundershowers will occur at times in Western, Sabaragamuwa, Central and North-western provinces and in Galle and Matara districts.

Showers or thundershowers may occur at a few places in Uva province and in Ampara and Batticaloa districts during the afternoon or night.

Fairly strong winds of about (30-40) kmph can be expected at times over Western slopes of the central hills and in Northern, North-central and North-western provinces and in Hambantota and Trincomalee districts.

The general public is kindly requested to take adequate precautions to minimize damages caused by temporary localized strong winds and lightning during thundershowers.

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Aluthgamage and Fernando assigned printing work in prison

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Former Minister Mahindananda Aluthgamage and former Sathosa Chairman Nalin Fernando, sentenced this week to jail for 20 and 25 years, respectively, have been assigned duties in the printing section at the Welikada prison, sources said.

Both of them are being held together away from the main section of the prison’s ‘chapel’ section, where prisoners serving life sentences and those convicted of murder and rape are held. The prison’s printing section prints its own documentation.

Prison sources said that in placing them in relevant wards to serve their jail term, the authorities had taken into consideration the security of the two convicts, as they might have had political enemies.

Mr Aluthgamage was handed a 20-year term of rigorous imprisonment, while Mr Fernando was given a 25-year term of rigorous imprisonment by a High Court trial-at-bar after being found guilty of causing a Rs 53 million loss to the state.

They were accused of importing carrom boards and checkers boards through Sathosa during the 2015 presidential elections and distributing them to clubs.

Their lawyers said yesterday they were awaiting the certified copy of the judgement to prepare the appeal papers. The appeal will be considered by the Supreme Court.

(sundaytimes.lk)
(This story, originally published by sundaytimes.lk has not been edited by SLM staff)

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COVID subvariants spreading in Asia detected in Sri Lanka

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The Medical Research Institute of Sri Lanka has confirmed that the COVID-19 variant currently spreading in the Asian region has also been identified in the country.

Dr. Jude Jayamaha, a specialist in viral diseases at the Medical Research Institute, stated that patients infected with the Omicron subvariants LF.7 and XFG are being reported locally.

Dr. Jayamaha explained that this finding was confirmed through research conducted on biological samples collected from several hospitals across the island.

However, he emphasized that there is no need for undue fear regarding these COVID-19 variants.

Health authorities have also stressed the importance of vulnerable groups—such as pregnant mothers, the elderly, and those with chronic illnesses—following health guidelines, including wearing face masks and avoiding crowded places.

Dr. Jayamaha reiterated that new COVID-19 variants emerge periodically, and health authorities are continuously monitoring the situation, so the public should remain calm.

(newswire.lk)

(This story, originally published by newswire.lk has not been edited by SLM staff)

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