Homeopathic ‘quack’ doctor faces jail after being found guilty of fake medical claims 

Errol Denton, 52, faces jail after being found guilty of making fake medical claims

A homeopathic doctor who once recommended the Duchess of Cambridge burn her bra to prevent breast cancer is facing jail over his ‘dangerous’ medical claims.

Errol Denton, 52, charged £650 for consultations booked through his website, offering to put clients’ blood under a microscope to assess their health problems.

Denton claimed he could cure cancer with a blend of diet tips and blood analysis. He recommended ‘food as medicine’ as well as natural herbs to heal his patients.

He was convicted of two counts of engaging in unfair commercial practice and one of selling food not of the quality demanded. 

The offences carry a maximum sentence of up to two years imprisonment.

Blackfriars Crown Court heard that Denton’s techniques are not backed by recognised medical evidence. 

Denton claimed to be a doctor despite having no medical qualifications and rented a Harley Street office at £150 per hour for consultations.

He was caught after an undercover trading standards officer was given a bottle of colloidal silver to drink after a test purchase.

Denton told the undercover officer it would help her immune system and ‘clean your blood’ before telling her she had dislocated her shoulder.

But Professor Alan Hoffbrand, an Oxford-qualified doctor, who writes university textbooks on blood, slammed Denton’s claims as ‘dangerous’ and ‘way out’.

On his website, livebloodtest.com, he told the Duchess of Cambridge to burn her bra to prevent breast cancer. He claimed that not wearing bras would avoid 'acidity' in the breasts

On his website, livebloodtest.com, he told the Duchess of Cambridge to burn her bra to prevent breast cancer. He claimed that not wearing bras would avoid ‘acidity’ in the breasts

WHAT HOMEOPATHIC ‘QUACK’ DOCTOR CLAIMED VS. TRUTH

Errol Denton, 52, was found guilty of making fake medical claims.  

Some of his ‘way out’ and ‘dangerous’ claims included that he could cure cancer with diet tips, analyse blood to assess health problems and said bras could lead to cancer.  

Below are some of his claims versus medical evidence. 

Avoiding bras to prevent breast cancer

Denton advised women not to wear bras in order to avoid ‘acidity’ in the breasts.

He said this could prevent breast cancer. 

But there is no evidence to suggest that wearing underwire bras or bras at night can lead to or increase the risk of breast cancer, according to BreastCancer.org.

Analysing blood to assess health problems 

Denton claimed that he could tell a patient had dislocated her shoulder by looking at her blood test results. 

Oxford-trained and blood expert Professor Hoffbrand shot down Denton’s claims in court. 

He said: ‘The idea that you could tell someone has dislocated their shoulder from the blood is just so way out – I have never come across it.’ 

Colloidal silver to cure illnesses

Denton’s conviction stems from giving a woman a bottle of colloidal silver and claiming it would heal her of illnesses, dysfunction, malformations and blood issues. 

According to Brent Bauer, M.D., a board certified internal medicine practitioner, it does no such thing. 

He wrote for the Mayo Clinic: ‘No sound scientific studies to evaluate these health claims have been published in reputable medical journals. 

‘In fact, the Food and Drug Administration has taken action against some manufacturers of colloidal silver products for making unproven health claims.’ 

‘The idea that you could tell someone has dislocated their shoulder from the blood is just so way out – I have never come across it,’ Professor Hoffbrand said.

He added: ‘I think it is quite dangerous – this is why we all take examinations and are all trained so we give accurate medical descriptions.

‘The earth goes round the sun, the sun doesn’t go round the earth, two plus two makes four and the same here – for blood and scientific study of blood – there is only one language and it is universal.’

Denton was convicted of two counts of engaging in unfair commercial practice and one of selling food not of the quality demanded.

The charges relate to claiming the bottle of colloidal silver was ‘antimicrobial’ and could cure illnesses, dysfunction and malformations, falsely claiming he could resolve issues with the officer’s blood and selling the product which was not of the nature, substance or quality demanded by the purchaser.

The offences carry a maximum sentence of up to two years imprisonment.

Denton was cleared of four counts of fraud by false representation relating to referring to himself as a doctor, stating he was based in Harley Street, claiming to be able to heal people with his methods and that he could resolve blood issues.

He sighed as the verdicts were read out.

The judge, Mr Recorder Rajeev Thacker told him: ‘I think what I can say for the moment, depending on submissions, is that the jury accept you were not dishonest, but maybe reckless in some way.’

Michael Coley, prosecuting, said he would be applying for a criminal behaviour order due to the potential ‘distress’ caused to any of Denton’s clients.

‘Clearly, somebody who goes to somebody like Mr Denton and is told they may have cancer and in fact does not could be caused a significant degree of distress,’ he said.

Denton was convicted of illegally advertising cancer treatments in 2014 after claiming he could cure life-threatening conditions with ‘lifestyle changes.’

He also told women not to wear bras to avoid ‘acidity’ in the breasts.

Denton claimed to have treated ‘2,000 satisfied customers’ with just food and no medicine.

On his website livebloodtest.com he wrote ‘Kate Middleton aka Duchess of Cambridge burn your bra and prevent breast cancer’.

Denton also used his personal Twitter account to boast: ‘Cancer, diabetes, HIV, etc etc, all curable without the big pharmaceuticals.’

In September 2010, the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) ruled against Denton’s Live Blood Test business in relation to a misleading leaflet claiming a prick of blood could detect areas of weakness within the body that could be treated by an alkalising nutritional programme.

Denton posted this blog post on his website in 2012,  saying bras can lead to breast cancer. There is no evidence to suggest that wearing underwire bras or bras at night can lead to or increase the risk of breast cancer, according to BreastCancer.org

Denton posted this blog post on his website in 2012, saying bras can lead to breast cancer. There is no evidence to suggest that wearing underwire bras or bras at night can lead to or increase the risk of breast cancer, according to BreastCancer.org

They wrote again in 2012 ahead of a final adjudication the following February ruling that circumstances in which Denton had used ‘food as medicine’ required the supervision of a medical professional.

After refusing to remove the term ‘doctor’ and the claim he had more than 2,000 satisfied patients from his website, the matter was referred to Camden Council who carried out the test purchase in February 2016.

When phoning up to book a weight loss consultation the undercover officer was called back by Denton’s wife.

She advised that the fee would cover the pin prick of blood, a further test in three months, some products and nutritional guidelines.

They were asked to consider why Denton thought products may be needed prior to the test given that the blood of some clients would presumably be healthy.

Denton asked a number of lifestyle questions, drew the blood and proceeded to profess to the state of her health based on his analysis of her blood.

After claiming to be able to tell she had dislocated her shoulder he handed over some paperwork, an invoice and a bottle of colloidal silver.

When it was later examined, the product was found to have been a food supplement rather than a medicine, the content of which was deficient of that declared by a staggering 99 per cent.

A medical assessor in the Medicines and healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) confirmed no colloidal silver products have been authorised for use as a homeopathic medicine in the UK.

Jurors heard colloidal silver poses potential dangers as it deposits in a wide range of organs while the amount contained within the bottle represented more than ten times the permitted adult daily intake.

The 52-year-old, of Woodford Green, claimed to be able to cure cancer with herbs, blood analysis and diet tips, the Blackfriars Crown Court (pictured) heard

The 52-year-old, of Woodford Green, claimed to be able to cure cancer with herbs, blood analysis and diet tips, the Blackfriars Crown Court (pictured) heard

Mr Coley said claiming he could resolve issues with the trading standards officer’s blood to cure illnesses, dysfunction or malformations was another banned practice.

Denton, who began a degree in traditional Chinese medicine and holds qualifications in holistic medicine, microscopy and the alternative medicine of iridology, insisted his techniques work but are ‘not yet understood by the scientific community’.

During interview he said his treatments were ‘light years away’ from traditional medicine.

Mr Coley said Denton claimed one female client who had been diagnosed with terminal breast and ovarian cancer ‘is alive 12 years later’.

He told jurors: ‘You may think this is a statement which is in effect saying he and his techniques have cured her.’

Defence barrister, David Martin-Sperry, argued Denton was no ‘profiteer’, suggesting the prosecution may have used ‘one syllable too many’ for the ‘prophet’ he described as: ‘Someone who looks to the future and sees what could benefit us all.’

Giving evidence Denton maintained western medicine is overly dismissive of homeopathy.

Asked who else has the same qualifications as him, he replied: ‘Dr Gillian McKeith.’

Denton, of St Barnabus Road, Woodford Green, Essex, was bailed ahead of sentence due to take place on either 13 or 20 April

Denton, of St Barnabus Road, Woodford Green, Essex, was bailed ahead of sentence due to take place on either 13 or 20 April

He added: ‘I still think she is a doctor…she was on a programme called You Are What You Eat.’

Denton claimed he was being ‘stitched up’ by sceptics who have sent him ‘vile messages’ over his methods.

Asked about the messages, Denton said it was a ‘really serious thing’ whereby he was ‘attacked and ridiculed’ for his alternative procedures.

He said that pharmaceutical companies are making millions from patients who do not need medicine. Denton added: ‘Chemotherapy is finished.’

He said chemotherapy drugs cost up to £850,000 per patient.

Denton explained how he had been trained by Dr Robert Young, who was jailed in America after being prosecuted following action from the pharmaceutical industry.

‘I have just recently spoken to him,’ Denton said. ‘He was jailed in America – the pharmaceutical industry did not like him.

‘He healed in excess of two to three thousand cancer patients and he cost the pharmaceutical industry two or three thousand million dollars.’

Asked what he learned from Dr Young, he said: ‘I learned how to heal cancer..’

Denton describing one incident where Dr Young diagnosed a cancer patient by looking at her blood.

‘He had never met the girl before and said, ‘Do you have a lump on your breast’ just by looking at her blood.’

Denton later added: ‘Chemotherapy is the old way of doing things.’

Denton, of St Barnabus Road, Woodford Green, Essex, was bailed ahead of sentence due to take place on either 13 or 20 April.  



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