Career
His renown grew through his treatment of celebrities such as Pope Pius XII, King Ibn Saud, Konrad Adenauer and Charlie Chaplin. Live cell therapy, developed in the ’30s by Swiss doctor Paul Niehans, involves harvesting fresh cells from cow or sheep embryo and injecting them directly (intramuscular) into the person’s buttocks. There is no evidence is it useful for any health problem.
In 1937, influenced by the work of the neurosurgeon Harvey Williams Cushing, Niehans first used cerebral cells, from the hypothalamus and the hypophysis.
Beginning in 1948, he also used liver, pancreas, kidney, heart, duodenum, thymus, and spleen cells. In 1949, he began to use lyophilized (freeze-dried) cells, not only fresh ones.
In the United States, it is not legally available because of safety concerns and lack of proof of its effectiveness. In 1954, Niehans" work, Die Zellulartherapie (Cellular Therapy) was published in German.
Swiss publisher Thoune released the English version and update of Niehans" original work which also included papers by researchers from Germany.
