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Berkeley doctor who offered 'side effect free chemotherapy' has medical license revoked

Published  November 30, 2023 5:47pm PST
KTVU FOX 2

SAN FRANCISCO - A Berkeley doctor who claimed to offer "side-effect free chemotherapy" had his medical license revoked by the Medical Board of California, according to a filing released by the board. 

Kenneth Matsumura previously operated a solo oncology practice in Berkeley, where he touted a unique chemotherapy protocol that he alleged could "achieve complete remission even in patients whose cancers have metastasized extensively." He said the chemotherapy he offered didn't come with the typical side effects of cancer treatments such as nausea, hair loss or bone marrow damage. 

However, the MBC found no evidence, other than Matusumura's claims, that this chemotherapy protocol was safe or effective. It was determined that at least three patients diagnosed with metastatic cancer suffered significant pain as well as nausea and bone-marrow damage during Matusmura's care. Each of those three patients died when their other treating physicians predicted they would. 

The three patients paid Matsumura more than $190,000 for their respective treatments, and two patients traveled from outside the San Francisco Bay Area to seek his care. 

The medical board said Matsumura demonstrated "unprofessional conduct and incompetence" in his treatment of the patients with "inappropriate therapies."

However, Matsumura says that his therapies were not inappropriate, and that because his care qualifies as "alternative of complementary medicine" it should fall outside the board's jurisdiction for discipline. 

The filing states that Matsumura is not board certified in any medical specialty under the purview of the American Board of Medical Specialties. The filing also dug into Matsumura's solo oncology practice in Berkeley, but it did not have hospital admitting privileges. 

Matsumura began administering intravenous drug therapy against cancer using a protocol that he developed in 2015, the filing states. Though Matsumura alleged that he regularly performed intense testing on the medications he was providing to patients, the MBC found no evidence of said tests. 

Matsumura's license was revoked in September, and he was also expected to pay the MBC more than $35,000 for the cost of the board's enforcement actions.