A Sydney doctor is in hot water after prescribing a homemade cream to patients, including a 12-month-old baby amid concerns it exposed them to mercury poisoning.
Dr Tuan-Anh Le was found guilty of unprofessional conduct by the Civil and Administrative Tribunal on Tuesday, following complaints relating to his self-produced remedy, dubbed "Clark Compound" or "CC Cream", which he developed about 2000.
Le was pursued by The Health Care Complaints Commission in relation to three patients - 12-month and seven-year-old siblings, as well as a 32-year-old woman.
At the time, Le owned and practised out of the BHC Medical Centre in Lakemba, in southwest Sydney, as well as consulting at the nearby Campsie Medical Practice.
Le prescribed the cream to thousands of patients, despite it never being approved by the Therapeutic Goods Administration, nor undergoing clinical trials.
In the case of the 12-month-old, the child presented to Le for a range of medical issues including seriously inflamed skin, while also undergoing treatment as an outpatient at Westmead Children's Hospital's dermatology clinic.
Le prescribed his cream for the child, despite other evidence-based, less expensive alternatives existing - and continued to do so for six weeks after concerns were raised regarding the risk of mercury toxicity.
It wasn't until tests revealed a level of mercury in the child's blood five times that of normal levels, that he recommended temporarily ceasing the cream's use for one month before repeating the tests.
The cream itself contains the topical antiseptic merbromin, also known as mercurochrome, and terbinafine hydrochloride, a topical anti-fungal treatment - as well as a sub-therapeutic amount of a steroid.
The tribunal was told Le had considered mercury toxicity arising from the use of merbromin in the cream, however, after testing patients early in its use he became convinced there was no risk either in the long or short term
Le said he conducted blood testing on about 50 patients before, during and after using cream and did not see raised mercury levels of concern, even with prolonged use.
"He thus concluded that it was safe to use long term. He could not recall whether any of the patients tested at that time were children and if so, their ages," the tribunal stated.
The tribunal found Le discouraged his patients from using mainstream treatments in favour of his CC cream, in which he had a "single minded and unswerving belief", despite a lack of scientific testing.
The tribunal, however, disagreed with an assertion by the HCCC that Le's conduct was "improper and unethical".
"We are satisfied that (Le's) conduct sprang from an unshakeable conviction that the cream he developed and produced represented help when other treatments had not worked," the judgment said.
"That belief led him to conduct himself in a way which we have found constituted unsatisfactory professional conduct, but it does not amount to either unethical or improper conduct in the practise of medicine."
The matter is listed for hearing on February 25, 2026 to determine which orders are necessary to protect the health and safety of the public, including suspension or cancellation of his registration as a practitioner.
