Cancer Profiteers 2.0

He has gone by many names, but the playbook has not changed. Six years after uSpiked first exposed Michael Honsue Cho, known to some as Chairman Cho, for peddling a fake cancer cure, the self-styled biotech entrepreneur has resurfaced, this time with new partners, a new alias, and the same old  deception.

His latest act has misled vulnerable cancer patients and stripped Australian investors of nearly AUD 19.5 million.

Now, regulators from both Australia and South Africa have stepped in. The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) is investigating investor losses, while the South African Health Products Regulatory Authority (SAHPRA) is monitoring Cho's attempts to reintroduce the discredited therapy here.

Quantifying corruption and fraud

when justice failed, the scam took root

In 2019, uSpiked revealed that Cho’s company, the Cho Group, was marketing a fake “cancer cure” under the brand Photosoft and NGPDT, a product we described as snake oil packaged in pseudoscience.

The exposé should have stopped him. Instead, Cho’s lawyer – Brett Heading, then of the prestigious Jones Day and now Chairman of Hamilton Locke – in a SLAPP (strategic lawsuits against public participation) suit, sued uSpiked’s editor in a Brisbane court. He obtained a default judgment of AUD 350,000 after concealing critical information: that Cho was already under ASIC scrutiny for breaching ASX Listing Rules 11.1.2 and 11.3.

The ruling silenced our warnings and opened the door for Cho's next wave of deceit. He ‘sold’ the Photosoft Intellectual Property to Invion Limited (ASX: IVX) for AUD 2.25 million. Invion quickly raised AUD 4.5 million from investors to develop and market what it rebranded as INV043.

false legitimacy

To bolster investor confidence, Invion hired Pitt Street Research Pty Ltd, a Sydney-based equity research firm founded by Marc Kennis and Stuart Roberts. The firm's 31-page ‘research report’ presented INV043 as a revolutionary therapy, claiming “tumour regression across multiple cancer types.” Disguised in scientific jargon and a veneer of credibility, Invion’s marketing pitch quickly gained traction.

But beneath the surface, nothing had changed. The compound – still Photosoft - lacked any proven clinical efficacy. There was no breakthrough or medical miracle, just recycled claims and repackaged pseudoscience.

a new chairman, same deception

Playing musical chairs with victims or Sleeper Financial Agents?

Following the sale, Cho withdrew from public view, replaced by Thian Chew, another Chinese born Wharton School graduate and Palmer Scholar with a background in international finance. The new chairmain projected sophistication and credibility, but the reality remains INV043 does not cure cancer. By February 2025, as per the ASX mandated announcement, Invion publicly admited as much, and the company's finacials were just as chaotic – by March 2025, investor losses had ballooned to AUD 19.5 million.

Listed companies are legally required to disclose their dealings to the public.

Invion’s multiple capital raisings (AUD 6.8 million in July 2024 and AUD 2 million in March 2025) could not make the product effective. What was once touted as a medical revolution ended as another financial scandal. Whether Cho and Chew are operating alone or for others remains unclear.

the human cost behind the numbers

Quantifying corruption and fraud

A deeper tragedy lies beyond the spreadsheets and share prices. A 2019 Cancer Council NSW survey found that 82% of Australians had a family member or close friend affected by cancer. In South Africa, 70% of citizens personally knew someone who had battled a form of the disease, according to the National Cancer Registry. The data represents real lives - patients who believe they are fighting for more time, and hopeful families.

In poorer and rural communities, cancer awareness is low, and some still view it as a “curse” or “witchcraft,” which delays treatment, and a stark contrast to the more than 70% awareness among the affluent, according to CANSA and the University of Johannesburg. Cho and his associates targeted the communities where awareness is lowest and desperation highest. The fake ‘treatment’ drained wallets, eroded trust in legitimate medicine, and endangered lives.

Between these two journalists, they have run out of fingers to count those they have lost to cancer since 2019, so yes, it's personal.

the regulators respond

ASIC and SAHPRA are investigating the network behind Photosoft and its reincarnation, INV043.

Who stands guard for the vulnerable?

uSpiked has identified several South African doctors who have been approached by Invion representatives to reintroduce the product under the new name. We are monitoring these developments closely and will report any further attempts to exploit patients.

Under Cho’s chairmanship, the group used an Australian urologist Dr Scott Waters to boost their claim. Invion on the other hand appears to have recruited a South African doctor whose identity we know and we are looking into the  SWIFT payments.

The scrutiny by Australian and South African regulators is long-overdue and begs the question: Why has it taken this long?

The saga of Photosoft and its many aliases is corporate greed and a cautionary note on how legal loopholes, pseudo-scientific claims, and financial opportunism can combine to exploit those most in need of compassion and truth.

For investors, as painful as the loss of AUD 19.5 million may be, it’s recoverable. But for cancer patients, their families and friends who placed their hope in a fake cure, the losses are irreversible.

The casualties of big fraud

uSpiked's stand is cancer patients deserve evidence. Investors deserve transparency. And society deserves regulators who act before the harm is done.

Executives at Invion and Pitt Street Research did not respond to our communication seeking comments. We also want to know why and how Attorney Heading who was a merger & Acquisition specialist left Jones Day. Now he can add SLAPP specialist onto his resume.