The Irish Medicines Board is investigating the provision of stem cell therapy to multiple sclerosis sufferers at a Cork GP's surgery.
This follows a report in the Examinernewspaper that MS suffers are paying €18,500 for a three-hour session.
According to the report Advanced Cell Therapeutics (ACT), a biotechnology company based in Switzerland, is providing the controversial treatment to patients from the surgery of Dr John Dunphy in Carrigaline, Co Cork.
It is not known what Dr Dunphy's role is, if any, in the administration of the treatment as he has so far refused to respond to media inquiries.
In a statement today, the IMB said it was aware of the stem cell therapy being conducted in the Cork region.
It said it was conducting an investigation into this practice but as the investigation is ongoing it is not possible for the IMB to comment any further at this time.
Stem cell therapy involves the introduction of healthy new stem cells to repair and replace damaged or lost cells.
However, the use of stem cell therapy in the treatment of MS is not licensed in this country, as the research in the area is at an experimental stage.
The MS Society of Ireland confirmed it has been contacted by sufferers regarding the availability of the treatment in Cork. The society discouraged sufferers from paying the fees for what they described as an "unproven treatment".
Acting chief executive Paul Flood said: "Stem cell treatment is in the initial stages of research and the medical profession has yet to publish conclusive evidence on its benefits in the treatment of MS."
Mr Flood said: "While MS Ireland supports research into the area of MS, we believe the immediate need is to increase the number of neurologists in Ireland which will yield major benefits for people with MS."