Dr. George Korol used an experimental cancer treatment that blended a topical cream with sesame oil. (Dr. George Korol)

A suspended Winnipeg doctor is at the centre of another controversy after he allegedly gave an experimental treatment to a dying friend and told him to keep it a secret.

The College of Physicians and Surgeons of Manitoba sent Dr. George Korol a letter dated Jan. 18, 2010, alerting him of the investigation and advising him to get a lawyer, CBC News has learned.

College registrar Bill Pope said Korol, 56, is being investigated for keeping the treatment a secret, performing it outside a hospital and without scientifically valid research.

Korol wouldn't go on camera for an interview, fearing a backlash from the college, but doesn't deny performing the procedure on his friend, Ralph Zilinsky, in 2007.

'You know, if I could give him the Nobel Prize I would.'—Ralph Zilinsky's wife, Pat

In fact, Korol said he came up with the idea.

And Zilinsky's wife, Pat, has nothing but praise for Korol, whom she credits with extending her husband's life.

"You know, if I could give him the Nobel Prize I would," she said.

Zilinsky developed stomach cancer and went for surgery in 2007 but when doctors operated the cancer had spread too far. Surgeons said there was nothing they could do and gave him three months to live, Pat said.

"When you're faced with a sentence like Ralph had, it was like giving me a gift.'—Pat Zilinsky

She was devastated but then Korol told her there was hope.

"And he just said, 'you know what, don't worry.' He said, 'I'm gonna save him for you,'" she recalled Korol telling her. "When you're faced with a sentence like Ralph had, it was like giving me a gift."

She added that Korol told her husband, "'If there's any possibility or chance you could live, you're gonna do it.'"

Injected topical cream

Korol allegedly told them to keep it secret because the experiment would go against rules set by Health Canada, Pat said.

Korol used a drug called Aldara, a topical cream used for treating skin cancer. Health Canada permits it only for use on the skin but Korol mixed it with sesame oil and injected it into Zilinsky.

The drug maker, Graceway Pharmaceuticals, told CBC News they have never tested Aldara for internal use.

Pope said experimentation is acceptable in cases of patients with "no hope" but Korol should have consulted them first.

"It's your choice as long as it does no harm and doesn't hurt the patient and if, in fact, you're convinced it will help the family psychologically and it won't harm them," Pope said.

"We can't say to a doctor, 'no you must not' or actively prevent them [from doing the procedure] but we can give them advice on what we consider the appropriate ethical point."

Zilinsky rebounded after treatment

The treatment had a remarkable effect, Pat said.

"[Ralph] had lost his hair, was very thin and whitish-looking but after he took the treatment he blossomed, emerged as a new man," she said. "His hair grew back, he was robust again, you know, nothing could hold him down.

"I almost forgot he had cancer because it was just the normal way of life again."

'I almost forgot he had cancer because it was just the normal way of life again.'—Pat Zilinsky

Things changed in late 2008. That's when Korol was arrested for assaulting his wife. He was sentenced the following year and Zilinsky's treatments were halted.

According to court documents, Korol was convicted of two counts of assault, one count of possessing a weapon contrary to a court order, as well as two breaches of a court order.

He served just over four months in jail and is presently on supervised probation for the next three years.

Zilinsky died in June 2009.

The letter sent to Korol from the College of Physicians and Surgeons lists several things it is investigating regarding the case, including whether Zilinsky was told not to disclose the treatment to anyone, including other physicians providing him with care, and whether Korol told Zilinsky that he was being treated as a friend, not a patient.

Suspended twice before

Dr. George Korol's booking mug shot from California in 1996. (Orange County District Attorney's Office)Korol operated the Westbrook Medical Clinic at 1800 Logan Ave. until it closed Dec. 1. At the time, Korol issued a written statement saying financial reasons were behind the closure.

Earlier that year, in February, Korol was handed an interim suspension by the College of Physicians and Surgeons and is still barred from practising.

The college has refused to disclose the reasons Korol was suspended.

The interim suspension is not considered disciplinary action at this point, just a temporary measure pending completion of a full investigation into a matter, Pope has said.

It's not the first time Korol has been in hot water.

An interim suspension was placed on the doctor in August 2005 and lifted in October of that year. The reason for that suspension also has not been disclosed.

Deported from the United States

Korol, who graduated from the University of Manitoba in 1978, has also been in trouble in the United States.

He worked in Orange County, Calif., during the mid-1990s but the Medical Board of California revoked his privileges after he was sentenced to prison in 1996.

Korol had been charged in 1995 in a number of felonies, including attempted murder, threats and arson.

Documents from Orange County Superior Court show he was acquitted in a jury trial of attempted murder but convicted and sentenced in 1996 on two counts of arson, one count of making criminal threats and one count of possessing a flammable material.

He was sentenced to two years in jail for the threats and five years for the arson and flammable material possession. The sentences were served concurrently and reduced by a credit of 23 months.

He was also fined $1,850 and ordered to pay another $150 restitution to the victim, who is not named in the court documents.

After serving his jail time, Korol was deported back to Winnipeg.