Seeking to prolong their health, four Chinese men have traveled to Ukraine to receive stem cell therapy. The cost? Four million yuan (about 624,000 US dollars).

The clinic in Ukraine. /Video Screenshot 

"Stem cell therapies are not allowed in China, but are legal in Ukraine now," said the tour leader who accompanied the four men. "I believe such [a] service is still needed by a small group of people in China."

"I don’t care if the treatment works or not," said one of the four men who wished to remain anonymous. "At least it can make me happy."

"I've never expected that there would be so many Chinese patients coming to our clinic to prolong their health," Alexey Karpenko, founder of the clinic, told Guyu. All of the clinic's stem cells come from donated abortus, or fetuses that have been aborted.

A documentary by Guyu Studio following the four men's tour in Ukraine was recently released on Chinese social media.

At the clinic, the men can communicate with doctors and therapists through an interpreter.

"Are you feeling any discomfort or pain now?” the interpreter asked in fluent Chinese after the injection. 

A Chinese customer communicates with the doctor through a local interpreter who can speak Chinese.‍ /Video screenshot

"When I woke up this morning, my hands and my feet felt warmer than the past," said one of the men. "I feel that I can stare at my phone from a much closer distance," referring to an improvement in his eyesight. 

"The next step of the injection can improve your immune system and help your internal organs work better," the interpreter said.  

"My wife is a little bit worried about it," said one of the men, 66, who works in construction. "I want to try it before I am too old to walk or lose all of my teeth."

Doctors observe the vital signs of a Chinese man after injecting stem cells into his body of the customer. /Video screenshot

"It is still worthwhile if it can improve my health only a little bit. At least it cannot make my body worse," another man told Guyu, "I would love to spend 10 times as much if the treatment can change my face back to 10 years ago."  

The video has attracted tens of thousands of comments, with many asking: If 400 million yuan can make you 30 years younger, how many people would give it a shot?

"Is this a new purchasing trend?" asked a user going by Leslsie Li.

"400 million yuan can be used as the down payment for a two-bedroom apartment in Beijing."

Experts have raised concerns on the risks that come with this type of treatment. 

"The stem cells from abortions are forbidden by many countries... There is still a high risk that the injection and transplanting of stem cells might bring some side effects," Zhou Qi, a stem cell specialist at the Institute of Zoology under the Chinese Academy of Sciences, told Shanghai-based news outlet The Paper. 

The Chinese government has yet to clarify its policy towards stem cells. Stem cells have been called everything from a cure-all to miracle treatments. 

Aside from blood hematopoietic therapy, the Chinese Health Commission has not given the green light to any medical institution to provide clinical treatment with stem cells. There have been no regulations prohibiting hospitals to conduct experimental stem cell therapies, Zhang Lei, deputy director at the National Engineering Research Center for Cell Product, told the Chinese Scientific Newspaper.