Renowned cancer scientist was paid by chemical firm for 20 years

[cal04]

A world-famous British scientist failed to disclose that he held a paid consultancy with a chemical company for more than 20 years while investigating cancer risks in the industry, the Guardian can reveal.

Sir Richard Doll, the celebrated epidemiologist who established that smoking causes lung cancer, was receiving a consultancy fee of $1,500 a day in the mid-1980s from Monsanto, then a major chemical company and now better known for its GM crops business.

While he was being paid by Monsanto, Sir Richard wrote to a royal Australian commission investigating the potential cancer-causing properties of Agent Orange, made by Monsanto and used by the US in the Vietnam war. Sir Richard said there was no evidence that the chemical caused cancer.

Documents seen by the Guardian reveal that Sir Richard was also paid a £15,000 fee by the Chemical Manufacturers Association and two other major companies, Dow Chemicals and ICI, for a review that largely cleared vinyl chloride, used in plastics, of any link with cancers apart from liver cancer - a conclusion with which the World Health Organisation disagrees. Sir Richard's review was used by the manufacturers' trade association to defend the chemical for more than a decade.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/frontpage/story/0,,1967385,00.html

[Eric J in MN]

1. Atrios would say, "Time for a blogger ethics panel!"

(a sarcastic reference to bloggers being held to higher ethical standards than everyone else)

[nosmokes]

2. a scandal involving monsanto?!? shocking!

Sir Richard is no gentleman.

[robinlynne]

3. oops.

[The Backlash Cometh]

4. He should be stripped of his Knighthood,

The man has no morals. Hell, strip him of his manhood.

[AikidoSoul]

5. lying bastards is what they are

Monsanto was owned for more than a decade by Pharmacia --- a huge, multi-national pharmaceutical and chemical company. This combining of toxic chemical production along with manufacturing pharmaceuticals --is the norm. Look at any major chem/ pharm company and notice that they profit on all sides of the picture... first when they sell untested toxic chemicals, and then again when you get sick from them... and have to use their f***ing pharmaceutical drugs to "manage" your illness.

It is the greediest, most corrupt industry in the world. They have bought and paid for scientists, researchers, university scientists, and doctors who are complicit in denying the huge toll that toxic chemicals have on human health.

I am one of its victims. My spouse and I were both injured by low level exposures to pesticides emanating from an adjoining building during a nine month period. These low level chronic exposures to organophosphate pesticides caused us to have the same symptoms as Gulf War Illness. All such toxicant induced chronic illnesses are trivialized by this industry that spends millions paying "experts" to deny linkages between its products and the human carnage that results. All for huge profits.

[LeftishBrit]

6. I agree, IF it is proven to be true as stated...

but I know that Richard Doll had a number of enemies in academic politics; and some of the people whom I know in the medical-research world (with no direct connections to either side) think that he may be being - as one would say on this board - 'swiftboated'.

If it's true as stated, then it's awful; but I'd reserve judgement till more is known. The academic-political world these days can be just as vicious as the political-political world.

By the way, he died last year.

[shanti]

7. how can this man

live with himself??? :(