Britain Bans Doctor for Autism Work

[SecularMotion]

Source: NY Times

LONDON (AP) -- The doctor whose research linking autism and the vaccine for measles, mumps and rubella influenced millions of parents to refuse the shot for their children was banned Monday from practicing medicine in his native Britain.

Dr. Andrew Wakefield's 1998 study was discredited -- but vaccination rates have never fully recovered and he continues to enjoy a vocal following, helped in the U.S. by endorsements from celebrities like Jim Carrey.

Wakefield was the first researcher to publish a peer-reviewed study suggesting a connection between autism and the vaccine for measles, mumps and rubella. Legions of parents abandoned the vaccine, leading to a resurgence of measles in Western countries where it had been mostly stamped out. There are outbreaks across Europe every year and sporadic outbreaks in the U.S.

Read more: http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2010/05/24/world/AP-EU-Britain-Autism-Doctor.html?hp

[Taverner]

1. I dunno if they should ban him - its not as if he had intent to mislead

Or did he and I am missing something here

[Posteritatis]

2. That, seriously unethical research practices, etc. Read the article. (nt)

[Mark Baker]

3. That's not why he was banned

Paying kids at his son's birthday party a fiver each for a blood sample is one example of the sort of thing that resulted in today's ruling.

Also, while he probably genuinely believed that MMR was linked to autism, he was at best exaggerating the evidence for it.

[Taverner]

5. OK - there is intent then

Understood

[semillama]

9. Worst birthday party clown ever. n/t

[Beetwasher]

4. Intent Is Often Hard To Determine, But In This Case, Yeah, IMO, He Intended To Mislead

And is STILL doing so.

[Soylent Brice]

6. check this thread out

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x8403819

posted by Javaman earlier.

[Q3JR4]

8. According to

The Sunday Times Wakefield was originally contacted by lawyers who were preparing a lawsuit against vaccine manufacturers.

Apparently (from what the http://briandeer.com/mmr/lancet-deer-1.htm">article is saying) he received £55,000 to conduct the study, and some of the children that were funneled into the study came through the lawyers who were preparing to present or were presenting the case.

Not to mention that before the paper describing the link between the MMR vaccine and autism was published, Andrew Wakefield had http://briandeer.com/wakefield/vaccine-patent.htm">filed a patent for his own measles vaccine.

I'd say all of this put together is a pretty big conflict of interest in this case.

Q3JR4.

[Odin2005]

7. About time that bastard has the book thrown at him.

[grantcart]

10. They banned him for serious ethical breaches not for working with Autism

[truedelphi]

11. This totally proves one thing and one thing alone - any

Trillion dollar industry out there can diminish the reputation of anyone who attempts to prove something that industry doesn't want to hear.

And in Wakefield's case, he was trying to show that it is better to have single doses of a vaccine at any one time, rather than piling them up together. Not even a major blow. But the vaccine industry will not allow itself to have any criticism.

Meanwhile, the dirty, filthy and disgustingly scummy laboratories continue to shower the public with the contaminated products that they claim are safe. Inspections are few and far between.