November  17, 2003                    

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Vaccination Undermined - Editorial, The Scientist

Comment:  In The Scientist's November 17, 2003 editorial "Vaccination Undermined", Vaccination News is unfairly and inaccurately listed as a "virulently anti-vaccination" website.  Click here to read the recently posted "mission statement" of this website, parts of which were adapted from my February 2002 speech.

Comment:  For a considerably more fair-minded assessment of the "anti-vaccine" movement, go to BMJ's "Anti-vaccinationists past and present": "These comparisons emphasise that, regardless of how the medical establishment feels about anti-vaccinationists, it is important to understand that they have deeply held beliefs, often of a spiritual or philosophical nature,¹¹ and these beliefs have remained remarkably constant over the better part of two centuries. The movement encompasses a wide range of individuals, from a few who express conspiracy theories, to educated, well informed consumers of health care, who often have a complex rationale for their beliefs, related to a "mixture of world views held about the environment, healing, holism . . . and a critical reading of the scientific and alternative literature."¹² "

The Scientist's Junk Science On Vaccines - The journal’s editor, Richard Gallagher, undermines scientific discussion by writing a silly, belching editorial that might as well be an ad for the vaccine industry. - by Nicholas Regush, www.redflagsdaily.com

Open letter to Mr. Gallagher of The Scientist - Editor/webmaster www.vaccinescience.org

Comment: And what about the ultimate "logical fallacy": that although something (i.e., a vaccine-associated reaction) is temporally related to one or more vaccines, it must be just a coincidence....?

Vaccine Concerns - The seizures began shortly after getting a vaccine when he was only four months old. Now an 8-year-old Bristol boy is undergoing treatment with some promising results. - WTNH Channel 8 News

Frontlines | Smallpox Vaccination Plan Is 'Kaput'--Or Is It? - The Scientist

Polio could be wiped out in a year if governments marshalled political will - UN - www.un.org

Nigerian Tests Show Polio Vaccines Do Not Contain Harmful Hormones - AP via Yahoo!

CDC Says Flu Season Is Going Strong in Parts of U.S., Vaccine Doesn't Match Strain Doctors See - AP via ABC News

CDC News Conference Transcript - Update on Current Influenza Season - CDC - "The strain that we're most concerned about, that is a drift version of H3N2 is called the Fujian strain. It's very similar, it's just drifted a little bit from the Panama strain, and our animal studies suggest that the vaccine will provide cross-protection against this strain. In the past this has happened. It's a very common thing."

MedImmune Provides Update on FluMist(TM) Launch and Revises Guidance for 2003 Fourth Quarter and Full Year - Medimmune, Inc. - "MedImmune, Inc. (Nasdaq: MEDI) announced today that due to lower than expected product demand for FluMist (Influenza Virus Vaccine Live, Intranasal) in the product's inaugural season, the company has reduced its 2003 fourth quarter and full- year revenue and earnings expectations. Other than FluMist, the components of MedImmune's business remain strong and on track."

A Canadian National Survey of Attitudes and Knowledge Regarding Preventive Vaccines - journal article

State-owned lab has special niche in vaccine research - Vaccine shortages sometimes lead to thoughts of publicly owned manufacturers. Massachusetts has been there and still does that. - www.ama-assn.org - "A fortuitous legacy in Massachusetts' history has left the state with the only publicly owned, federally licensed manufacturer of vaccines and other biologic products in the nation -- long after other states abandoned similar facilities."

Proposed state plan would hit parents hard - Gloucester County Times via www.nj.com

Service dog helps 4-year-old autistic child - The Herald Standard

Autism NetVerse - “A Literary Journey for the Autistic Mind” – presented by John Hopkins University & Vandna Jerath in collaboration with Autism Arts - A CALL FOR POETS & ARTISTS

Technology used in autism study - UCF center tries to reduce amount of job supervision people with disabilities need - Tallahassee Democrat

Catholic school program here a model for special education nationwide - Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Shaken baby syndrome is shown to be a myth - The Scotsman (May 1, 2003)

Hepatitis Inquiry Moves Deliberately From Farm to Plate - The New York Times

Community Is Reeling From Hepatitis Outbreak - The New York Times

CDC: Flu Season Is Going Strong in U.S. - AP via The New York Times

Pediatric Infectious Diseases in the Headlines - A supplement to ePediatric News

Cytokines as Mediators for or Effectors against Rotavirus Disease in Children - journal article

SARS still keeping health workers off the job - One year later, stress is taking its toll - 'These people aren't coming back' - Toronto Star

West Nile rife in Mexico - Horse sense hints some South American virus did not cross US border. - Nature

Drug Abuse And HIV/AIDs: Any Link? - It has been emphasised several times that a nexus exists between drug abuse and high risk behaviour that predisposes people to HIV/AIDS. This formed the theme of a three-day gathering of media practitioners and drug control experts in Lagos recently. Godwin Haruna was there - This Day - www.allafrica.com

Study: Skin cancer linked to other cancers - AP via CNN - "Women with common, usually nonfatal forms of skin cancer face double the risk of having unrelated cancers, according to a large study, suggesting that the initial diagnosis may be more worrisome than previously thought."

Drug firm accused of cheating state - Said to scam millions; Medco denies charges - The Boston Globe - "State prosecutors are investigating whistle-blowers' allegations that the company that managed prescription drug benefits for nearly 200,000 state employees and dependents cheated the state out of millions of dollars and put patients' health at risk."

Lawmakers seek more oversight of dietary supplement market - Hearings and legislation are launched as concerns rise about dangerous products and unsubstantiated claims. - www.ama-assn.org

Doctors key to triggering FDA's warning signals - The agency's MedWatch program monitors the safety of drugs and medical devices and sounds the alarm when problems surface. - www.ama-assn.org - "'MedWatch is important, and we wish health professionals were more diligent in reporting adverse reactions," said Larry D. Sasich, PharmD, MPH, pharmacist and research analyst at Public Citizen. "But since MedWatch is a voluntary reporting system for physicians and others, you only get a small fraction of what actually occurs.'"

Comment: There is apparently doctor resistance to reporting adverse vaccine reactions.  For more on the consequences of the failure to report 100%, click here.

Make No Mistake: Medical Errors Can Be Deadly Serious - FDA Consumer Magazine (September-October 2000)

The Clinical Impact of Adverse Event Reporting - MedWatch: The FDA Medical Products Reporting Program - "The Food and Drug Administration (FDA)'s monitoring of the continued safety of marketed medical products depends greatly upon reporting of adverse events by health professionals. An understanding of how FDA uses this information, and of the limitations/strengths of the national postmarketing surveillance system, underscores the importance of this professional responsibility to the public health." (October 1996)

Glossy brochures, sales reps bombard heart meeting - Forbes

FDA advisory committee member on silicone gel breast implants may have major conflict of interest  - Public Citizen

British health care dips in global ranking - A new study ranks it 18th among 19 developed countries, down from 10th in an earlier WHO report - The Straits Times

Mom's Infections Tied to Lower Diabetes Risk in Child - Reuters via Yahoo! - "Among girls at increased risk of type1 diabetes, those whose mothers had colds or certain other infections during pregnancy might be less likely to develop diabetes, new study findings suggest."

Keep Your Brain From Going to Pot  - Wired - "The active chemical in marijuana can do more for your head than give you a high -- it could protect your brain in emergency situations."

Arsenic taints many private Maine wells that go untested - www.pressherald.com

South Asian grandmothers' influence on breast feeding in Bristol - journal article

Levels of Excess Infant Deaths Attributable to Maternal Smoking During Pregnancy in the United States - journal article (requires subscription)

From boomer to blooming in old age - www.smh.com.au

The History of Herbal Medicine in North America (Part 4) - Redflagsdaily.com

Schafer Autism Report

Redflagsdaily.com - www.redflagsweekly.com