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May 29, 2002

INTERNATIONAL IMMUNIZATION NEWS

"Andrew Wakefield: Misguided Maverick"

Spiked Health

(http://www.spiked-online.com/Articles/00000006D8F3.htm)

(05/20/02); Fitzpatrick, Michael

A report in Spiked Health offers a critique of the work of Dr. Andrew Wakefield, the gastroenterologist at the center of the measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine controversy in the United Kingdom.  Dr. Wakefield kicked off the controversy in 1998, when he published an article in The Lancet which claimed there was a link between the MMR vaccine and the onset of autism in children.  Since then, he has published a number of papers on the subject, but none of his work has actually provided any proof for his allegations.  In fact, several international medical organizations have investigated Wakefield's claims, including the Medical Research Council in the United Kingdom, and none have found any evidence to support the claim that there is a connection between autism and the MMR vaccine.  Moreover, far from working to prove his core thesis, Dr. Wakefield has focused his energies on secondary topics, such as the controversy over the increasing number of autism cases and the surveillance for adverse effects following the introduction of the MMR vaccine in the United Kingdom.  These areas are not only outside of Dr. Wakefield's specialty, but they have also failed to provide any proof for his allegations.  Having failed to convince his peers, Dr. Wakefield has taken his case to the general public and found a ready audience among newspapers and television channels, the most recent example of which is a 32-page story in the May issue of the satirical magazine Private Eye, titled "MMR: The Story So Far."  Author Dr. Michael Fitzpatrick asserts that Wakefield's decision to give an interview to a reporter with no background in science not only confirms his maverick status but, more importantly, it seriously undermines his credibility.

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