Today's Top Stories (all those
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Vaccination News
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Posted
February 13,
2004:
►February 12, 2004 -
Making All Faces
Familiar for Those With Autism - HealthDayNews via
www.14wfie.com -
"University
of Washington researchers have discovered that the brains of people with autism
function differently than the brains of normal people when they see pictures of
unfamiliar people...The study of 11 adolescents and adults with autism and 10
age-matched controls also found that when people with autism see a picture of a
familiar face, their brain activity is similar to that of other people...The
researchers say these findings indicate that in people with autism, a brain
region called the fusiform gyrus that's associated with face processing has the
potential to function normally, but may need special training to do so."
►February 13, 2004 -
WHO assurance on bird flu scare - The World Health Organisation (WHO) has
dispelled fears of bird flu being transmitted by humans in Vietnam. -
Aljazeera.net
►February 12, 2004 -
Pop That Pill - PopMatters via AlterNet.org - "Around 20 years ago, the word
'patient' began evaporating eerily like the photo of Michael J. Fox in 'Back
to the Future' from the dictionaries of the drug companies. And in its place
came the term, 'medical consumer.' Twenty years ago. That's when drug
manufacturers began marketing prescription medications directly to the lay
public...It used to be that drug ads were directed only toward physicians,
mostly in the dry pages of medical journals. And for good reason. Prescription
drugs are complex things; each has risks and benefits. There is no such thing as
a harmless medicinal drug. In Hebrew, the word for medicine is samim, or poison.
Every drug is a poison."
►February 12, 2004 -
MedImmune thinking twice about staying in vaccine business - CNS via
www.sunherald.com - "The
research chief of Gaithersburg-based MedImmune told a House committee Thursday
that the company may get out of the vaccine-production business, following
disappointing sales of its nasal-spray vaccine this flu season."
Comment: "BL
Fisher Note (from the NVICnewsletter):
When America's free enterprise system is allowed to work properly, without
government coercion, then those products the public needs and wants will be
purchased and consumed and those the public does not need or want will not be
purchased and consumed. That leaves the way open for other manufacturers to
build a better mousetrap and persuade the public to use that better mousetrap,
which is as it should be...A good example is the Prevnar vaccine. The Prevnar
vaccine, without any government mandates, was the best selling new
drug/biological in 2001. Wyeth can't make the product fast enough to satisfy
public demand...In any given year, only about one quarter of the US population
has voluntarily chosen to purchase and consume flu vaccine of any kind. Only
when government interferes and mandates use of a vaccine or subsidizes
manufacturers of vaccines is America's free enterprise system not allowed to
work as it should. At the end of the day, the public should not be forced to use
a product it does not want...There were very good reasons why the FDA did not
approve FLUMIST for use in children under five or adults over 50. MedImmune and
Wyeth both know why. MedImmune is wise to read the writing on the wall rather
than ask for government bailout of a vaccine that the public, for whatever
reasons, obviously does not want."
►February 13, 2004 -
CDC
Knew of Potential Link between Vaccines, Autism - First Coast News - "The
Centers for Disease Control published a study last fall repudiating any possible
link between thimerosal and developmental problems like autism in children.
However, First Coast News has obtained non-published documents that show the CDC
DID have data supporting such a link-- but kept it from the public."
►February 13, 2004 -
New vaccine hailed as HIV breakthrough - Herald Sun - "Medical
experts are thrilled by early results from the injection, which kick-starts the
body's immune system to fight HIV...Doctors say if the HIV level can be kept
low, patients will avoid AIDS and live long and relatively healthy lives."
Comment: But what if, as
some
believe, HIV has nothing to do with AIDS?
►February 12, 2004 -
School worker in Michigan charged with mercury spill (requires registration)
- The Chicago Tribune
►February 12, 2004 -
Mercury worries rising - Proposals that let polluting industries set the
rules - opinion - Sarasota Herald Tribune
►February 12, 2004 -
Mercury found in sink at school - Two Middletown High School students
discovered a small amount of mercury Wednesday morning in a school laboratory,
which prompted several city and state officials to respond. - Middletown Press
►February 12, 2004 -
Warning signs of diabetes: All in your head? - "Above the neck" signs may
help identify those at risk - Academy of General Dentistry via
www.tulsaworld.com
►February 12, 2004 -
Immune to
the romance of TB - The Victorians considered it an aphrodisiac, but with
its incidence rising, the good news is that there is a new vaccine - Times
Online, UK
►February 12, 2004 -
NNMC and NCI study possible vaccine for ovarian cancer - The National Naval
Medical Center (NNMC) and the National Cancer Institute (NCI) are currently
investigating vaccine therapy that may prove to be effective against ovarian
cancer. - NNS via The Dolphin
►February 11, 2004 -
Network of NHS watchdogs launched - An independent network of NHS watchdogs
is to be launched aimed at giving the public a greater say over healthcare. -
BBC
►February 11, 2004 -
Childhood Cancer Survivors Need More Screening -
Cancer via Ivanhoe
►January 2004 -
The effect of environmental tobacco smoke on eczema and allergic sensitization
in children - journal article (British
Journal of Dermatology)
►February 9, 2004 -
Early
Fevers Associated with Lower Allergy Risk Later in Childhood - National
Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease - "Infants who experience fevers
before their first birthday are less likely to develop allergies by ages six or
seven, according to a new study funded by the National Institute of Allergy and
Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
The study, published today in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology,
lends support to the well-known "hygiene hypothesis," which contends that early
exposure to infections might protect children against allergic diseases in later
years."
►February 12, 2004 -
Gates Foundation Commits $82.9 Million to Develop New Tuberculosis Vaccines
- Grant is the Largest Ever to Support TB Vaccine Research and Development
- The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation via PRNewswire via Yahoo!
►February 12, 2004 -
Health groups urge change in vaccination procedure - AP via
www.nbc25.com - "Health
care providers are being urged to suspend temporarily the routine use of a
fourth dose of a widely used childhood vaccination...Three major health groups,
including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, say the move would
help conserve vaccine and minimize the likelihood of shortages caused by
production and supply problems at Wyeth Vaccines. It's the only supplier in the
U-S...The vaccine in question is pneumococcal conjugate (noo-moh-KAH'-kuhl
KAHN'-joo-gut) vaccine, pr P-C-V-7. It can help prevent serious pneumococcal
disease such as meningitis and blood infections. Health officials say cutting
back to three doses from four won't have any adverse health consequences."
Comment: If cutting back to three doses from four "won't have any adverse
health consequences", what is the purpose of the fourth dose? (That is,
other than to line the coffers of the vaccine manufacturers?)
Comment: Good grief. Have these reporters
no shame? For more on why this and other reports on the IOM meeting re:
autism and vaccines are literally "not to be believed", click
here.
►February 12, 2004 -
Targeting hard-to-kill fungal infections - Society of Nuclear Medicine via
www.eurekalert.org
►February 12, 2004 -
Drug Cocktail Might Fight Hepatitis C - Two Drugs May Be Better Than One In
This Case - Internet Broadcasting Systems, Inc. via
www.wnbc.com
►February 12, 2004 -
Diabetes doubles
risk of liver disease and liver cancer - American Gastroenterological
Association via Medical News Today
►February 12, 2004 -
Immune system's attack dogs kept on genetic leash - Loss of restraint may
contribute to lupus, other autoimmune disorders - Washington University School
of Medicine via www.eurekalert.org -
"When they're not busy battling invaders, some of the cells that act as the
attack dogs of the mouse immune system have to be kept on a genetic leash to
prevent them from mounting inappropriate attacks on the mouse's own tissues,
researchers from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have
found...'We used to think of mature immune cells like T cells and B cells as
metabolically inactive when waiting for infections or other signals that trigger
an attack,' says Stanford Peng, M.D., Ph.D., assistant professor of internal
medicine and of pathology and immunology. 'We're now thinking these resting
cells actually are very metabolically active, and they are kept in a quiescent
state by genes actively working to shut down activating proteins.'"
►February 12, 2004 -
Jefferson Researchers Find Immune Response, Dosing Keys to Vaccine's Success
Against Melanoma - Journal of Clinical
Oncology via A Scribe Newswire
►February 12, 2004 -
Expert:
Shots when pregnant? - The Capital Times
►February 12, 2004 -
Vaccine
research: back to the drawing board? -
www.aidsmap.com - "The major presentations on HIV vaccines at the Eleventh
Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections in San Francisco were
dominated by one question. Is it reasonable to press ahead with large-scale
clinical trials, such as the one now underway in Chon Buri and Rayong provinces,
Thailand? Or should the emphasis and funding for vaccine research shift more
strongly back to basic immunology and experiments in animal models?"
►February 12, 2004 -
Drug company greed hurts effort on flu (requires registration) - opinion -
The Central Florida Future - "What
Bush's privatization plan would essentially do to the U.S. pharmaceutical
landscape is put our unenviable drug dependency more in the hands of companies
whose sole interests are profits. That almost definitely will result in a drop
in vaccine availability nationwide."
►February 12, 2004 -
Flu Vaccine Makers Say Gov't Must Increase Demand - Reuters, UK - "Vaccine
makers can not guarantee enough future supplies of flu vaccines unless the
government can help ensure profitability, drug company officials told U.S.
Congress on Thursday...Unless the market is expanded -- either by ensuring that
more at-risk people get vaccinations for influenza or simply more people in
general, companies have little incentive for innovation, the executives
said...'Raising demand is key to raising supply,' Howard Pien, president and
chief executive officer of Emeryville, Calif.-based Chiron Corp. said...'A
universal recommendation... will in turn provide the impetus on the part of
vaccine manufacturers to increase their production capacity to meet routine
demand,' James Young, president of Research and Development at MedImmune, said."
Comment: Can this
really be happening? Are they going to get away with it? If history
is any judge, they just well may. For more on the flu and the flu vaccine,
go to Dr. Sherri Tenpenny's articles at
www.redflagsdaily.com .
►February 12, 2004 - Vaccine Update February 2004
- www.detnow.com - "It
would be irresponsible to leave children at risk of diseases that can kill, and
not every vaccine that can provide protection is laced with the toxic substance
that so many have questioned, but no matter what you may hear from the people
you depend upon to protect your health, the safety of some vaccines is still
questionable...'Everybody wants vaccines to be as safe as they possibly can,'
U-M Chief of Pediatrics Dr. Gary Freed, M.D. has said, but medical experts at
the respected University of Michigan are among those who continue to downplay
any real concerns. Following our first reports about the issue on Action News
last Fall, the university website countered our broadcasts with what it said was
'the truth about vaccines,' labeling the concerns we reported as mere 'rumor and
speculations,' claiming its professional staff is trained to handle such
concerns, despite the fact they gave our producer what they later admitted was
patently inaccurate information to her questions on the phone. Regardless of
which shot is given, one nurse wrongly informed the producer, there will not be
mercury in the shot...Even today, U-Ms website wrongly claims 'no harmful
effects have been reported' from the mercury in vaccines except for minor
redness and swelling where needles have been injected."
Comment: This
article, by Steve Wilson, is just about as good as it gets, and should not be
missed. Thank you, Steve Wilson, for having the courage and integrity that
so many journalists lack.
►February 11, 2004 -
Life Expectancy Box - New federal data show Americans' life expectancy has
increased to an all-time high. - AP via The Herald-Sun
►February 12, 2004 -
Infant Deaths Up for First Time Since '58 - AP via The Herald-Sun - "U.S.
infant mortality has climbed for the first time in more than four decades, in
part because more women are putting off motherhood and then having multiple
babies via fertility drugs, the government said...At the same time, U.S. life
expectancy reached an all-time high of 77.4 years in 2002, the Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention said Wednesday. Life expectancy in 2001 was 77.2
years."
►February 11, 2004 - Children
at risk - Colorado last in child vaccinations - AP via The Hannibal
Courier-Post
Comment:
Not everyone agrees with this assessment. For more on this,
read a letter from
NVIC rep, Cindy Loveland, to the governor of
Colorado.
►February 12, 2004 - Infectious
disease deaths up sharply in China - Infectious
diseases claimed 6,474 lives on the Chinese mainland last year, up nearly a
quarter on figures for 2002. - People's Daily, China
DISCLAIMER: All
information, data, and material contained, presented, or provided here is for
general information purposes only and is not to be construed as reflecting the
knowledge or opinions of the publisher, and is not to be construed or intended
as providing medical or legal advice. The decision whether or not to vaccinate
is an important and complex issue and should be made by you, and you alone, in
consultation with your health care provider.
"A foolish faith in authority is the worst enemy of truth."
-- Albert Einstein, letter to a friend, 1901
"I know of no safe depository of the ultimate powers of the society but the people themselves, and if we think them not enlightened enough to exercise control with a wholesome discretion, the remedy is not to take it from them, but to inform their discretion by education."
-- Thomas Jefferson, letter to William C. Jarvis, September 28, 1820
"What's the point of vaccination if it doesn't protect you from the unvaccinated?"
-- Sandy Gottstein
"Who gets to decide what the greater good is and how many will be sacrificed to it?"