Lancet Retracts Study Tying Vaccine to Autism
By SHIRLEY S. WANG
online.wsj.com
( Turns out, the "scientist" that started this entire meme was a paid shill for the lawyers suing vaccine makers! (reported on NPR) Seems like "science" is as much for sale as anything else. At least, eventually we learn that fake "science" doesn't work. )
A British medical journal formally retracted Tuesday the major study that first raised concerns about the link between autism-like symptoms and the mumps, measles and rubella vaccine. But while the withdrawal supports the scientific evidence that vaccinations don't cause autism, it isn't likely to persuade advocacy groups who still believe in the link.
The 1998 study of 12 children triggered worry among British parents that the measles vaccine caused autism, and many decided not to immunize their children against measles, according to Richard Horton, editor-in-chief of the Lancet, which issued the retraction Tuesday. He called the study the "starting pistol" in the controversy.
Ten of the original 13 authors on the original paper, conducted by researchers at the Royal Free Hospital and School of Medicine, retracted the paper in 2004. However, the first author on the paper, Andrew Wakefield, did not. Dr. Wakefield did not immediately return phone call seeking comment.
"Many consumer groups have spent 10 years waging a campaign against vaccines even in the face of scientific evidence," said Dr. Horton. "We didn't have the evidence back in 2004 to fully retract the paper but we did have enough concern to persuade the authors to partly retract the paper."
A similar concern about the safety of vaccines, particularly with the mercury-based preservative thimerosal, spread to the U.S. as well. Some consumer groups continue to advocate against vaccinations for children, despite the lack of scientific evidence over the years. A widely cited 2004 meta analysis by the Institute of Medicine, which traced the vaccine theory back to the 1998 Lancet study, concluded that there was no causal link between the MMR vaccine and autism.
The Lancet made the decision to issue a complete retraction after an independent regulator for doctors in the United Kingdom concluded last week that the study was flawed. The journal was particularly concerned about the ethical treatment of the children in the study, and how the children were "cherry-picked" rather than just showing up in the hospital as described in the paper.
The authors "did suggest these children arrived one after another and this syndrome was apparent, which does lead you to think this is something serious," said Dr. Horton.
"I hope this bring closure to this controversy," said Fred Volkmar, an autism researcher and professor of psychiatry at the Yale Child Study Center, who wasn't involved in the Lancet study. "My fear unfortunately is that this won't totally allay the fear of all parents."
In the 1998 paper, Dr. Wakefield, who is now in Austin, Texas, at the Thoughtful House Center for Children, and his colleagues, described eight of 12 children who had autism-like symptoms that their parents or a doctor thought were associated with the vaccine.
The Lancet "was very aware it was controversial subject" in 1998, said Dr. Horton. "We were not aware that Andrew Wakefield would wage a one-man campaign against vaccines."
Write to Shirley S. Wang at shirley.wang@wsj.com
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