Boyd Haley's RE: "WHAT IN THE WORLD IS HAPPENING WITH ANDY WAKEFIELD?"

[jenniferm]

"WHAT IN THE WORLD IS HAPPENING WITH ANDY WAKEFIELD?"

http://www.voiceamerica.com/voiceamerica/vepisode.aspx?aid=51243

 

This special show will feature world autism community leaders with Dr. Andrew Wakefield, sorting out the current situation of allegations carried in the British Medical Journal, especially vis-a-vis the bigger picture of the autism-vaccine controversy. Teri will be joined by Mark Blaxill of SafeMinds and Age of Autism, Dr. Vicky Debold of the National Vaccine Information Center, Wendy Fournier of the National Autism Association, and JB Handley of Generation Rescue. Due to the number of guests, call-ins will not be possible.

 

Listen to Andrew Wakefield explained the truth about the Lancet report and the 12 children of his paper. 

 

Vicky Debold described how the public is becoming aware and thanks to the Internet, much more informed about the science.  She talked about the power and influence of the drug industry.  We learn about the vaccine trials and the scary standards that are used.  There are no checks and balances when it comes to vaccines.

 

NEXT Dr. Debold informed about the Vaccine Summit that was held last week.  "It was a summit that was composed of senior scientists and physicians and editors of scientific journals.  We had some experts in vaccine regulations, health policy people that all came together to discuss the need for improved and methodologically sound research into vaccine safety issues. 

 

"There were a number of topics discussed, ...There is an agreement that there needs to be collaboration internationally to begin working on some of these issues and look for sources of funding that will actually permit independent scientists to go forward and answer some of the questions that are still out on the table." 

 

Dr. Wakefield described the fraudulent work of Brian Deer.  Deer's purpose is to deceive the public

 

He also made some very dramatic statements about why he became a part of the litigation process starting in 1996 involving some of the children.  It was startling to hear Wakefield say, "I joined in the litigation because I was particularly concerned that these children were not getting access to the process of justice.  In other words, when their parents die or become infirmed, they will die on the streets.  There is nothing for these children. Society does not care.  There is no provision and I felt I had to do something to rectify that if I could.  I had a moral and professional obligation to do so. ..." 

 

RE:

I have spent over 45 years in science at the NIH funded level.  I know of a lot of reported (and much proven) fraud done with NIH funds, all of it much worse than a single paper with a hypothesis that was unpleasant to the medical establishment.  Dr. Wakefield did not present anything in his famous manuscript that would have elicited the world-wide response concerning vaccines if there were no “meat” behind his concern.  I do not know if the MMR vaccine causes autism, I do believe that the attenuated measles virus is abnormally high in autistics because of Dr. Wakefield’s initial data and the data of scientists that have replicated his work.  His proposed hypothesis is not an egregious factor, in science we have to do research based on a hypothesis ( I know, I spent many years on NIH study sections and if you did not present a hypothesis in your grant you would not be funded).  Dr. Wakefield is being unjustly attacked to keep others from proposing or doing research that might involve vaccines in the causation of autism.  It was, in my opinion, Dr. Wakefield’s unfortunate position of being the first researcher to propose looking at the safety of vaccines that has made him a target of the medical establishment.

 

Boyd E. Haley, PhD

Professor Emeritus

 

University of Kentucky

Chemistry Department