LONDON – The doctor who caused a huge controversy in Britain by linking children’s triple MMR vaccine to autism acted unethically and dishonestly and had failed in his duties as a responsible consultant, a disciplinary panel ruled on Thursday.
The General Medical Council (GMC) said Andrew Wakefield had shown a “callous disregard” for the suffering of children and had brought the medical profession “into disrepute”.
The charges against him ran to over 90 pages and included accusations that he carried out invasive tests on children that were against their best clinical interests.
Dr Wakefield’s study in the medical journal the Lancet in 1998 suggested a link between the combined measles, mumps and rubella jab, and autism and bowel disease. The GMC panel charged that the way the research was presented was “irresponsible and dishonest”.
Dr Wakefield’s assertion caused one of the biggest medical rows in a generation. It led to a big fall in vaccinations, and a corresponding rise in cases of measles. Vaccination rates are now recovering, and his research has been discredited worldwide. Dr Wakefield remained defiant. “The allegations against me and against my colleagues are both unfounded and unjust . . .” he said. – (Reuters)