Wakefield’s article linking MMR vaccine and autism was fraudulent

Godlee, F., Smith, J., & Marcovitch, H. (2011). Wakefield’s article linking MMR vaccine and autism was fraudulent. British Medical Journal, 342, 1-4. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.c7452

Summary

This journal editorial shares how the paper published by Andrew Wakefield (1998) that caused an international scare by proposing a link between the MMR vaccine and autism was shown to be fraudulent.  Initially the paper based its conclusion on parent's memory recall and their personal beliefs to help establish the link.  This was a clear sign that the method of evaluation was flawed.  Further examination of how the study was conducted indicated that Wakefield altered the data to support his claims, which a clear demonstration of confirmation bias.  Even when offered a second chance to replicate the paper’s findings, he refused, lending more credence to the claims that his paper was a fraud.  The downstream effects of this paper are that people put more energy and funds into challenging vaccines than to studying the real causes of autism and how to support children and families that are impacted.

Experience

My experience with this subject matter is deeply personal.  I have a family member who bought into the idea Wakefield presented hook, line and sinker.  It’s to the point we can’t even discuss this subject with her because her mind is closed to the possibility that she might be wrong.  This journal article may provide an opening.  On a professional level, this article hits home because I work in a science-based organization, and data integrity is of utmost importance, so to learn a bit more about the fraud that was committed is shocking.

KEYWORDS: Autism, fraud, confirmation bias, beliefs