Despite losing his medical license, Wakefield says he will continue research
msnbc.com
By Michael Inbar
TODAYshow.com contributor
updated 3:18 p.m. ET, Mon., May 24, 2010
The doctor who suggested a possible link between childhood vaccines and autism stands by his theory and said on Monday that he will continue his research despite having his medical license revoked Monday.
In a TODAY exclusive, Dr. Andrew Wakefield, the most famous face behind the movement of those who believe autism is linked to the vaccine for measles, mumps and rubella (MMR), remains convinced that he is on the right side of the facts, and says he will not be silenced — even after England’s General Medical Council yanked his license to practice medicine.
“This is a little bump on the road, and that’s how it should be perceived,” Wakefield told Matt Lauer live on TODAY Monday. “It’s a bump on a very bumpy road, but it’s a bump. What it does not detract from is the fact that there are millions of children out there suffering, and the fact that the vaccines cause autism.”
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The MMR vaccine has been in use since 1971 and has been administered to some 500 million people in 60 countries, including the U.S. Wakefield ignited a firestorm of controversy surrounding MMR when, in 1998, he published a study in the medical journal The Lancet claiming he unearthed eight cases of families reporting autism symptoms appearing within days of their children receiving the inoculation. more …
