Alright, so – I am still shocked and more shocked about this statement from Dr. William Thompson who is a senior researcher at Center for Disease Control in Atlanta. To give some background here.
Personally I don’t write about vaccines or what causes autism as I am not a researcher nor pretend to be one. But, in the last few days – there has been lots of blogging and online chatting about Dr. Thompson and CDC’s study regarding autism and MMR. What provoked me was the mention of race, racism and autism. Now, that I am eager to combat and advocate. Then when I saw this video, I cried and cried even more because there is no way this could be true. Black boys under 36 months were more likely to get autism after the MMR vaccine. I am a Black mom with a Black son who has autism. Imagine my rage and anger at this, but I tried to let cooler heads prevail so I contacted CDC Director Dr. Frieden’s office to get it from the horse’s mouth. At first his assistant said he is in Africa dealing with the Ebola crisis. Then I asked who else can either verify or deny this story then she said well send an email and wait for 10 days. Well – that did not settle with me so she transferred me again and again with still no answer end of today and said I might hear something tomorrow.
Then just now, my friend and fellow IACC member wrote a blog on this posting Dr. Thompson’s statement on this study and his regret. Below is the entire letter.
August 27, 2014 Press Release, “Statement of William W. Thompson, Ph.D., Regarding the 2004 Article Examining the Possibility of a Relationship Between MMR Vaccine and Autism”
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE-AUGUST 27,2014
STATEMENT OF WILLIAM W. THOMPSON, Ph.D., REGARDING THE 2004ARTICLE EXAMINING THE POSSIBILITY OF A RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN MMR VACCINE AND AUTISM
My name is William Thompson. I am a Senior Scientist with the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention, where I have worked since 1998.
I regret that my coauthors and I omitted statistically significant information in our 2004 article published in the journal Pediatrics. The omitted data suggested that African American males who received the MMR vaccine before age 36 months were at increased risk for autism. Decisions were made regarding which findings to report after the data were collected, and I believe that the final study protocol was not followed.
I want to be absolutely clear that I believe vaccines have saved and continue to save countless lives. I would never suggest that any parent avoid vaccinating children of any race. Vaccines prevent serious diseases, and the risks associated with their administration are vastly outweighed by their individual and societal benefits.
My concern has been the decision to omit relevant findings in a particular study for a particular sub group for a particular vaccine. There have always been recognized risks for vaccination and I believe it is the responsibility of the CDC to properly convey the risks associated with receipt of those vaccines.
I have had many discussions with Dr. Brian Hooker over the last 10 months regarding studies the CDC has carried out regarding vaccines and neurodevelopmental outcomes including autism spectrum disorders. I share his beliefthat CDC decision-making and analyses should be transparent. I was not, however, aware that he was recording any of our conversations, nor was I given any choice regarding whether my name would be made public or my voice would be put on the Internet.
I am grateful for the many supportive e-mails that I have received over the last several days.
I will not be answering further questions at this time. I am providing information to Congressman William Posey, and of course will continue to cooperate with Congress. I have also offered to assist with reanalysis of the study data or development of further studies. For the time being, however, I am focused on my job and my family.
Reasonable scientists can and do differ in their interpretation of information. I will do everything I can to assist any unbiased and objective scientists inside or outside the CDC to analyze data collected by the CDC or other public organizations for the purpose of understanding whether vaccines are associated with an increased risk of autism. There are still more questions than answers, and I appreciate that so many families are looking for answers from the scientific community.
My colleagues and supervisors at the CDC have been entirely professional since this matter became public. In fact, I received a performance-based award after this story came out. I have experienced no pressure or retaliation and certainly was not escorted from the building, as some have stated.
Dr.Thompson is represented by Frederick M. Morgan,Jr., Morgan Verkamp, LLC, Cincinnati, Ohio, www.morganverkamp.com.
I am not sure what else to write at this time as I am still crying and really hoping I will wake up tomorrow and this will be a nightmare. If not, oh my God – this can’t be true. When Dr. Wakefield says Tuskegee experiment all over again except this time it is more cruel. It is for small Black children – This can’t be true. I can’t write more and will need to regroup as this develops and I hope to God becomes a bad dream not reality. There is so much more stories on this, but here is just one.
As usual, above words do not represent any committee, agency or candidate.
Idil – Somali Autism Mom & Minority Advocate