Wakefield Attempts (yet again) to Silence a Critic

Andrew Jeremy Wakefield has issued a letter to blogger Emily Willingham of Forbes accusing her of "malicious defamation" in an article she posted, “Blame Wakefield For Missed Autism-Gut Connection.”

This Pediatrics review of autism and gut disorders found higher rates of constipation, diarrhea, and stomach pain among autistic people. But the authors do not once mention anxiety.
That in spite of the fact that anxiety is a key feature of autism and that research suggests that autism and anxiety are indeed linked.  And that gut conditions like diarrhea and constipation and gut pain are often related to anxiety.
When children aren’t autistic and they have stomach pain or constipation or diarrhea, the frequent conclusion is that stress and anxiety are the cause and predictive of anxiety in adulthood. Indeed, with that little nervous system parked there in our gut, it’s no wonder that things get a little seized up and out of rhythm when the rest of us does.

Pressure (Photo credit: kevin dooley)

So why is it that no one attends to this clear (to me) link when it come to autistic children? Well, the Pediatrics review by McElhanon et al. happens to cite that reason several times:  Wakefield’s MMR/autism/gut red herring and the subsequent noxious cloud that his fraud left over any research examining autism and the gut. So we don’t know anything about the real underlying causes of these digestive problems among autistic children. The Pediatrics authors state it unequivocally:

It is clear that greater clinical and research scrutiny is needed to increase awareness on this topic and thus support development of the best standards of care. Previous controversy surrounding the MMR vaccine and proposed causal link between ASD and infection of the GI tract probably deterred investigators from dedicating resources to examine GI functioning in this population while fostering uncertainty in the ASD community regarding the validity of this line of inquiry.

Another thing for which to thank Andrew Wakefield, a self-described “academic gastroenterologist.” Someone with that specialization would have been the perfect person to make this connection between anxiety in autistic people and gut discomfort. One more among so many opportunities for understanding and intervention missed, even as public health in general and the health of autistic children specifically continue to suffer.
Perhaps now, with this Pediatrics review disconnecting Wakefield from the picture altogether and encouraging genuine investigation, researchers will feel more justified in pursuing this question with valid, testable hypotheses and studies that might lead to effective interventions for GI distress among autistic people.

Wakefield is currently embroiled in a lawsuit against Brian Deer, The British Medical Journal (BMJ) and Fiona Godlee for defamation. Given how TIME magazine has dubbed Andrew Jeremy Wakefield one of the "Great Science Frauds",  or how CNN has called Andrew Jeremy Wakefield's Lancet study "an elaborate fraud" or how the New York Times has called Andrew Jeremy Wakefield "one of the most reviled doctors of his generation" and other journalists and numerous bloggers have "blamed" Andrew Jeremy Wakefield for derailing autism research and reduced uptake of vaccines, it seems rather odd that Wakefield would now single out Emily Willingham and Forbes.

His sad little letter to Dr. Willingham and Forbes has been published on none other than Age of Autism, the revolting den of autistic-haters and Wakefield devotees. Curiously, he penned the threatening letter himself rather than have an attorney draft and send it.

Ms. Emily Willingham
Forbes Magazine
60 Fifth Avenue,
New York, NY 10011.
04.30.14
Re:       Malicious defamation of Dr. Andrew Wakefield

Without prejudice

Dear Emily Willingham,
            It has been brought to my attention that on or about April 30, 2014, Forbes ran an online article authored by you entitled, “Blame Wakefield For Missed Autism-Gut Connection.” The article can be found online at:
http://www.forbes.com/sites/emilywillingham/2014/04/30/blame-wakefield-for-missed-autism-gut-connection/
In this letter you made demonstrably false and misleading claims that have the effect of defaming me. Your false and defamatory statements are reckless, stated without due regard to the available evidence, and malicious. Accordingly, pending review by my lawyers, you will be sued for defamation.
            Specifically, your article states, as a matter of fact that:
Wakefield’s MMR/autism/gut red herring and the subsequent noxious cloud that his fraud left over any research examining autism and the gut.
            In making this false and malicious allegation of fraud, you erroneously ascribe the above statement to a “cite” from the authors of an article published in the medical journal Pediatrics when you write:
Well, the Pediatrics review by McElhanon et al. happens to cite that reason several times: Wakefield’s MMR/autism/gut red herring and the subsequent noxious cloud that his fraud… The Pediatrics authors state it unequivocally:
            On any ordinary reading, the intent of your statement is clear: to imply that the authors of the Pediatrics paper cite fraud on my part.  What McElhanon et al actually say is substantially different from your false and defamatory allegation i.e.,
It is clear that greater clinical and research scrutiny is needed to increase awareness on this topic and thus support development of the best standards of care. Previous controversy surrounding the MMR vaccine and proposed causal link between ASD and infection of the GI tract probably deterred investigators from dedicating resources to examine GI functioning in this population while fostering uncertainty in the ASD community regarding the validity of this line of inquiry.[1]
            There has been a substantial amount of inaccurate and misleading reporting regarding me and my work in multiple publications.  Some of the most egregious statements that have been made about me appeared in the British Medical Journal and in publications by Mr. Brian Deer.  As you should be aware, I am suing the British Medical Journal, its editor Dr. Fiona Godlee, and Brian Deer for defamation in state District Court in Travis County, Texas.  The case is Cause No. D-1-GN-12-000003, Dr. Andrew J Wakefield v. The British Medical Journal, et.al.  The case is currently on jurisdictional appeal, a matter that is irrelevant to either the factual merits of the case or to the prosecution of defendants such as you, based, as you are, in the United States.
            The pleadings and other papers on file in that case set forth my position regarding numerous statements made by Brian Deer, Dr. Godlee and the BMJ. I have filed affidavits in that case which support my claim that false and defamatory statements have been made about me.  The documents on file are public records to which you and Forbes have had access for some considerable time. These documents demonstrate that the scientific research conducted by me and published in the Lancet Paper was not fraudulent. It appears that you have failed in the most basic process of due diligence by not availing yourself of this information before making your defamatory statements. Your actions show a reckless disregard for the truth and are clear evidence of malice on your part; pending legal advice, you will be prosecuted accordingly.
            Further, you are advised that there is, in fact, a substantial body of peer reviewed and published work that corroborates the presence of gastrointestinal pathology in a substantial proportion of children with autism. The Lancet Paper was the stimulus for this compelling and important. I suggest that you avail yourself of this body of work in anticipation of legal proceedings against you. The microscopic, cellular, molecular, microbial, and pathophysiological changes that have been reported by independent researchers may prove to be somewhat challenging to your flimsy notion of “anxiety.”
      You are also advised that I live and work in Austin, Texas where my business is headquartered, and that my work is conducted throughout the US. Your defamatory statements about me will undoubtedly cause me to suffer significant personal and financial damage.
            My lawyers are currently dealing with Deer and his co-defendants. They will be turning their attention to you well within the statute of limitations for filing a case against you and Forbes.
Yours faithfully,
Dr. Andrew J Wakefield MB.BS
c.c.
Bill Parrish
James Moody Esq.
Dawn Loughborough DAIR

This is undoubtedly yet another pathetic attempt by Andrew Jeremy Wakefield to silence critics and whip up support amongst his devoted followers.  Dr. Willingham has my support and hope that Forbes will do the right thing by standing behind their bloggers and not caving to such vexatious and frivolous threats.

ETA (5.2.14): Dr. Willingham has posted this addendum in light of Andrew Jeremy Wakefield's threatening letter:

Following publication of this post, Forbes received a letter from Andrew Wakefield claiming that the post contained “demonstrably false and misleading claims” about him. Specifically, Wakefield writes that the post implies “that the authors of the Pediatrics paper cite fraud on my part” and that “what Mcelhanon et al actually say is substantially different from your false and defamatory allegation”. He claims that “there has been a substantial amount of inaccurate and misleading reporting” about him including the report issued by the British Medical Journal, which he is currently suing. Despite dismissal of that suit on jurisdictional grounds, Wakefield insists that documents in that case will show that “the scientific research conducted by [him] and published in the Lancet paper was not fraudulent”. Wakefield provided a full copy of his letter to Age of Autism, which has published it here.