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One third
of the members of a British government committee that has advised that
the MMR vaccine against measles, mumps and rubella is safe have financial
interests in drug companies that make the treatment.
Twelve of the 36 members of the British Committee
on Safety of Medicines have financial links with the MMR manufacturers,
whose products they have given the all-clear on the basis of published
research. Most members are academics or medical experts who specialize
in pharmacology.
Five of them hold shares
in the drug companies, or are paid consultants,
while another seven have received grants
or sponsorship from them to fund academic
studies or clinical trials.
All members declare their financial interests in a
register and before meetings. The chairman then decides whether they can
participate in discussions.
Campaigners against the MMR vaccine, who fear it causes
autism or bowel disease in children, claim the financial links between
drug watchdogs and the pharmaceutical industry could lead to a conflict
of interest.
While the government and most of the medical establishment
argue that the vaccine is safe, research by Dr
Andrew Wakefield, of the Royal Free hospital, London, claimed the
trials leading to the MMR vaccine's adoption in Britain were too brief
to detect the feared complications.
The
Sunday Times, London
January, 28 2001
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