The perfect terror

2010/02/11 Carton Virto, Eider - Elhuyar Zientzia

• Osasuna
• Medikuntza
• Etika

All the ingredients needed for a perfect scare were added to the triple vaccine. The boy had everything: a difficult and unknown disease, the recognition of a prestigious scientific journal and a David, Dr. Andrew Wakefield, was willing to fight the Goliath facing the official medical and pharmacological system.

The fear of the triple vaccine exploded in Britain in 2001 and reached its peak in the media in 2002. Then, the family of Tony Blair, Britain's Prime Minister, was also fully caught when they refused to respond, when they asked them if they had vaccinated their youngest son. If the perfect panic lacked guing, it was put by blair. Nothing, no one failed and, as is necessary, the scientific evidence and good journalistic works were left aside for the benefit of prejudices, opinions, beliefs and headlines. Of course, the result of the horror did not disappoint: vaccinations significantly decreased in some places and, subsequently, there was an increase in diseases.

Twelve years later, Wakefield becomes a fallen hero. A two-and-a-half year investigation reveals that Wakefield and his colleagues did not act properly. Neither from an ethical or scientific point of view. On the one hand, children who carried out non-ethical or unnecessary tests, not accepted by the corresponding ethics committee, and on the other, the 12 children who focused on research were not random cases sent by the doctors, but it was a matter of demonstrating that they had been well selected to join. If there are very few random cases to draw these conclusions, imagine the validity of a study with selected children. In addition, there has been a conflict of interest in this case, since Wakefield received the money from the lawyer of a group of parents who wanted to report the vaccine. In the end we have been a member of the network of the Wakefield Goliath turned into David.

Wakefield will have to respond now for the fact, but if we do not want to depend on another perfect terror, it is not enough to punish it. His work was endorsed by a more prestigious magazine and by a more powerful media system. It's easy to look back and point someone with your finger, the truth, but that doesn't exempt agents who played a fundamental role in horror. We repeat over and over again the same rite, copy, paste, copy, paste, paste, copy, paste, paste, paste, copy... the sequence is so long that it is time to confess the truth. We are hooked to the perfect terrors, and what bad we like. Much more than that antidote look.

Published in Berria