BRITAIN'S leading scientific and medical institutions today joined in support of the MMR vaccine as the doctor who sparked controversy over the jab faced disciplinary action.
The British Medical Association, the Medical Research Council and the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh were among 14 bodies signing a statement stressing their view that the jab had no link to autism.
They fear concerns over the vaccine,
which protects against measles, mumps and rubella, will re-emerge as Dr Andrew Wakefield and two of his colleagues face the General Medical Council (GMC) in London.
The case, expected to last several months, will investigate allegations over the way Dr Wakefield, Professor John Walker-Smith and Professor Simon Murch carried out their study, which suggested the MMR could cause bowel disease and autism.
Following its publication in the Lancet in 1998, many parents abandoned the jab. The research has since been discredited, with many other studies dismissing a link.
The medical organisations that signed today's statement said they wanted to restate that "a large body of scientific evidence showed no link between the MMR and autism".
Dr Philip Minor, head of virology at the National Institutes of Biological Standards and Control, said: "While Andrew Wakefield was portrayed as a crusader for truth, hundreds of scientists were spending thousands of hours investigating MMR vaccine for potential side-effects.
"A large number of studies were produced that show that MMR vaccine is not associated with autism.
"It is one of the safest, best studied vaccines and yet vaccination rates are still not as high as they were before Dr Wakefield sparked this controversy."
Last year, the GMC announced that Dr Wakefield, who now works in the United States, and his colleagues would face its fitness to practise panel. It is alleged that the three researchers failed in their duty to act in the best interests of children in their study of 12 youngsters with bowel disorders between 1996 and 1998.
At the time, they were employed at the Royal Free Hospital's medical school in London.
The allegations include that Dr Wakefield took blood samples from children at a birthday party after offering money.
All three researchers are accused of performing colonoscopies and lumbar punctures on children without proper approval and "contrary" to their clinical interests.
One of the key allegations against Dr Wakefield is that he was being paid at the time for advising solicitors on legal action by parents who believed their children had been harmed by the MMR, but he did not reveal this.
The GMC stressed that it would not be assessing the validity of the competing theories on MMR and autism, only the aspects which related to the researchers' fitness to practice.
The start of the GMC case will see up to 100 supporters of Dr Wakefield protest outside the hearing, including those travelling down from Scotland.
Jackie Fletcher, of campaign group JABS, said the researchers had been the subject of a "witchhunt".
She said: "These three doctors are being punished for doing what the government's vaccine committee should have done in the first place.
"This kind of case will just mean that other researchers are put off carrying out research into vaccines and we know there are many children damaged by vaccines in the UK."
A Scottish Executive spokes man said: "MMR is the safest, most effective way to protect all children against the risks of measles, mumps and rubella."
Should we believe the horror stories?
ANGUS and Lucy Files have four children, but only two have received the MMR jab.
They believe their nine-year-old son Geoffrey developed severe autism after having the vaccination. The couple, from Oban, are now full-time carers for their son.
Their oldest child Tom, 11, also experienced a reaction after having the vaccine, but has since developed normally.
Mr Files, 45, said his two youngest children - Angus and Arabella - would not have the MMR vaccine.
"From the day Geoffrey had MMR we saw a change in him.
"First he started having bad ear infections. Now he has very low function and is locked in a world of his own.
"He needs constant supervision," he said.
Mr Files said the family had been told Geoffrey's condition was nothing to do with MMR.
"But nobody is investigating these children. Nobody wants to know. They just want them to vanish," he said.
Mr Files said the family had concerns over the MMR jab before the research in The Lancet.
"The people who dare to speak out about MMR appear to be the ones being punished," he said.
Other families, however, have backed the MMR jab as the best way of protecting their children from serious illnesses.
Kerstin Doig said she had no hesitation about giving her son Jacob the MMR jab after considering all the evidence.
The 33-year-old from Menstrie, near Stirling, said: "I looked at all the evidence and all the scientific information was showing no link between MMR and autism.
"It just looked like there had been a lot of fuss but there was no proof that there was anything wrong with it."
Mrs Doig, who is expecting her second child later this month, said she believed a lot of the hype about MMR had been produced by the makers of single jabs for the illnesses.
"I don't know of anyone who has used the single jabs.
"The MMR was there on the NHS so we used it.
"If you are worried you could use the single vaccine, but I do not see the evidence that you should do that."
Mrs Doig said she has no hesitation about using the MMR jab with her new baby.
"I think the concerns are based on a handful of cases, but you are always going to have a number of people with autism in the population.
"For me that is no reason not to give the MMR," she said.
Q & A: THE TRIPLE VACCINE CONTROVERSY EXPLAINED
Wh
at
is the MMR vaccine?
Th
e triple vaccine protects against measles, mumps and rubella. It was introduced in the UK in 1988, replacing the need for single vaccines. Two jabs are given to provide the best protection - the first just after the child is one year old and the second before they start school.
Why
has the vaccine caused so much controversy?
In
1998, a team of researchers led by Dr Andrew Wakefield published research in The Lancet suggesting a link between MMR, autism and bowel disease. Dr Wakefield told a press conference that he believed the jabs should be given separately, spaced out over time.
What
happened as a result of the research?
Ma
ny parents became anxious when faced with the decision over whether to immunise their children with the MMR jab . Uptake fell significantly to around 80 per cent at its lowest point. In Scotland, uptake is now around 92 per cent - still below the 95 per cent recommended by the World Health Organisation.
Has
any other research looked into whether MMR leads to autism?
Si
nce 1998, many large-scale studies have found no link between MMR and autism. Autism experts have argued that the symptoms of the disorder first emerge around 13 months - the same age the jab is given. In 2004, The Lancet announced that it should never have published Dr Wakefield's paper, saying the study was flawed.
The journal said that the researcher had a serious conflict of interest because he was being paid to find evidence for possible legal cases by parents who believed their children became ill after having the MMR jab.
Ten co-authors of the original paper also issued a retraction of the interpretation of the findings.
What
are the allegations the General Medical Council is investigating?
Dr
Wakefield, and two colleagues, face a series of allegations over the way in which their study was carried out, including that Dr Wakefield took blood tests from children at a birthday party after offering money.
What
will happen to the researchers?
If
found guilty of serious professional misconduct, they could be struck off the medical register.
