The Measles Vaccine

Everything you need to know & more...

If you haven’t read part 1 of this series about measles, go back and read it first.

For more than 20 years, the measles vaccine has been the hallmark of anti-vaccination campaigns. And while I detail why this is the case and how misinformation can spread like wildfire below, the take-away message of this post is crystal clear —

The measles vaccine is safe & effective.

The measles virus has first isolated (from the blood of a 13-year-old named David Edmonston, who went to school in Boston) in 1954. The Edmonston-B strain of the virus, named after David, was transformed into a vaccine and licensed in 1963.

The measles vaccine is a live, attenuated vaccine. In other words, the live measles virus is weakened in order to stimulate the immune system but not cause disease when it is injected into an individual. Specifically, the measles virus is passed through chick embryo cells 40 times in order to weaken it. The process of growing and regrowing the virus in cell cultures decreases the virulence of the virus (its ability to make one sick) but does not influence the structure of the virus. So when the weakened form is used in the vaccine, the body identifies the virus as a pathogen/foreign invader, builds an antibody response, and then remembers the virus so it can fight it in the future.

The measles vaccine is 93% effective at preventing disease after one shot. After an individual receives one booster, that effectiveness jumps to 97%.

The measles vaccine is widely effective.

In 1971 (yes, more than 50 years ago), the measles vaccine was combined with the mumps and rubella vaccines to create the combination MMR vaccine. In 2005, the varicella vaccine (aka the chickenpox vaccine) was added to the combination to form the MMRV vaccine. Children should receive their first dose of the MMR or MMRV vaccine at 12-15 months and a booster between 4-6 years.

The MMR vaccine is safe and effective. It is estimated that the measles vaccine alone has prevented 31.7 million deaths worldwide between 2000-2020.

And yet — a cloud of controversy surrounds the MMR vaccine and vaccine uptake is decreasing. The amount of misinformation surrounding the MMR vaccine is astounding. Aside from the fact that the MMR vaccine is safe & effective, here is what you need to know —

1. The MMR vaccine does NOT contain thimerosal, which is a mercury-based preservative that was previously used in vaccines. There are unsubstantiated, biased, lousy research reports, and outright lies that link thimerosal to autism in children. Three things to know — first, thimerosal has not been used in any childhood vaccines (except some flu shots) since 2001. Second, thimerosal was NEVER an ingredient in the MMR vaccine. And finally (last but definitely not least), there is NO evidence to support the claim that thimerosal causes autism.

2. (Most importantly) There is NO EVIDENCE that the MMR vaccine causes autism in children. Seriously, no evidence.

The unsubstantiated links between the MMR vaccine and autism are the result of a fraudulent research paper published in 1998 that (only) implied a link between the MMR vaccine and autism. The paper was retracted and the lead author¹ was stripped of his medical license for life.

Image source & link to the full article that was retracted.

As you can see, the article “investigated a consecutive series of children with chronic enterocolitis (inflammation of the GI system) & regressive developmental disorder.” Only 12 children were included in the study — not what would be considered a large or representative sample size. And there was no comparison group. It was just a report about a small group of children whose parents (9 of the 12) reported that their child had developed regressive autism after receiving the MMR vaccine.

And it is essential to note that correlation does NOT equal causation. In many cases, autism is diagnosed after a child has received their vaccines. This does not mean that the vaccines caused autism. Many things happen before a child is diagnosed with autism — they develop in a uterus, are exposed to environmental toxins, eat food, drink water and milk, may experience an injury, and may get sick from a viral or bacterial infection. To the best of our knowledge, there is not a single (smoking gun) cause of autism. Autism probably develops from —

“a combination of genetic and nongenetic, or environmental, influences.”

The research clearly shows — vaccines do not cause autism.

However, this one fraudulent and unethical study from 1998 continues to haunt public health messaging and conversations about the need to vaccinate all children.

Investigative journalist, Brian Deer, dug deep into the fraudulent research and found layer upon layer of misconduct, unethical behavior, fraudulent research, and miscommunication — Mr. Deer² found that what the author of the study (shown above) failed to disclose was that he was being paid by a lawyer (who was also representing the 12 children included in the study in a “speculative & lucrative” class action lawsuit against a vaccine manufacturer) to create data to support claims made in the court case. The author also failed to disclose that he owned the patent for a new measles-only vaccine (not the MMR combination) at the time. And he was proposing that public health authorities authorize the use of non-combined measles, mumps, and rubella vaccines. It is estimated that the author of the study would have made ~$56 million per year as a result of his cooperation with the lawyer and the panic he triggered.

Additionally, journalist Brian Deer discovered the 12 children were NOT seen consecutively, as reported. They were all recruited through anti-MMR campaign groups. They were handpicked by the study authors; there was not a representative sample nor an adequate sample size to make claims about causality. In epidemiology, we say the study lacked internal validity.

In other words, the study was NOT valid and results cannot be used to inform policy, for the development of programs, or in health education materials.

The Independent wrote —

“It may turn out that the greatest recent crisis in public health need never have happened.”

And if that isn’t enough — medical records used in the study were falsified. A parent of one of the 12 children included in the study stated —

“If my son really is Patient 11, then the article is simply an outright fabrication.”

And yet the publication of the article and the media frenzy surrounding it led to worldwide skepticism about the safety of the MMR vaccine. Today, approximately one-third of Americans believe that childhood vaccines can cause children to develop autism.

And this is JUST NOT TRUE.

The MMR vaccine is safe & effective.

Given all of the dangers posed by measles (go back and read them here), all children need to be vaccinated. We also need to work together to stop misinformation from spreading through our communities.

There is substantial and significant evidence from around the world showing that the MMR vaccine does not cause autism. As we listen to individuals who are delaying or not vaccinating their children, we need to help them to understand that the source of the information linking vaccines to autism has been retracted. The author of the study has been discredited. And there is so much public health and medical evidence showing that the vaccine is safe and the benefits of being protected against measles are substantial. As I have told my own children —

“You are responsible for working to end the epidemic of misinformation that is plaguing our society. You have the responsibility to check your sources, ask questions, and never spread information you do not understand on social media or with your friends. Seek out the truth; share it with conviction.”

The MMR is safe & effective.

The end.

But if you have questions, please let me know.

1. NOTE: I am not going to mention the lead author by name. Doing so increases his internet visibility and I do not want to be part of that. He is discredited. He violated the basic tenet of medicine — to do no harm — and basically every rule related to public health research and communication. I will not acknowledge him.

2. What to know more & dig deeper into the investigation? Check out Brian Deer’s book The Doctor Who Fooled the World.