Conspiracy, cock-up or cash?

What follows is the personal view of a research scientist.

Please note that it does not necessarily represent the views of Research Autism.

It often feels like a conspiracy when parents of a child with autism are seeking quick and accurate answers about a particular cure for autism that has appeared on the Internet, or that other parents are talking about. The reaction of their child’s doctors can be disdainful, dismissive or simply ‘I’ve no idea’. Perhaps the modern-day role of a good paediatrician is to help parents separate the wheat from the chaff. To accept that whilst the parents have carefully searched the libraries, help groups and Internet sites, they do not always have experience in critically analysing research methodology and determining what are facts, what is wishful thinking and what is misleading.

Every day researchers compete to find the answers to fill some of these gaps, but things are far from easy. There is more of a tendency for grant giving bodies to fund molecular research, or support studies that are very likely to show something positive, than just to fund research that parents want the answer to. Even after funding, good studies that have shown no effect from a particular treatment are less likely to be published than ones that do.

There are some commendable initiatives and patients’ and parents’ voices are undoubtedly becoming more important, but it will take time. In the meantime don’t assume the worst of the ‘establishment’-it is safe to assume that for each exciting potential new treatment, someone, somewhere is either trying to get a robust study funded, or get negative findings published!

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Last Updated : 31/10/2008 Back to Top

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Conspiracy, cock-up or cash?