Dr. Andrew Wakefield, MB, BS, FRCS, is an academic gastroenterologist. He received his medical degree from St. Mary’s Hospital Medical School (part of the University of London) in 1981, one of the fourth generation of his family to have studied medicine at that teaching hospital. He pursued a career in gastrointestinal surgery with a particular interest in inflammatory bowel disease. He qualified as Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons in 1985 and in 1996 was awarded a Wellcome Trust Traveling Fellowship to study small-intestinal transplantation in Toronto, Canada. He was made a Fellow of the Royal College of Pathologists in 2001. He has published over 140 original scientific articles, book chapters, and invited scientific commentaries.
In the pursuit of possible links between childhood vaccines, intestinal inflammation, and neurological injury in children, Dr. Wakefield lost his job in the Department of Medicine at London’s Royal Free Hospital, his country, his career, his Fellowship of the Royal College of Pathologists, and his medical license. Dr. Wakefield considers these losses a small price to pay for the privilege of working with affected families. In 2010 he helped to found Strategic Autism Initiative (SAI), a medical research charity dedicated to identifying the environmental causes for the current autism epidemic. He is co-founder of the Autism Media Channel, a TV and video production company that seeks to bring awareness and hope to those interested in childhood developmental disorders. At or of several books including, ” Waging War on the Autistic Child.