Protest: Alternative letter...

[Guest guest]

NIH's " CFS " Special Emphasis Panel (ZRG1 CFSH80) membership must be changed!

I am writing because of yet more malfeasance by NIH in response to the epidemic

of the severe neuro-immune disease ME (aka " CFS " ).

I am very distressed to see the makeup of the new " CFS " Special Emphasis Panel

(ZRG1 CFSH80) grant review committee at NIH. I have two strong objections on

which action must be taken:

(1) The many psychologists and dentists on the panel are not sufficiently

educated/ qualified in virology or molecular biology (or biomedical CFS research

in general) to be evaluating grant proposals on XMRV or related topics outside

of their respective fields.

(2) Myra McClure is a (a) biased ( british citizen

2 (a) (i): Prof. McClure has claimed her studies prove facts which were not

shown in the science when commenting to the press to disparage WPI.

2 (a) (ii): She is also a collaborator of well-known anti- ME science charlatan

Simon Wessely:

BBC on-line:

news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/8441491.stm

" Professor Myra McClure, one of the Imperial College London investigators, said:

" We are confident that our results show there is no link between XMRV and

chronic fatigue syndrome, at least in the UK. " She said they had used extremely

sensitive DNA testing methods, called polymerase chain reaction, to look for the

virus.

" If it had been there, we would have found it. "

'Disappointing'

Co-author Professor Simon Wessely said the findings did not invalidate all

previous research, some of which has shown that CFS can be triggered by other

infectious agents, such as Epstein Barr Virus. "

Independent Newspaper:

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/sc...e-1859003.html

" One scientist involved in the latest research also criticised the previous

study, which was published in the peer-reviewed journal Science, saying it was

premature and that the journal should have waited until there was stronger,

corroborating evidence of such a link. " When you've got such a stunning result

you want to be absolutely clear that you are 1,000 per cent right and there are

things in that [previous study] I would not have done. I would have waited. I

would have stalled a little, " said Professor Myra McClure "

2 (a) (iii): Prof. McClure has publicly stated that she has no interest in

research in the area of ME ('CFS').

" Nothing on God's Earth could persuade me to do more research on CFS. "

Source: sciencemag.org/content/329/5987/18.summary

2 (: McClure is not a United States Citizen. Why should a United Kingdom

resident be deciding which applicants receive research grants in the United

States? In addition to questions of legality which arise from this, there are

further questions of expense, since Prof. McClure's travel expenses will, of

necessity, be higher than those of a United States resident. Especially in a

recession, we should be cutting costs (where appropriate) and stimulating

American science and the work of American scientists.

Therefore, I DEMAND:

(1) the committee remove some of the dentists and psychologists who do not have

expertise in ME ('CFS'). Prof. Friedberg should not be removed since he has a

great amount of experience with ME. They should be replaced by qualified

biomedical researchers who have significant experience with ME ('CFS').

(2) Prof. McClure be removed from this committee and that a qualified

retrovirologist who is a resident of the United States be appointed instead.

Please respond to this letter with your planned actions on the " CFS " SEP. Thank

you!

Sincerely,

forums.aboutmecfs.org/showthread.php?9873-Stars-Not-Aligned-Any-More-CFS-SEP-Pan\

el-Reverts-McClure-on-Board/page2