Saturday, August 05, 2006
Posted by The Dean of Cincinnati
Malariotherapy is the issue that will come back to haunt the Wulsin for Congress campaign unless they come clean. This column is meant to archive, in public, the history (and patience) I have exhibited in giving Dr. Wulsin every chance to do the right thing. After all, Wulsin is a much better candidate (well, at least her talking points are) than Jean Schmidt.
Dr. Wulsin was involved in Dr. Henry Heimlich’s malariotherapy experiments on Africans. She has continuously claimed that she never supported that project—but the report which would totally substantiate her claims is one she seems strangely reluctant to release.
My history goes all the way back to March 26, 2006, when I sent her the following email:
Dear Dr. Wulsin:
I publish the Cincinnati Beacon, an online magazine. A reader just posted a recent letter from you: http://tiny.bz/05w/
Would you please send me a copy of the report you wrote for the Heimlich Institute? A digital file is preferred, otherwise my mailing address is below.
Thanks and I look forward to receiving the material.
Sincerely,
[The Dean of Cincinnati]
After not getting a response, I re-sent the above, with another message, near the beginning of April:
Dr. Wulsin:
I’m sure you’re busy with your campaign, but I haven’t received your reply to my e-mail of March 26 (below).
I’m working on an item which involves your “malariotherapy” report for the Heimlich Institite. If I don’t hear from you promptly, you leave me no other choice than to report that you failed to respond to repeated requests.
Thanks for your attention to my request and I look forward to your reply.
Sincerely,
[The Dean of Cincinnati]
On April 5th, Dr. Wulsin provided a response:
Dear [Dean],
First I’ve read of you; perhaps earlier e-mails were spammed out by my anti-spammer.
I’ll forward my response (someone else asked recently).
Thanks for spreading the word!
Victoria
Then, a short time later, I received the following email. The subject line said, “As Requested”—so I expected the message to contain her report. Instead, it contained a new summary of the report written just for the sake of the email:
Dear [Dean],
Thank you for your interest in my background, and I appreciate your writing to find out. In 2004 I researched malariotherapy, which is giving [usually by injection] someone Plasmodium falciparum or Plasmodium vivax, the most common pathogens causing malaria, for the sake of immunologic responses that benefit the patient. The long-term goal was to see if a component of the pathogen could be used in some form or formulation as a vaccine or treatment for HIV/AIDS. I began by a review of the literature regarding the epidemiology of malaria and HIV co-infection.
Although millions of people suffer from both diseases every year, the scientific evidence for a salutary effect between the two diseases was close to nonexistent. Furthermore, malaria is a serious, painful, infectious, and life-threatening illness. For many reasons (outlined in my summary document to the Heimlich Institute, who had hired me), actually giving anyone malaria willfully is unethical. I recommended that the Heimlich Institute discontinue its investigation of malariotherapy. The epidemiologic evidence did not indicate a likely factor that would warrant further immunologic (e.g., in vitro analyses) study. My consultancy for the Institute was terminated the following day by Dr. Heimlich.
Since that time, I have returned to my passion in public health: preventing disease. SOTENI International, the non-profit corporation a group of us founded in 2003, is dedicated to preventing and mitigating the effects of HIV/AIDS among the world’s most vulnerable populations. We have begun by establishing four community-led programs in Kenya to enable and empower the ~ 8,000 orphans and vulnerable children [almost all of whom are HIV-negative] to remain AIDS-free.
I am running for Congress in large part because our government does not adequately protect our public health. I hope you will support me in bringing about the change needed to put into action what epidemiologists have been advocating for decades.
Sincerely,
Victoria Wulsin
According to her email, Wulsin did the right thing: she claims to have called the experiments unethical, and she says she recommended the Heimlich Institute discontinue their research.
If this is true, why not just provide the report?
In any event, for awhile I put the issue on my back-burner. Then, a few weeks ago, I decided to call the Wulsin campaign office to ask personally if I could receive the report. I was told that Dr. Wulsin would be happy to share the report, and that she just had to find it amidst some papers at home. I was told to expect a call by the end of the week.
That did not happen.
Then, just a couple weeks ago, I got a mass email from the Wulsin campaign. One item in the newsletter caught my attention, so I sent the following:
Dear Wulsin Campaign:
I just got this excerpt in an email from your campaign:
=====
*WANT TO HELP*...with Vic’s communications strategy? We need your help in getting Vic’s message out to the press and the voters. Contact Ady to talk about the numerous opportunities to join our communications team: and 513-233-4180.
=====
I have a suggestion for improving your communication strategy. When members of the press (even if the independent press, like myself) contact repeatedly to obtain a piece of information—respond promptly and cooperatively. It helps to clear the air of suspicion and to cooperate with any potential allies.
So can I have a copy of Dr. Wulsin’s report to the Heimlich Institute, where she allegedly encourages them to stop investigating malariotherapy?
Thanks,
[The Dean of Cincinnati]
On July 26th, I got the following response:
Jason,
My apologies. I will talk to Vic again tonight about getting me the report asap. I appreciate your patience.
Ady
After hearing nothing for a few more weeks, I sent the following message on August 4th:
Ady,
It has been several weeks since I was first told I would receive a copy of Wulsin’s report to the Heimlich Institute on Malariotherapy. I have been told repeatedly that the report is forthcoming, and then I promptly hear nothing until I inquire again.
If I don’t receive Dr. Wulsin’s report for the Heimlich Institute by August 7, 2006, I’m going to print stating that Dr. Wulsin refused to provide it.
[The Dean]
Again, for all you Wulsin-lovers out there: what does this woman have to hide? If the report says what she claims, then it shows that she took the proper actions to distance herself from an unethical situation.
Since this issue keeps bubbling to the surface (as it has here, or here, or here, or here), then why won’t Wulsin cool things down before they boil over?
The fix is easy.
Provide a copy of the report.
C’mon, Vic. It doesn’t say something different from what you claim, does it?
I’ll remain hopeful that the report finds its way to my inbox by Monday.
• Share This Article!
Listen to this article
Help The Cincinnati Beacon Grow! Participate in Social Networking!
Members
Register
Tell us what you think!
Anonymous comments are allowed, but you can log in above to stamp your name and to avoid typing the anti-spam code.
If you are not familiar with our rules for leaving comments, click here!
|