Frank DeStefano graduated from Cortland (NY) High School in 1970. DeStefano graduated from
Cornell University in 1974, receiving a Bachelor of Science degree, and the
University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, from which he received a medical degree in 1978. He received his MPH at
Johns Hopkins University School of Hygiene and Public Health in 1984.[1]
Research
DeStefano is an author of a number of scientific studies concluding that vaccines, in particular
thimerosal-containing ones, do not cause autism. In March 2013, for example, DeStefano was the lead author on a study in the
Journal of Pediatrics, which concluded that exposure of children to particular ingredients in vaccines, namely proteins and polysaccharides, did not increase their risk of
autism. In addition, DeStefano et al. concluded that children with autism had received the same number of
antigens as children without.[2] This study received widespread media attention.[3][4][5]
As director of the ISO, his research focuses primarily on alleged and real adverse reactions to vaccines, and how common these reactions are. As mentioned above, some of DeStefano's research pertains to the use of
thiomersal in vaccines; for example, he co-authored a study in 2003 in
Pediatrics which concluded that there was no consistent association between thimerosal-containing vaccines and neurodevelopmental disorders.[6] In addition, he was the final author of a study on the alleged link between thimerosal and autism, authored by the
Vaccine Safety Datalink team, published in the
New England Journal of Medicine. This study concluded that "Our study does not support a causal association between early exposure to mercury from thimerosal-containing vaccines and immune globulins and deficits in neuropsychological functioning at the age of 7 to 10 years."[7]
Other topics he has published research on include
Guillain–Barré syndrome,[8] as well as the potential link between
seizures and the whole-cell
pertussis vaccine or
MMR vaccine.[9] More generally, with regard to the VSD, he published a study in 2001 summarizing the ability of the project to reveal potential risks associated with vaccination, especially
intussusception, through conduction of a population-based cohort study.[10]
Originally, however, DeStefano's research focused on the safety of
contraceptives, a topic he researched from 1982 to 1984 as a medical officer at the
National Institutes of Health.[11] Also in 1982, he joined the CDC as a senior epidemiologist in the
Agent Orange projects.
Bohlke, K.; Davis, R. L.; Marcy, S. M.; et al. (2003). "Risk of Anaphylaxis After Vaccination of Children and Adolescents". Pediatrics. 112 (4): 815–820.
doi:
10.1542/peds.112.4.815.
PMID14523172.
Varricchio, F.; Iskander, J.; Destefano, F.; Ball, R.; Pless, R.; Braun, M. M.; Chen, R. T. (2004). "Understanding vaccine safety information from the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System". The Pediatric Infectious Disease Journal. 23 (4): 287–294.
doi:
10.1097/00006454-200404000-00002.
PMID15071280.
^Thompson, W. W.; Price, C.; Goodson, B.; Shay, D. K.; Benson, P.; Hinrichsen, V. L.; Lewis, E.; Eriksen, E.; Ray, P.; Marcy, S. M.; Dunn, J.; Jackson, L. A.; Lieu, T. A.; Black, S.; Stewart, G.; Weintraub, E. S.; Davis, R. L.; Destefano, F.; Vaccine Safety Datalink, T. (2007).
"Early Thimerosal Exposure and Neuropsychological Outcomes at 7 to 10 Years". New England Journal of Medicine. 357 (13): 1281–1292.
doi:10.1056/NEJMoa071434.
PMID17898097.
^Haber, P.; Destefano, F.; Angulo, F. J.; Iskander, J.; Shadomy, S. V.; Weintraub, E.; Chen, R. T. (2004). "Guillain–Barré Syndrome Following Influenza Vaccination". JAMA. 292 (20): 2478–2481.
doi:
10.1001/jama.292.20.2478.
PMID15562126.
^Barlow, W. E.; Davis, R. L.; Glasser, J. W.; Rhodes, P. H.; Thompson, R. S.; Mullooly, J. P.; Black, S. B.; Shinefield, H. R.; Ward, J. I.; Marcy, S. M.; Destefano, F.; Chen, V.; Immanuel, J. A.; Pearson, C. M.; Vadheim, V.; Rebolledo, D.; Christakis, P. J.; Benson, N.; Lewis, R. T.; Centers for Disease Control Prevention Vaccine Safety Datalink Working Group (2001).
"The Risk of Seizures after Receipt of Whole-Cell Pertussis or Measles, Mumps, and Rubella Vaccine". New England Journal of Medicine. 345 (9): 656–661.
doi:10.1056/NEJMoa003077.
PMID11547719.
^Ory, H. W.; Rubin, G. L.; Jones, V.; et al. (1984). "Mortality among young black women using contraceptives". JAMA: The Journal of the American Medical Association. 251 (8): 1044–1048.
doi:
10.1001/jama.1984.03340320030022.
PMID6229648.