On Tuesday, Feb. 2, 2010, the Associated Press reported that the  medical journal The Lancet was retracting a well-known study linking the measles, mumps, and rubella vaccine (MMR) to autism and bowel disease. Originally scheduled for Wednesday, the retraction was published early after the competing British Medical Journal (BMJ) called for The Lancet to formally recant the publication. Ten of the original authors of the research renounced the conclusions of the study several years ago, but three others, including the principle investigator, have refused and may lose their right to practice medicine.

Since the controversial study appeared in 1998, according to the BMJ, “the arguments were considered by many to be proven and the ghastly social drama of the demon vaccine took on a life of its own.” Subsequent to the study, many British parents abandoned the vaccine, leading to a resurgence of measles, and vaccination rates in Great Britain have never recovered. Subsequent studies have found no proof that the vaccine is connected to autism.