Accountability and Action III
From Reuters Science News
A respected science journal is to withdraw a much-cited review of evidence on an illness known as chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) amid fierce criticism and pressure from activists and patients. The decision, described by the scientists involved as “disproportionate and poorly justified”, is being seen as a victory for activists in a research field plagued by uncertainty and dispute over whether CFS, also known as ............... (ME), has physical and psychological elements.
Comment
This article concerns the decision by Cochrane to withdraw its review of Exercise therapy for chronic fatigue syndrome [2].
Despite the sensationalist headline [Exclusive: Science journal to withdraw chronic fatigue review amid patient activist complaints] the Reuters article does illustrate a couple of salient points.
One is that the media and establishment gatekeepers still portray those seeking to have relevant and high-quality research carried out on ME as militants, using the now derogatory term of "activists" and portraying those who seek honest research as a lobby that is intent on destroying science.
The other point is that, however much the establishment is resisting it, the tide is continuing to turn against the forces which have been controlling this area of healthcare, so hideously influenced by flawed research and biased reviewing.
Rather than the misleading and puerile theme of the Reuters article (that it was activists whom Cochrane caved in to in order to make this decision) it may be a sign that some integrity in reviews of research is forming in place of the shambolic old-boys' network which has existed for years by a corrupted establishment.
As with more calls being made to make research more open perhaps it shows that finally some common sense is being directed toward science.
Perhaps.
