What's Happened to Dr Jonathan Kerr?

[Persimmon]

The Patient Advocate recently posted the following:

"It is known that Jonathan Kerrs samples from Dr. Enlander disappeared in a UK study and are unaccounted for. In the process, Jonathan Kerr himself has been disappeared for his fine research efforts in ME/CFS - and is now packing groceries at Sainsburys. All of Kerrs efforts went down the drain. His alliance with the WPI was ground into paste."

Hence my question, does anyone know what happened to Dr Kerr? For that matter, what happened to his research?

 

[eric_s]

I would also very much like to know.

Was this a new post by the Patient Advocate? I remember him saying similar things about a year ago.

Whatever the truth is, samples to disappear or similar things can't be allowed to happen. And if it happens this needs to be denounced and the people responsible can't be let off the hook.

It reminds me a bit of what Annette Whittemore described in her letter to the editor of Science, regarding the Wisconsin Viral Research Group. I'm sure the Whittemores know enough attorneys and have probably considered all the options, but to me that kind of conduct seems like a gift to us, an invitation to make those people fall.

 

[Enid]

He appears to be listed (still St Georges) under new research (continuing his own line) on the MEResearch web site. They are funding this now. Sorry can't give webaddress but easy to google - meresearch.org.uk. Also papers listed he produced in 2010 googling Dr Jonathan Kerr - so not lost to us.

 

[ukxmrv]

No sadly he doesn't have access to a lab so the reseach may never be done now. His name was on another paper recently but someone else was doing the "work".

Dr Enlander knows Dr Kerr and has posted to this forum about him. He was alive and well and working in another UK hospital last time someone asked.

Patients did contact Dr Kerr and one rang him on his last day at St George's but he didn't want a fuss made. He did say to one patient who called that this would probably be the end of him working with CFS and he was not happy about this.

 

[eric_s]

WHAT??? Enough is enough, seriously... What's going on here? We are free, democratic countries! You can't do that kind of thing (whatever it was that happened) and get away with it. It's really high time we start defending our cause better. If he wants to continue to work with ME/CFS that's only him who is to make that decision and any sort of pressure is probably illegal and a major scandal. This must be exposed and the people resposible must be held accountable. The public must know. I know most people are good and if they knew they would be just as angry as us.

 

[Bob]

Dr Kerr said he wouldn't be doing any more research into CFS about a year ago. No reason was made public.

Since then, there has been news that he was forced out of CFS research...

There's a video with the news in it from the SOK conference... I'll see if I can find it.

ETA: I can't find the video segment. I think it was the NIH State of the Knowledge workshop, but I can't remember who said it.

 

[Bob]

He appears to be listed (still St Georges) under new research (continuing his own line) on the MEResearch web site. They are funding this now. Sorry can't give webaddress but easy to google - meresearch.org.uk. Also papers listed he produced in 2010 googling Dr Jonathan Kerr - so not lost to us.

Here's ME Research UK's 'ongoing research projects' section...
Dr Kerr has a couple of his own projects listed, but it might be out of date info, esp as it says he is working at St Georges Hospital:
http://www.meresearch.org.uk/research/projects/ongoing.html

 

[eric_s]

Thanks a lot. If really there is foul play, i hope one day those people will have to face justice.

 

[Enid]

Bob - your post 7 - on meresearch - maybe needing updating or still living in hope as they seem ready to fund - keeping it open ? I see the importance of continuing his research is mentioned in the Conference Review at Invest in ME. now posted.

 

[Hope123]

Dr Kerr said he wouldn't be doing any more research into CFS about a year ago. No reason was made public.

Since then, there has been news that he was forced out of CFS research...

There's a video with the news in it from the SOK conference... I'll see if I can find it.

ETA: I can't find the video segment. I think it was the NIH State of the Knowledge workshop, but I can't remember who said it.

The exact segment is Dr. Ken Friedman talking about how his university forced him out of tenure because of his involvement with ME/CFS, including serving on the CFSAC Committee. He also talks about two other unamed people that were threatened professionally: my guess is one is Dr. Kerr and the other was Dr. Ben Natelson, who used to in the same state (New Jersey) but different university from Dr. Friedman. Natelson left and seems to have been able to continue his work at another place. I may not agree with Natelson's views at NIH but I do appreciate his continuing work on CFS.

 

[Enid]

I can well believe Jonathan Kerr was "forced" out in the UK Hope123 - the cult of Wessley and "personalities" against ME/CFS as a biological disease was overwhelming at the time. Academic circles I hear from the inside can be the most "bitchy" of all especially to those outside some "party" line.

 

[WillowJ]

I believe Kerr was made to resign because he wanted to use a correct inclusion criteria (such as not Oxford). I cannot cite a source as I do not now remember where I read or heard this, just that it was a reliable source.

There was also an issue with Enlander's samples which were sent over to be included in the XMRV study, regarding which Stoye is unable to give a satisfactory answer as to whether or not they were tested and why they were not included in the Groom paper. Kerr himself is unable to discuss this because of confidentiality papers which had to be signed when he stopped working at his previous job with his university.

Enlander is said to have offered Kerr a job, which Kerr declined, saying he did not want to leave England.

 

[WillowJ]

just to be clear, it is not thought to be Kerr's fault that Enlander's samples disappeared.

 

[Enid]

Thanks WillowJ - the heavy hand of the then medical "establishment" is obvious if such a researcher is silenced. Oxford Criteria - authors - hardliners could take some looking into.

 

[eric_s]

Wow... at least for the UK it seems to be pretty clear the main problem is not the complexity of ME/CFS. It's bad, but still better than if we had no idea where one needs to put the lever. Where do those people have their heads... Do they really think they can just force a problem into disappearance if they mob the people investigating it?

 

[eric_s]

Academic circles I hear from the inside can be the most "bitchy" of all especially to those outside some "party" line.

A good recipe for progress... like that they are paralyzing their own sector... very smart.

 

[Bob]

The exact segment is Dr. Ken Friedman talking about how his university forced him out of tenure because of his involvement with ME/CFS, including serving on the CFSAC Committee. He also talks about two other unamed people that were threatened professionally: my guess is one is Dr. Kerr and the other was Dr. Ben Natelson, who used to in the same state (New Jersey) but different university from Dr. Friedman. Natelson left and seems to have been able to continue his work at another place. I may not agree with Natelson's views at NIH but I do appreciate his continuing work on CFS.

Here it is...
Watch Dr Ken Friedman at 230.30...
He talks about Dr Kerr (I assume) at 235.20...
http://videocast.nih.gov/summary.asp?Live=10114

And I've just found this post on another thread which has an embedded youtube video of the same section of video:
http://phoenixrising.me/forums/show...-of-XMRV-paper&p=184072&viewfull=1#post184072

 

[Hope123]

For those interested, my suspicion about Natelson leaving was based on some things I came across including his own site which mentioned him leaving NJ:

http://www.painandfatigue.com/dr_natelson.html

People do move around in academia for various reasons but reviewing it, I think he was at the same med school as Dr. Friedman. I'm thinking of writing the people Friedman mentioned in his video; it's a mere drop in the bucket but someone needs to stop these bullies.

 

[eric_s]

We would really have to know where this pressure comes from and why. We can't allow the already small number of people (with little funding) helping us being kept from doing ME/CFS research.

 

[WillowJ]

well, eric, it's time to start that advocacy organization, hire a New York attorney, etc.