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| {{Short description|American HIV denier (1956–2008)}} | |||
| '''Christine Maggiore''' is an ] ] and ] (that is, a person who does not believe that ] is the cause of ]). She is the founder of ], an organization which questions "most common assumptions about HIV and AIDS".<ref name="AliveAndWell"> official organization page.</ref> | |||
| '''Christine Joy Maggiore''' (July 25, 1956 – December 27, 2008) was an ] activist and promoter of ].<ref name=Newsweek>{{cite magazine | title = The HIV Disbeliever | first = David | last = France | magazine = ] | date = 2000-08-28}}</ref><ref name="primetime">{{cite news | url = https://abcnews.go.com/Primetime/print?id=1386737 | title = Did HIV-Positive Mom's Beliefs Put Her Children at Risk? | publisher = ] | date = 2005-12-08 | accessdate = 2008-12-23}}</ref> She was the founder of ], an organization which disputes the link between HIV and AIDS and urges HIV-positive pregnant women to avoid anti-HIV medication.<ref name="guardian">{{cite news | url = https://www.theguardian.com/international/story/0,,1578142,00.html | title = Mother who denied Aids link faces police investigation after death of daughter | first = Julian | last = Borger | newspaper = ] | date = 2005-09-26 | accessdate = 2007-03-28}}</ref> Maggiore authored and self-published the book ''What If Everything You Thought You Knew about AIDS Was Wrong?'' | |||
| Maggiore's promotion of HIV/AIDS denialism had long been controversial, particularly since her 3-year-old daughter, ], died of ], which is an AIDS-defining illness. Consistent with her belief that HIV was harmless, Maggiore had not taken medication to reduce the risk of transmission of HIV to her daughter during pregnancy, and she did not have Eliza Jane tested for HIV during her daughter's lifetime.<ref name="guardian"/><ref name="LATimesArticle">{{cite news | url = https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2005-sep-24-me-eliza24-story.html |title = A Mother's Denial, a Daughter's Death | newspaper =] | date = 2005-09-24 | access-date = 2008-12-29 | last = Ornstein | first = Charles |author1-link=Charles Ornstein|author2=Daniel Costello}}</ref> Maggiore herself died on December 27, 2008, after suffering from AIDS-related conditions. | |||
| Maggiore became a controversial figure following the death of her 3-year-old daughter, Eliza Jane Scovill, on ] ]. Maggiore had not taken medication to prevent transmission of HIV to her daughter, as she does not believe that HIV causes AIDS. Eliza Jane had never been tested for HIV. The ] ] concluded that Eliza Jane had died of ] as a result of untreated ]. However, a ] (and AIDS dissident) retained by Maggiore to review the autopsy report disagreed, stating that he believed Eliza Jane's death was due to an ] to ].<ref name="LATimesArticle">: Article from L.A. Times</ref> | |||
| ==Early life and career== | |||
| ==History== | |||
| Born in ], Maggiore grew up in Southern California. After graduating with honors from Reseda High, she worked in advertising and marketing in ] until 1984. |
Born in ], ], Maggiore grew up in ]. After graduating with honors from ], she worked in advertising and marketing in ], ] until 1984. She traveled through Europe and North Africa in 1984 before settling in ], ], where she lived from 1985 to 1987. By the late 1980s, she was earning a high salary at the Alessi International clothing company.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Prothero|first1=Donald|title=Reality Check: How Science Deniers Threaten Our Future|date=August 2013|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_VEqAAAAQBAJ&dq=Alessi+International+christine+Maggiore&pg=PA177|publisher=Indiana University Press|isbn=9780253010360|accessdate=22 July 2017}}</ref> | ||
| ==HIV diagnosis and activism== | |||
| In 1992, as part of a routine medical exam, Maggiore ], as did a former boyfriend.<ref name=Newsweek/> Subsequently, Maggiore became involved in volunteer work for a number of AIDS charities, including AIDS Project Los Angeles, L.A. Shanti, and Women at Risk. However, following an interaction with prominent AIDS denialist ] in 1994, Maggiore began to question whether HIV causes AIDS. Maggiore came to believe that her positive test may have been due to influenza vaccination, pregnancy, or a common viral infection.<ref name="LATimesArticle"/> | |||
| In 1995, Maggiore left the clothing business to work as a freelance consultant for US government export programs. At the same time, she founded ], an organization |
In 1995, Maggiore left the clothing business to work as a freelance consultant for US government export programs. At the same time, she founded ], an organization denying the connection between HIV and AIDS and urging pregnant HIV-positive women to avoid HIV medications for themselves and their children.<ref name="LATimesArticle"/> Maggiore herself drew criticism for ] her children,<ref name="primetime"/> as breast feeding has been shown to increase the risk of ] of HIV.<ref>For examples, see: | ||
| * {{cite journal |vauthors=Nduati R, John G, Mbori-Ngacha D, Richardson B, Overbaugh J, Mwatha A, Ndinya-Achola J, Bwayo J, Onyango F, Hughes J, Kreiss J | title = Effect of breastfeeding and formula feeding on transmission of HIV-1: a randomized clinical trial | journal = JAMA | volume = 283 | issue = 9 | pages = 1167–74 | year = 2000 | pmid = 10703779 | doi = 10.1001/jama.283.9.1167| doi-access = free }} | |||
| * {{cite journal |vauthors=Tess B, Rodrigues L, Newell M, Dunn D, Lago T | title = Infant feeding and risk of mother-to-child transmission of HIV-1 in São Paulo State, Brazil. São Paulo Collaborative Study for Vertical Transmission of HIV-1 | journal = J Acquir Immune Defic Syndr Hum Retrovirol | volume = 19 | issue = 2 | pages = 189–94 | year = 1998 | doi = 10.1097/00042560-199810010-00014 | pmid = 9768630| doi-access = free }} | |||
| * {{cite journal | author = Watts D | last2 = Watts | first2 = D. Heather | title = Management of human immunodeficiency virus infection in pregnancy | journal = N Engl J Med | volume = 346 | issue = 24 | pages = 1879–91 | year = 2002 | pmid = 12063373 | doi = 10.1056/NEJMra013338}}</ref> | |||
| In a 2002 article entitled "My Bout of So-Called AIDS", Maggiore wrote that she had an abnormal ] (a "Grade 3 Pap smear with cervical dysplasia"), which she wrote would qualify her for an AIDS diagnosis.<ref>In fact, although invasive ] is an AIDS-defining illness, an abnormal ] has never been an AIDS-defining condition.</ref> Maggiore's doctors recommended further evaluation with ]; Maggiore writes that she instead followed a ] program and had additional Pap tests performed under an assumed name by another doctor, ultimately obtaining what she described as a normal result.<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.aliveandwell.org/html/rethinking/my_bout_of_so.html | title = My Bout of So-Called AIDS | last = Maggiore | first = Christine | publisher = From the website of ] | accessdate = 2006-12-06}}</ref> | |||
| In a 2005 article in the ], Maggiore claimed to be in excellent health without taking ], and despite being diagnosed with a cervical condition that would qualify her for an AIDS diagnosis.<ref name="LATimesArticle"/> Maggiore authored an article entitled ''My Bout of So-Called AIDS'', expressing the fear and frustration of experiencing three conflicting ] results. | |||
| Maggiore |
In a 2005 article in the '']'', Maggiore claimed to be in excellent health without taking ].<ref name="LATimesArticle" /> Maggiore's husband and partner, filmmaker ], has repeatedly tested negative despite what Maggiore describes as "a decade of normal, latex-free relations". Their son Charlie, born in 1997, has also tested negative for HIV.<ref name="primetime" /><ref name="LATimesArticle" /> | ||
| Maggiore's inclusion as an exhibitor at the 13th ] in ] has been criticized by AIDS activists.<ref></ref> Her influence on ] decision to block medical treatment of HIV-positive pregnant women was criticized following her death, with medical researchers noting that an estimated "330,000 lives were lost to new AIDS infections during the time Mbeki blocked government funding of AZT treatment to mothers."<ref name=ABCdeath>{{cite news|title=Death of an AIDS Skeptic; Friends Say Christine Maggiore Endured Media Stress; Doctors Say She Caused Misery|publisher=ABCNews|date=2009-01-01|accessdate=2009-01-02|url=https://abcnews.go.com/Health/story?id=6558202&page=1}}</ref> | |||
| ⚫ | |||
| Christine Maggiore declined to take ] drugs or other measures to prevent ] of HIV during her pregnancies. Antiretroviral drugs, along with other interventions, have been proven to reduce the risk of mother-to-child transmission of HIV,<ref>Mofenson, LM, and the Committee on Pediatric AIDS. . Pediatrics 2000; 106(6).</ref> although this conclusion is not accepted by AIDS dissidents. Maggiore also ] her children, despite the fact that breast-feeding can also transmit HIV from mother to child. Her youngest daughter, Eliza Jane, was never tested for HIV, nor did she receive any of the recommended childhood vaccines.<ref name="LATimesArticle"/> Maggiore discussed her beliefs as an AIDS dissident on ] in March 2005, stating that "...our children have excellent records of health. They've never had respiratory problems, flus, intractable colds, ear infections, nothing. So, our choices, however radical they may seem, are extremely well-founded."<ref name="LATimesArticle"/> | |||
| == |
==Daughter Eliza Jane== | ||
| ⚫ | {{main|Death of Eliza Jane Scovill}} | ||
| Several weeks after this interview, in April 2005, Eliza Jane became ill with a runny nose. She was seen by a physician from the family's pediatric practice, who documented a normal physical exam. Several days later, Maggiore took Eliza Jane to see another ], Dr. Jay Gordon, who felt she had a mild ear infection.<ref name="LATimesArticle"/> Reportedly, Gordon was aware of Maggiore's HIV status,<ref name="LATimesArticle"/> but did not have Eliza Jane tested for HIV and was not concerned about ]. | |||
| Christine Maggiore chose not to take ] drugs or other measures which reduce the risk of ] of HIV during her pregnancies.<ref name="guardian"/><ref>Given the known and unknown risks of antiretroviral use in pregnancy, ] guidelines state that the final decision regarding their use "should be made by the woman after discussion with her health care provider about the known and unknown benefits and risks of therapy" in a "noncoercive" environment; see {{cite web | url = http://aidsinfo.nih.gov/ContentFiles/PerinatalGL.pdf | publisher = ] | title = Recommendations on HIV therapy during pregnancy | accessdate = 2006-12-04 | archive-date = 2006-04-22 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20060422113223/http://aidsinfo.nih.gov/ContentFiles/PerinatalGL.pdf | url-status = dead }}</ref> Maggiore also ] her children, despite evidence that breastfeeding can also transmit HIV from mother to child. Her youngest daughter, Eliza Jane, was never tested for HIV, nor did she or her older brother Charlie receive any of the recommended childhood vaccines. Maggiore later reported Charlie to have tested HIV-negative three times, and asserted that both were in good health.<ref name="LATimesArticle"/> | |||
| When Eliza Jane failed to improve, Maggiore took her to see Dr. Philip Incao, a ] practitioner and board member of Maggiore's dissident organization '']''. Incao stated that Eliza Jane appeared "mildly ill... no way I considered her in danger... she did not act as a patient acts if she's severely ill or in danger."<ref name="primetime"/> On ] ], Incao prescribed ] for a presumed ]. | |||
| In April 2005, Eliza Jane, then three and a half years old, became ill with a runny nose. She was seen by two physicians, one of whom reportedly knew of Maggiore's HIV status. Eliza Jane was not tested for HIV and was diagnosed with ].<ref name="LATimesArticle"/><ref name="autopsy">{{cite web |url= http://www.aidstruth.org/ejs-coroner-report.pdf |title= Autopsy Report on Eliza Jane Scovill |url-status= dead |archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20070928112905/http://www.aidstruth.org/ejs-coroner-report.pdf |archivedate= 2007-09-28 }} {{small|(2.29 ])}}</ref> When Eliza Jane failed to improve, Maggiore took her to see Philip Incao, a ] practitioner and board member of Maggiore's organization ], who described Eliza Jane as only mildly ill and prescribed her ] for a presumed ].<ref name="primetime"/> | |||
| The following day, Eliza Jane became lethargic and vomited several times. While Maggiore was on the phone to Dr. Incao, Eliza Jane collapsed and stopped breathing.<ref name="LATimesArticle"/> She was rushed by ambulance to Valley Presbyterian Hospital in ]. Physicians attempted to rescusitate Eliza Jane, but were unsuccessful; she was pronounced dead at 5:40 AM on ] ].<ref name="autopsy"></ref> | |||
| On May 16, 2005, Eliza Jane collapsed and stopped breathing.<ref name="LATimesArticle" /> She was rushed to Valley Presbyterian Hospital in ], where, after failed attempts to revive her, she was pronounced dead.<ref name="autopsy" /> An autopsy revealed that Eliza Jane was markedly ] (consistent with a chronic illness), exhibited pronounced atrophy of her ] and other lymphatic organs, and died of pneumonia caused by '']'', a common ] in people with AIDS and the leading cause of pediatric AIDS deaths.<ref> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090220151721/http://www.thebody.com/content/treat/art6573.html |date=2009-02-20 }} Accessed 20 July 2007.</ref> | |||
| ===Cause of death=== | |||
| The postmortem examination of Eliza Jane's ] showed changes consistent with HIV ]; ] were identified in Eliza Jane's brain tissue via ].<ref name="autopsy" /> The coroner concluded that Eliza Jane had died of ] in the setting of advanced AIDS.<ref name="primetime" /><ref name="autopsy" /> | |||
| An ] was performed. The ] ] found that Eliza Jane was severely ], consistent with a chronic illness, and that she had had pronounced ] of her ] and other lymphatic organs. Examination of her lungs showed infection with '']'', a common ] in people with AIDS. The post-mortem examination of Eliza Jane's ] showed changes consistent with HIV encephalitis; protein components of the ] virus itself were identified in Eliza Jane's brain tissue via ].<ref name="autopsy"/> | |||
| Maggiore rejected the coroner's conclusion, ascribing it to political bias and attacking the personal credibility of the senior coroner.<ref name="justiceforej">, website maintained by David Crowe of the Alberta Reappraising AIDS Society, accessed September 5, 2006.</ref> Maggiore had the autopsy reviewed by Mohammed Al-Bayati, a veterinary pathologist who holds a ] in animal disease pathology, but is neither a ] nor board-certified in human pathology.<ref>{{cite news | newspaper =Los Angeles Times | last = Costello | first = Daniel |author2=Charles Ornstein | title = HIV Skeptic Takes Her Case to TV Audience | url = http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-christine-maggiore9-2005dec09,0,6599725.story | date = 2005-12-09 | accessdate = 2008-12-29}}</ref> Al-Bayati argued that Eliza Jane had died from an ] to ], a conclusion Maggiore embraced.<ref name="primetime"/> Al-Bayati's report has been dismissed as medically unsound by independent pathology experts, who agreed with the coroner's conclusion that Eliza Jane had died of complications of untreated AIDS.<ref name="primetime"/><ref name="LATimesArticle"/><ref name="gdotcom">, accessed September 5, 2006.</ref> | |||
| Based on the clinical information, the immunohistochemical documentation of HIV in Eliza Jane's brain, the evidence of pronounced immunosuppression, and the isolation of the opportunistic ] ''Pneumocystis jiroveci'' from Eliza Jane's lungs, the coroner concluded that Eliza Jane had died of ] in the setting of advanced AIDS.<ref name="autopsy"/> This conclusion was described by the coroner as "unequivocal".<ref name="primetime"/> | |||
| ===Reaction to Eliza Jane's death=== | |||
| Maggiore rejected the coroner's conclusion, ascribing it to political bias and attacking the personal credibility of the coroner, Dr. James Ribe.<ref name="justiceforej">, website maintained by David Crowe of the Alberta Reappraising AIDS Society, accessed ] ].</ref> Maggiore retained a board-certified ], Dr. Mohammed Al-Bayati, to review the autopsy report. Dr. Al-Bayati holds a ] in comparative pathology; he is not a ], nor is he board-certified in human pathology;<ref name="cv">, accessed ] ].</ref> he does not believe that HIV causes AIDS.<ref>Dr. Mohammed Al-Bayati's home page, at www.whale.to/a/bayati1.html, currently spam-blocked by Misplaced Pages. Accessed ] ].</ref> | |||
| ⚫ | Controversy ensued in the wake of Eliza Jane's death; as Eliza Jane had acquired HIV from Maggiore ]ly or via breastfeeding, her HIV infection might have been prevented had Maggiore taken antiretroviral drugs or avoided breastfeeding, and her death may have been preventable with proper medical care.<ref name="primetime"/><ref name="LATimesArticle"/> John Moore, a prominent HIV/AIDS researcher speaking at the 16th ], described Eliza Jane's death as a concrete example of the human harm that can result from ] beliefs such as AIDS denialism: | ||
| ⚫ | {{Quotation|... infants whose HIV infected mothers listen to AIDS denialists never got the chance to make their own decisions. The Maggiore case received wide publicity. Christine Maggiore is a person who’s proselytized against the use of antiretrovirals to prevent HIV/AIDS. She's a classic AIDS denialist, and she gave birth to a child who died at age three late last year of an AIDS-related infection. The coroner’s report clearly reports that the child died of AIDS. That was another unnecessary death.<ref> {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081002035909/http://www.kaisernetwork.org/health_cast/uploaded_files/081306_ias_sat_journalism.pdf |date=October 2, 2008 }}, presented at the 16th annual International AIDS Conference, accessed 5 September 2006.</ref>}} | ||
| During this controversy, Maggiore had held fast to her views on HIV/AIDS and to Al-Bayati's conclusion.<ref name="LATimesArticle"/> She received support from others in the AIDS-denialist community; journalist ] wrote an article in June 2006 in the independent paper '']'' arguing Maggiore's case and alleging incompetence, conspiracy, and coverups on the part of the coroner, the mainstream AIDS community, the mainstream media, and the medical community. In particular, Farber claimed that the coroner's office had not disclosed the records of Eliza Jane's HIV serology test, and quoted another denialist who claimed Eliza Jane's total lymphocyte count was elevated at the time of her death.<ref>{{dead link|date=August 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}.</ref> | |||
| Dr. Al-Bayati released a report describing his conclusion that Eliza Jane had not died from AIDS or PCP, but from an ] to ].<ref name="abreport">, accessed ] ].</ref> Maggiore embraced Dr. Al-Bayati's conclusion that a reaction to amoxicillin was responsible, stating, "I believe the unfortunate irony in this situation is that the one time that we were asked to and that we complied with mainstream medicine, we inadvertently gave our daughter something that took her life."<ref name="primetime"/> | |||
| ⚫ | Eliza Jane's death was investigated by the ] and the Los Angeles Department of ] as a possible case of ] or ].<ref name="LATimesArticle"/> In September 2006, the L.A. County District Attorney's office announced that it would not file charges against Christine Maggiore, noting that Maggiore did take her sick child to several physicians.<ref name="latimesfollowup">{{cite news | url = http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-aidsmom16sep16,1,5247537.story | title = L.A. County D.A. Won't Act in Girl's AIDS-Related Death | work =Los Angeles Times | date = 16 September 2006 | accessdate = 5 October 2006}}</ref> In September 2006, the ] filed charges of ] against Eliza Jane's pediatrician, ]. | ||
| Critics have dismissed Al-Bayati's report as both biased and medically unsound.<ref name="gdotcom">, accessed ] ].</ref><ref name="Bennett">, accessed ] ].</ref> Both the ] and ] consulted independent experts in pathology about Eliza Jane's case; these experts agreed unequivocally with the coroner's conclusion that AIDS and PCP were the cause of death, and rejected Dr. Al-Bayati's report.<ref name="LATimesArticle"/><ref name="primetime"/> | |||
| The board argued that Fleiss had failed to test Eliza Jane for HIV (or to document her parents' refusal of testing), failed to counsel Maggiore to avoid breastfeeding given the risk of transmitting HIV, and committed similar violations of standard medical practice in Fleiss' care of a second HIV-positive child.<ref name="latimesfollowup2">{{cite news | url = http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/california/la-me-fleiss9oct09,1,764988.story | last = Hall | first = C | title = Fleiss (the father) is placed on probation | work =Los Angeles Times | date = 2007-10-09 | accessdate = 2007-10-10 }}</ref> Ultimately, Fleiss conceded a failure to keep adequate medical records and was sanctioned with 35 months of probation, but was not found grossly negligent by the Board.<ref name="la-times-fleiss">{{cite news | work =Los Angeles Times | title = Fleiss (the father) is put on probation | first = Carla | last = Hall | url = https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2007-oct-09-me-fleiss9-story.html | date = October 9, 2007}}</ref> | |||
| ==Criticism and controversy== | |||
| Maggiore and her husband, Robin Scovill, sued Los Angeles County in 2007 for allegedly violating their daughter's civil rights and privacy by releasing her autopsy report, which indicated that she was HIV-positive. A settlement was reached in 2009.<ref>{{cite news | url = http://articles.latimes.com/2009/mar/06/local/me-maggiore-lawsuit6 | archive-url = https://archive.today/20120708122820/http://articles.latimes.com/2009/mar/06/local/me-maggiore-lawsuit6 | url-status = dead | archive-date = July 8, 2012 | title = L.A. County settles suit on autopsy of HIV skeptics' daughter | last = Hennessy-Fiske | first = Molly | date = March 6, 2009 | accessdate = March 16, 2009 | work =Los Angeles Times}}</ref> | |||
| Following Eliza Jane Scovill's death, Maggiore's beliefs, as well as her refusal to take medication to prevent transmission of HIV to her children and her refusal to have her child tested for HIV, have become points of controversy. Maggiore holds fast to her belief that HIV does not cause AIDS, and that Eliza Jane died of a reaction to amoxicillin.<ref name="justiceforej"/> Maggiore has also described much of the major journalistic coverage of her story as biased or inaccurate.<ref name="justiceforej"/> She submitted a letter to the L.A. Times alleging factual errors and omissions in their articles on Eliza Jane; the Times did not print the letter, stating that "If facts in an article are wrong, a correction would be published. However, no correction is warranted in this case."<ref>, accessed ] ].</ref> | |||
| ==Death== | |||
| ⚫ | |||
| On December 27, 2008, Maggiore died at the age of 52. She was under a doctor's care and was being treated for what was originally reported as pneumonia. The Los Angeles County coroner's office stated that Maggiore had been treated for pneumonia in the six months prior to her death as well.<ref name=LATdeath/> A doctor familiar with the family noted that anti-HIV drugs could have prevented her death, but Maggiore's fellow AIDS denialists argued that her pneumonia was not AIDS-related and suggested instead that she died as a result of a toxic ] "holistic cleanse", stress, or the cold and flu.<ref name=ABCdeath/><ref name=LATdeath>{{cite news |title= Christine Maggiore, vocal skeptic of AIDS research, dies at 52|newspaper=Los Angeles Times|date= 2008-12-30|accessdate=2008-12-30|url=http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-christine-maggiore30-2008dec30,0,7407966.story}}</ref> Maggiore's death certificate states that the cause of death was disseminated herpes virus infection and bilateral ], with oral ] as a contributing cause, all of which can be related to HIV infection. The death certificate also states that no autopsy was performed.<ref>{{cite web|title=Christine Maggiore died of AIDS|url=https://www.aidstruth.org/sites/aidstruth.org/files/maggiore-death-certificate.pdf|publisher=AIDStruth.org|accessdate=3 January 2016}}</ref> | |||
| ⚫ | |||
| ==See also== | |||
| Maggiore's inclusion as an exhibitor at the 13th ] in ], ] has been criticized by AIDS activists.<ref></ref> | |||
| * '']'' | |||
| * '']'' | |||
| The journalist and ] ] wrote an article in June 2006 in the independent paper ''Los Angeles City Beat'', arguing Maggiore's case and alleging incompetence, ], and coverups on the part of the coroner, the mainstream AIDS community, the mainstream media, and the medical community.<ref>, accessed ] ].</ref> | |||
| ===Legal ramifications=== | |||
| ⚫ | |||
| In September 2006, the Medical Board of California has filed charges of ] against Dr. Paul Fleiss, Eliza Jane's pediatrician, due to his failure to test Eliza Jane for HIV (or document her parents' refusal of testing), his failure to counsel Maggiore to avoid breast-feeding given the risk of transmitting HIV, and similar violations of standard medical practice in Fleiss' care of a second HIV-positive child.<ref name="latimesfollowup"/> | |||
| ==References== | ==References== | ||
| {{reflist|30em}} | |||
| <div class="references-small"><references/></div> | |||
| ==External links== | ==External links== | ||
| *: from the ''Los Angeles Times''. | |||
| ⚫ | * An ABC News Primetime special. | ||
| * Jonny Steinberg, ''New Scientist'' 2009. | |||
| * from the ''Los Angeles Times''. | |||
| * by Myles Power mainly criticizing Christine Maggiore and her role in this movie and during its making. (Youtube) | |||
| {{Authority control}} | |||
| *, a site defending Christine Maggiore, maintained by David Crowe of the Alberta Reappraising AIDS Society. | |||
| ⚫ | * An ABC News Primetime special |
||
| *: LA Times article, accessed ] ]. | |||
| * | |||
| * dated ] ], retrieved ] ]. | |||
| {{DEFAULTSORT:Maggiore, Christine}} | |||
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Latest revision as of 12:04, 1 October 2024
American HIV denier (1956–2008)Christine Joy Maggiore (July 25, 1956 – December 27, 2008) was an HIV-positive activist and promoter of HIV/AIDS denialism. She was the founder of Alive & Well AIDS Alternatives, an organization which disputes the link between HIV and AIDS and urges HIV-positive pregnant women to avoid anti-HIV medication. Maggiore authored and self-published the book What If Everything You Thought You Knew about AIDS Was Wrong?
Maggiore's promotion of HIV/AIDS denialism had long been controversial, particularly since her 3-year-old daughter, Eliza Jane Scovill, died of Pneumocystis jirovecii pneumonia, which is an AIDS-defining illness. Consistent with her belief that HIV was harmless, Maggiore had not taken medication to reduce the risk of transmission of HIV to her daughter during pregnancy, and she did not have Eliza Jane tested for HIV during her daughter's lifetime. Maggiore herself died on December 27, 2008, after suffering from AIDS-related conditions.
Early life and career
Born in Chicago, Illinois, Maggiore grew up in Southern California. After graduating with honors from Reseda High School, she worked in advertising and marketing in Los Angeles, California until 1984. She traveled through Europe and North Africa in 1984 before settling in Florence, Italy, where she lived from 1985 to 1987. By the late 1980s, she was earning a high salary at the Alessi International clothing company.
HIV diagnosis and activism
In 1992, as part of a routine medical exam, Maggiore tested positive for HIV, as did a former boyfriend. Subsequently, Maggiore became involved in volunteer work for a number of AIDS charities, including AIDS Project Los Angeles, L.A. Shanti, and Women at Risk. However, following an interaction with prominent AIDS denialist Peter Duesberg in 1994, Maggiore began to question whether HIV causes AIDS. Maggiore came to believe that her positive test may have been due to influenza vaccination, pregnancy, or a common viral infection.
In 1995, Maggiore left the clothing business to work as a freelance consultant for US government export programs. At the same time, she founded Alive & Well AIDS Alternatives, an organization denying the connection between HIV and AIDS and urging pregnant HIV-positive women to avoid HIV medications for themselves and their children. Maggiore herself drew criticism for breast-feeding her children, as breast feeding has been shown to increase the risk of mother-to-child transmission of HIV.
In a 2002 article entitled "My Bout of So-Called AIDS", Maggiore wrote that she had an abnormal Pap smear (a "Grade 3 Pap smear with cervical dysplasia"), which she wrote would qualify her for an AIDS diagnosis. Maggiore's doctors recommended further evaluation with colposcopy; Maggiore writes that she instead followed a naturopathic program and had additional Pap tests performed under an assumed name by another doctor, ultimately obtaining what she described as a normal result.
In a 2005 article in the Los Angeles Times, Maggiore claimed to be in excellent health without taking anti-retroviral treatment. Maggiore's husband and partner, filmmaker Robin Scovill, has repeatedly tested negative despite what Maggiore describes as "a decade of normal, latex-free relations". Their son Charlie, born in 1997, has also tested negative for HIV.
Maggiore's inclusion as an exhibitor at the 13th International AIDS Conference in Durban, South Africa has been criticized by AIDS activists. Her influence on Thabo Mbeki's decision to block medical treatment of HIV-positive pregnant women was criticized following her death, with medical researchers noting that an estimated "330,000 lives were lost to new AIDS infections during the time Mbeki blocked government funding of AZT treatment to mothers."
Daughter Eliza Jane
Main article: Death of Eliza Jane ScovillChristine Maggiore chose not to take antiretroviral drugs or other measures which reduce the risk of mother-to-child transmission of HIV during her pregnancies. Maggiore also breastfed her children, despite evidence that breastfeeding can also transmit HIV from mother to child. Her youngest daughter, Eliza Jane, was never tested for HIV, nor did she or her older brother Charlie receive any of the recommended childhood vaccines. Maggiore later reported Charlie to have tested HIV-negative three times, and asserted that both were in good health.
In April 2005, Eliza Jane, then three and a half years old, became ill with a runny nose. She was seen by two physicians, one of whom reportedly knew of Maggiore's HIV status. Eliza Jane was not tested for HIV and was diagnosed with pneumonia. When Eliza Jane failed to improve, Maggiore took her to see Philip Incao, a holistic practitioner and board member of Maggiore's organization Alive & Well AIDS Alternatives, who described Eliza Jane as only mildly ill and prescribed her amoxicillin for a presumed ear infection.
On May 16, 2005, Eliza Jane collapsed and stopped breathing. She was rushed to Valley Presbyterian Hospital in Van Nuys, California, where, after failed attempts to revive her, she was pronounced dead. An autopsy revealed that Eliza Jane was markedly underweight and under-height (consistent with a chronic illness), exhibited pronounced atrophy of her thymus and other lymphatic organs, and died of pneumonia caused by Pneumocystis jirovecii, a common opportunistic pathogen in people with AIDS and the leading cause of pediatric AIDS deaths.
The postmortem examination of Eliza Jane's brain showed changes consistent with HIV encephalitis; protein components of HIV itself were identified in Eliza Jane's brain tissue via immunohistochemistry. The coroner concluded that Eliza Jane had died of Pneumocystis pneumonia in the setting of advanced AIDS.
Maggiore rejected the coroner's conclusion, ascribing it to political bias and attacking the personal credibility of the senior coroner. Maggiore had the autopsy reviewed by Mohammed Al-Bayati, a veterinary pathologist who holds a Ph.D. in animal disease pathology, but is neither a medical doctor nor board-certified in human pathology. Al-Bayati argued that Eliza Jane had died from an allergic reaction to amoxicillin, a conclusion Maggiore embraced. Al-Bayati's report has been dismissed as medically unsound by independent pathology experts, who agreed with the coroner's conclusion that Eliza Jane had died of complications of untreated AIDS.
Reaction to Eliza Jane's death
Controversy ensued in the wake of Eliza Jane's death; as Eliza Jane had acquired HIV from Maggiore perinatally or via breastfeeding, her HIV infection might have been prevented had Maggiore taken antiretroviral drugs or avoided breastfeeding, and her death may have been preventable with proper medical care. John Moore, a prominent HIV/AIDS researcher speaking at the 16th International AIDS Conference, described Eliza Jane's death as a concrete example of the human harm that can result from pseudoscientific beliefs such as AIDS denialism:
... infants whose HIV infected mothers listen to AIDS denialists never got the chance to make their own decisions. The Maggiore case received wide publicity. Christine Maggiore is a person who’s proselytized against the use of antiretrovirals to prevent HIV/AIDS. She's a classic AIDS denialist, and she gave birth to a child who died at age three late last year of an AIDS-related infection. The coroner’s report clearly reports that the child died of AIDS. That was another unnecessary death.
During this controversy, Maggiore had held fast to her views on HIV/AIDS and to Al-Bayati's conclusion. She received support from others in the AIDS-denialist community; journalist Celia Farber wrote an article in June 2006 in the independent paper Los Angeles CityBeat arguing Maggiore's case and alleging incompetence, conspiracy, and coverups on the part of the coroner, the mainstream AIDS community, the mainstream media, and the medical community. In particular, Farber claimed that the coroner's office had not disclosed the records of Eliza Jane's HIV serology test, and quoted another denialist who claimed Eliza Jane's total lymphocyte count was elevated at the time of her death.
Eliza Jane's death was investigated by the Los Angeles Police Department and the Los Angeles Department of Child Protective Services as a possible case of medical neglect or child endangerment. In September 2006, the L.A. County District Attorney's office announced that it would not file charges against Christine Maggiore, noting that Maggiore did take her sick child to several physicians. In September 2006, the Medical Board of California filed charges of gross negligence against Eliza Jane's pediatrician, Paul M. Fleiss.
The board argued that Fleiss had failed to test Eliza Jane for HIV (or to document her parents' refusal of testing), failed to counsel Maggiore to avoid breastfeeding given the risk of transmitting HIV, and committed similar violations of standard medical practice in Fleiss' care of a second HIV-positive child. Ultimately, Fleiss conceded a failure to keep adequate medical records and was sanctioned with 35 months of probation, but was not found grossly negligent by the Board.
Maggiore and her husband, Robin Scovill, sued Los Angeles County in 2007 for allegedly violating their daughter's civil rights and privacy by releasing her autopsy report, which indicated that she was HIV-positive. A settlement was reached in 2009.
Death
On December 27, 2008, Maggiore died at the age of 52. She was under a doctor's care and was being treated for what was originally reported as pneumonia. The Los Angeles County coroner's office stated that Maggiore had been treated for pneumonia in the six months prior to her death as well. A doctor familiar with the family noted that anti-HIV drugs could have prevented her death, but Maggiore's fellow AIDS denialists argued that her pneumonia was not AIDS-related and suggested instead that she died as a result of a toxic alternative medicine "holistic cleanse", stress, or the cold and flu. Maggiore's death certificate states that the cause of death was disseminated herpes virus infection and bilateral pneumonia, with oral candidiasis as a contributing cause, all of which can be related to HIV infection. The death certificate also states that no autopsy was performed.
See also
References
- ^ France, David (2000-08-28). "The HIV Disbeliever". Newsweek.
- ^ "Did HIV-Positive Mom's Beliefs Put Her Children at Risk?". ABC Primetime Live. 2005-12-08. Retrieved 2008-12-23.
- ^ Borger, Julian (2005-09-26). "Mother who denied Aids link faces police investigation after death of daughter". The Guardian. Retrieved 2007-03-28.
- ^ Ornstein, Charles; Daniel Costello (2005-09-24). "A Mother's Denial, a Daughter's Death". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2008-12-29.
- Prothero, Donald (August 2013). Reality Check: How Science Deniers Threaten Our Future. Indiana University Press. ISBN 9780253010360. Retrieved 22 July 2017.
- For examples, see:
- Nduati R, John G, Mbori-Ngacha D, Richardson B, Overbaugh J, Mwatha A, Ndinya-Achola J, Bwayo J, Onyango F, Hughes J, Kreiss J (2000). "Effect of breastfeeding and formula feeding on transmission of HIV-1: a randomized clinical trial". JAMA. 283 (9): 1167–74. doi:10.1001/jama.283.9.1167. PMID 10703779.
- Tess B, Rodrigues L, Newell M, Dunn D, Lago T (1998). "Infant feeding and risk of mother-to-child transmission of HIV-1 in São Paulo State, Brazil. São Paulo Collaborative Study for Vertical Transmission of HIV-1". J Acquir Immune Defic Syndr Hum Retrovirol. 19 (2): 189–94. doi:10.1097/00042560-199810010-00014. PMID 9768630.
- Watts D; Watts, D. Heather (2002). "Management of human immunodeficiency virus infection in pregnancy". N Engl J Med. 346 (24): 1879–91. doi:10.1056/NEJMra013338. PMID 12063373.
- In fact, although invasive cervical cancer is an AIDS-defining illness, an abnormal Pap smear has never been an AIDS-defining condition.
- Maggiore, Christine. "My Bout of So-Called AIDS". From the website of Alive & Well AIDS Alternatives. Retrieved 2006-12-06.
- Criticism of Maggiore's inclusion in the 13th International AIDS Conference
- ^ "Death of an AIDS Skeptic; Friends Say Christine Maggiore Endured Media Stress; Doctors Say She Caused Misery". ABCNews. 2009-01-01. Retrieved 2009-01-02.
- Given the known and unknown risks of antiretroviral use in pregnancy, National Institutes of Health guidelines state that the final decision regarding their use "should be made by the woman after discussion with her health care provider about the known and unknown benefits and risks of therapy" in a "noncoercive" environment; see "Recommendations on HIV therapy during pregnancy" (PDF). National Institutes of Health. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2006-04-22. Retrieved 2006-12-04.
- ^ "Autopsy Report on Eliza Jane Scovill" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2007-09-28. (2.29 MiB)
- HIV Infection in Infants and Children; thebody.com; July 2004 Archived 2009-02-20 at the Wayback Machine Accessed 20 July 2007.
- Justice For E.J., website maintained by David Crowe of the Alberta Reappraising AIDS Society, accessed September 5, 2006.
- Costello, Daniel; Charles Ornstein (2005-12-09). "HIV Skeptic Takes Her Case to TV Audience". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2008-12-29.
- Christine Maggiore: AIDS naysayer, accessed September 5, 2006.
- HIV and Responsible Journalism Archived October 2, 2008, at the Wayback Machine, presented at the 16th annual International AIDS Conference, accessed 5 September 2006.
- Celia Farber, A Daughter's Death, A Mother's Survival, Los Angeles City Beat.
- "L.A. County D.A. Won't Act in Girl's AIDS-Related Death". Los Angeles Times. 16 September 2006. Retrieved 5 October 2006.
- Hall, C (2007-10-09). "Fleiss (the father) is placed on probation". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2007-10-10.
- Hall, Carla (October 9, 2007). "Fleiss (the father) is put on probation". Los Angeles Times.
- Hennessy-Fiske, Molly (March 6, 2009). "L.A. County settles suit on autopsy of HIV skeptics' daughter". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on July 8, 2012. Retrieved March 16, 2009.
- ^ "Christine Maggiore, vocal skeptic of AIDS research, dies at 52". Los Angeles Times. 2008-12-30. Retrieved 2008-12-30.
- "Christine Maggiore died of AIDS" (PDF). AIDStruth.org. Retrieved 3 January 2016.
External links
- A Mother's Denial, A Daughter's Death: from the Los Angeles Times.
- Did HIV-Positive Mom's Beliefs Put Her Children at Risk? An ABC News Primetime special.
- AIDS denial: A lethal delusion Jonny Steinberg, New Scientist 2009.
- Obituary from the Los Angeles Times.
- Debunking the AIDS Denialist Movie House of NumbersMy by Myles Power mainly criticizing Christine Maggiore and her role in this movie and during its making. (Youtube)