Teary-eyed mother to Michele Bachmann: Michele, my daughter took the HPV vaccine and spontaneously became mentally retarded. Michele Bachmann to the world: We must stop the use of these dangerous government-mandated vaccines which infringe on our liberties as Americans and cause mental retardation. Those aren’t direct quotes . . . but it was the gist of the exchange. I cringed when I read the news reports. It was more than a misstatement; it’s a potential death sentence for the untold number of girls and women who might be lead astray by this heinous misinformation put forth by GOP presidential hopeful,...

Back in 2008, biotech companies working on cancer vaccines were not exactly shouting it from the rooftops. In fact, most companies working in the space quietly began branding their drug candidates “immunotherapies” when they met with investors in an attempt to avoid connection with the spate of disappointing headlines such as the ones that ran in BioWorld Today – “Cell Genesys Crushed on Latest GVAX Failure,” “Favrille Sinks on Phase III Failure of Lead Cancer Drug” and “Genitope Dropping MyVax Work, Focusing Instead on Antibodies.” Then Dendreon Corp.’s Provenge (sipuleucel-T) hit its Phase III survival endpoints and won FDA approval...