In 1998, Andrew Wakefield released a fraudulent paper that claimed the MMR vaccine (measles, mumps, rubella) was linked to brain damage and bowel disorder. The study included only 12 children and the results have yet to be replicated, but Wakefield’s persistence raised concern in many parents.

After his claims that MMR was causing an “epidemic of autism”, a number of people became suspect of all vaccines.

CNN

This fire appeared to be fueled by the media and a certain former playmate who claimed that vaccines caused autism in her son (whose autism has been questioned) and that she was able to cure him through alternative medicine.