Autism diagnoses have increased in the past two decades, driven in part by a rise in milder forms of the condition, @OlgaKhazan reports. She spoke with researchers who worry that many of these diagnoses may be inaccurate:

Autism has exploded in my lifetime. That’s not an opinion, it’s a fact. We can all accept that better diagnosis and broader definitions explain some of the increase. But does anyone honestly believe that’s the whole story? More children are being diagnosed than ever before, yet we’re told not to ask what has changed. Vaccines are one of many things people ask about because the childhood vaccine schedule has expanded dramatically over the same period. Asking whether there is any connection is not anti science. It is a legitimate scientific question that should continue to be studied alongside every other possible environmental, genetic and developmental factor. Science shouldn’t be afraid of questions. It should be afraid of refusing to ask them.

An Autism Breakthrough, or an Illusion? The Fight Over Assisted Spelling Popular communication methods for nonspeaking autistic people have ignited a fierce debate over what counts as evidence of hidden cognitive abilities, reports Azeen Ghorayshi for @NYTimes. GIFT LINK:

Suramin & Autism: Promising early signal — but why aren’t we funding bigger trials? A 2017 study by Dr. Robert Naviaux tested the century-old drug Suramin (originally for African sleeping sickness) in a small group of children with autism. In that tiny randomized trial, a single low-dose IV infusion was associated with improvements in core symptoms — language, social interaction, eye contact, and repetitive behaviors — in the treatment group. These changes were not seen with placebo. The researchers tied it to the “Cell Danger Response” hypothesis. Should we be investing more aggressively in follow-up research? Absolutely — if the science holds up, this could be worth exploring properly. Repurposing existing drugs is often cheaper and faster than developing brand-new ones, yet it frequently gets underfunded. Is the slow progress just normal bureaucracy and funding priorities… or is something else getting in the way? What do you think — should governments, foundations, or private donors be stepping up for bigger Suramin trials?

At a federal autism advisory committee meeting yesterday, committee members explicitly named vaccines as a cause of autism — despite years of scientific evidence debunking any link between the two. Learn more.