Daniel Peterson (physician)
Encyclopedia
Daniel Peterson is an American
physician
in private practice in the state of Nevada
, and has been described as a "pioneer" in the treatment of chronic fatigue syndrome
(CFS). He graduated from the University of Rochester School of Medicine, Rochester, New York, in 1976 and was an intern and resident at the University of Utah Medical Center
from 1976-1979. In 1979 he became a Diplomat of the American Board of Internal Medicine. He is president of Sierra Internal Medicine of Incline Village, established in 1981.
region. From 1984 to 1987, the illness was recorded in 259 patients in the area by the two physicians. The Lake Tahoe outbreak became the subject of several studies by Peterson and others. In 1995, Peterson and other investigators started conducting a 10-year follow-up study on patients seen during the outbreak. The study results were published in 2001 by the Journal of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. In the 2000 CFS documentary I Remember Me
, Peterson was interviewed about some of his experiences during the Lake Tahoe outbreak.
In 1988, Peterson was the first physician to treat an extremely ill person diagnosed with CFS with the experimental drug Ampligen
by obtaining compassionate-use permission from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Quantitative
improvement in the first patient enabled the next pilot study of Ampligen in CFS patients by Peterson and other researchers. During the 1990 CFIDS Conference in Charlotte, North Carolina, Peterson described positive results in 15 CFS patents after he treated them with Ampligen for approximately 6 months. In 1990 and 1991, Peterson was one of four principal investigators for the FDA approved phase II randomized placebo
controlled double-blind study of the experimental intravenous drug Ampligen. The drug was administered in his Incline Village facility and three other sites. Peterson and others reported that there was statistically significant improvement in the patients receiving Ampligen. He is a principal investigator of the FDA-approved open-label safety and efficacy phase III drug study of Ampligen for treatment of chronic fatigue syndrome. Hemispherx Biopharma's New Drug Application
for marketing and sale of Ampligen to treat chronic fatigue syndrome was rejected in December 2009 because the FDA concluded that the two RCTs "did not provide credible evidence of efficacy."
Peterson was a member of the International Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Study Group that coauthored the most widely used clinical and research description of CFS, called the 1994 CDC definition, and the Fukuda
definition. He is a coauthor of Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: Clinical Working Case Definition, Diagnostic and Treatment Protocols, initiated by Health Canada
and published by an international group of researchers in 2003.
Peterson, along with Annette and Harvey Whittemore, helped establish the Whittemore Peterson Institute
(WPI) for Neuro-Immune Disease at the University of Nevada
in 2005 to aid patients with chronic fatigue syndrome, fibromyalgia
and related illnesses. In October 2009 Peterson was interviewed on National Public Radio about his views on chronic fatigue syndrome and the newly published possible association with the retrovirus XMRV.
In 2010, Peterson left WPI due to personal reasons. He stated there was a lack of collaboration with him over the research direction of the institute concerning XMRV. Peterson then teamed with Jay Levy, one of the original discoverers of HIV, to try to determine whether XMRV is truly present in patients by testing the same patients used in the study published in Science. They did not find indications of XMRV in the blood of the patients tested, and also concluded from their experiments that XMRV does not, "survive well in human blood", so human infection is unlikely. They also stated that research results published by others suggested that laboratory contamination may have resulted in false positive results in the original study.
In 2003, he received the Rudy Perpich award, an award given to distinguished CFS/FM scientists, physicians or healthcare workers, and in 2007, received the Nelson Gantz Outstanding Clinician Award from the International Association for CFS/ME.
In 1999, Peterson was commended by the Assembly and Senate of the State of Nevada for his work and dedication to persons with chronic fatigue syndrome.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
physician
Physician
A physician is a health care provider who practices the profession of medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring human health through the study, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, injury and other physical and mental impairments...
in private practice in the state of Nevada
Nevada
Nevada is a state in the western, mountain west, and southwestern regions of the United States. With an area of and a population of about 2.7 million, it is the 7th-largest and 35th-most populous state. Over two-thirds of Nevada's people live in the Las Vegas metropolitan area, which contains its...
, and has been described as a "pioneer" in the treatment of chronic fatigue syndrome
Chronic fatigue syndrome
Chronic fatigue syndrome is the most common name used to designate a significantly debilitating medical disorder or group of disorders generally defined by persistent fatigue accompanied by other specific symptoms for a minimum of six months, not due to ongoing exertion, not substantially...
(CFS). He graduated from the University of Rochester School of Medicine, Rochester, New York, in 1976 and was an intern and resident at the University of Utah Medical Center
University of Utah Medical Center
The University of Utah Hospital is a research and teaching hospital on the campus of the University of Utah in Salt Lake City, Utah. It serves as a major regional referral center for Utah and the surrounding states of Idaho, Nevada, Wyoming, Montana and New Mexico...
from 1976-1979. In 1979 he became a Diplomat of the American Board of Internal Medicine. He is president of Sierra Internal Medicine of Incline Village, established in 1981.
Work in chronic fatigue syndrome
Along with Paul Cheney, Peterson was a treating physician at Incline Village during an outbreak of chronic fatigue syndrome that began in 1984 in the Lake TahoeLake Tahoe
Lake Tahoe is a large freshwater lake in the Sierra Nevada of the United States. At a surface elevation of , it is located along the border between California and Nevada, west of Carson City. Lake Tahoe is the largest alpine lake in North America. Its depth is , making it the USA's second-deepest...
region. From 1984 to 1987, the illness was recorded in 259 patients in the area by the two physicians. The Lake Tahoe outbreak became the subject of several studies by Peterson and others. In 1995, Peterson and other investigators started conducting a 10-year follow-up study on patients seen during the outbreak. The study results were published in 2001 by the Journal of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. In the 2000 CFS documentary I Remember Me
I Remember Me
I Remember Me is a is a biographical documentary about chronic fatigue syndrome, filmed in the United States by Kim A. Snyder. The film attempts to show just how devastating the illness can be to persons afflicted with the illness....
, Peterson was interviewed about some of his experiences during the Lake Tahoe outbreak.
In 1988, Peterson was the first physician to treat an extremely ill person diagnosed with CFS with the experimental drug Ampligen
Ampligen
Rintatolimod , is an experimental immunomodulatory double stranded RNA drug developed by Hemispherx Biopharma of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania...
by obtaining compassionate-use permission from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Quantitative
Quantitative property
A quantitative property is one that exists in a range of magnitudes, and can therefore be measured with a number. Measurements of any particular quantitative property are expressed as a specific quantity, referred to as a unit, multiplied by a number. Examples of physical quantities are distance,...
improvement in the first patient enabled the next pilot study of Ampligen in CFS patients by Peterson and other researchers. During the 1990 CFIDS Conference in Charlotte, North Carolina, Peterson described positive results in 15 CFS patents after he treated them with Ampligen for approximately 6 months. In 1990 and 1991, Peterson was one of four principal investigators for the FDA approved phase II randomized placebo
Placebo
A placebo is a simulated or otherwise medically ineffectual treatment for a disease or other medical condition intended to deceive the recipient...
controlled double-blind study of the experimental intravenous drug Ampligen. The drug was administered in his Incline Village facility and three other sites. Peterson and others reported that there was statistically significant improvement in the patients receiving Ampligen. He is a principal investigator of the FDA-approved open-label safety and efficacy phase III drug study of Ampligen for treatment of chronic fatigue syndrome. Hemispherx Biopharma's New Drug Application
New drug application
The New Drug Application is the vehicle in the United States through which drug sponsors formally propose that the Food and Drug Administration approve a new pharmaceutical for sale and marketing...
for marketing and sale of Ampligen to treat chronic fatigue syndrome was rejected in December 2009 because the FDA concluded that the two RCTs "did not provide credible evidence of efficacy."
Peterson was a member of the International Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Study Group that coauthored the most widely used clinical and research description of CFS, called the 1994 CDC definition, and the Fukuda
Keiji Fukuda
Keiji Fukuda is an American physician with expertise in influenza epidemiology. In March 2009, Fukuda was appointed Assistant Director-General for Health, Security and Environment ad interim for the World Health Organization and as of September 2010, he holds this position permanently...
definition. He is a coauthor of Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: Clinical Working Case Definition, Diagnostic and Treatment Protocols, initiated by Health Canada
Health Canada
Health Canada is the department of the government of Canada with responsibility for national public health.The current Minister of Health is Leona Aglukkaq, a Conservative Member of Parliament appointed to the position by Prime Minister Stephen Harper.-Branches, regions and agencies:Health Canada...
and published by an international group of researchers in 2003.
Peterson, along with Annette and Harvey Whittemore, helped establish the Whittemore Peterson Institute
Whittemore Peterson Institute
The Whittemore Peterson Institute for Neuro-Immune Disease is a research institute and charitable foundation known for its claims that the retrovirus xenotropic murine leukemia virus-related virus is associated with and may cause chronic fatigue syndrome and a variety of additional diseases...
(WPI) for Neuro-Immune Disease at the University of Nevada
University of Nevada, Reno
The University of Nevada, Reno , is a teaching and research university established in 1874 and located in Reno, Nevada, USA...
in 2005 to aid patients with chronic fatigue syndrome, fibromyalgia
Fibromyalgia
Fibromyalgia is a medical disorder characterized by chronic widespread pain and allodynia, a heightened and painful response to pressure. It is an example of a diagnosis of exclusion...
and related illnesses. In October 2009 Peterson was interviewed on National Public Radio about his views on chronic fatigue syndrome and the newly published possible association with the retrovirus XMRV.
In 2010, Peterson left WPI due to personal reasons. He stated there was a lack of collaboration with him over the research direction of the institute concerning XMRV. Peterson then teamed with Jay Levy, one of the original discoverers of HIV, to try to determine whether XMRV is truly present in patients by testing the same patients used in the study published in Science. They did not find indications of XMRV in the blood of the patients tested, and also concluded from their experiments that XMRV does not, "survive well in human blood", so human infection is unlikely. They also stated that research results published by others suggested that laboratory contamination may have resulted in false positive results in the original study.
Affiliations and awards
Peterson is a member of the board of directors and the scientific advisory board of the HHV-6 Foundation, a non-profit organization promoting human herpesvirus 6 (HHV-6) associated scientific and clinical research. Peterson was part of the founding board and is a past-president of the International Association for CFS/ME, a professional organization advocating for the interests of CFS researchers and clinicians worldwide.In 2003, he received the Rudy Perpich award, an award given to distinguished CFS/FM scientists, physicians or healthcare workers, and in 2007, received the Nelson Gantz Outstanding Clinician Award from the International Association for CFS/ME.
In 1999, Peterson was commended by the Assembly and Senate of the State of Nevada for his work and dedication to persons with chronic fatigue syndrome.