A former leader of anti-vaccine group Children's Health Defense is set to present on flu vaccines containing the preservative thimerosal at a CDC vaccine advisory panel meeting later this week, CNN reported, citing a CDC official not authorized to discuss the matter publicly.

The presenter, Lyn Redwood, is the president emerita of Children's Health Defense, previously known as the World Mercury Project. Children's Health Defense aims to "end childhood health epidemics by eliminating toxic exposure," according to its website.

Redwood was president of the World Mercury Project, which was founded by U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr, in 2016.

A statement from the Vaccine Integrity Project on Monday said that Redwood's presentation has not been vetted by CDC subject matter experts, a departure from usual practice. The group did not say how it knew the presentation had not been vetted.

"These are clear signs that the true intent of the meeting is to sow distrust about the safety of vaccines," said the group, which is backed by Alumbra, a foundation established by philanthropist Christy Walton.

The Vaccine Integrity Project was launched by a group of public health and infectious disease experts earlier this year amid concerns about changes in the CDC's vaccine pannel.

Kennedy, who has a long history of casting doubt on the safety of vaccines contrary to scientific evidence, wrote a book in 2014 claiming that thimerosal, a mercury-based preservative, causes brain damage.

Thimerosal has long been used in the United States in multidose vials of medicines and vaccines, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Aside from minor reactions such as redness and swelling at the injection site, there is no evidence that the low doses of thimerosal in vaccines cause harm, the agency says.

The CDC panel, known as the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practice, is scheduled to meet on June 25 and 26.

The Department of Health and Human Services did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.