Amid concerns over a rare and dangerous side effect, the Oxford-AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine is being withdrawn globally, marking a significant development in the fight against the pandemic.
Reported by The Telegraph, this decision follows months of scrutiny, with the pharmaceutical giant acknowledging for the first time in court documents the vaccine’s potential to cause a rare and perilous side effect.
In a statement released on Tuesday, the company announced the withdrawal of the vaccine’s marketing authorization in the European Union, effective immediately. Similar applications for withdrawal will be made in the UK and other countries where the vaccine was previously approved, known as Vaxzevria.
The decision to withdraw the vaccine comes despite its earlier acclaim, hailed by Boris Johnson as a triumph for British science and credited with saving millions of lives worldwide.
AstraZeneca attributed the withdrawal to commercial reasons, citing a decline in demand as updated vaccines targeting new variants have become available. They emphasized that the vaccine is no longer being manufactured or supplied.
In response to concerns over the vaccine’s side effects, particularly the rare occurrence of Thrombosis with Thrombocytopenia Syndrome (TTS), AstraZeneca acknowledged the association in court documents filed in February. TTS has been linked to at least 81 fatalities in the UK and numerous severe injuries.
Despite facing lawsuits from over 50 individuals claiming harm from TTS and grieving family members, AstraZeneca maintains that the decision to withdraw the vaccine is unrelated to ongoing legal proceedings or their acknowledgment of the vaccine’s potential side effects.
The company reassured that their decision is purely coincidental in timing and emphasized their commitment to collaborating with regulators and partners to navigate this phase and contribute to ending the pandemic.
