The pharmaceutical “giant” AstraZeneca has for the first time acknowledged that its COVID-19 vaccine may cause rare side effects that could lead to blood clots and even death.
AstraZeneca is currently facing a class-action lawsuit alleging that the company’s vaccine, developed in collaboration with the University of Oxford, could result in fatalities and serious injuries.
The legal battle was initiated by Jamie Scott, who suffered brain damage due to a blood clot after receiving the COVID-19 vaccine in April 2021 during the pandemic. Mr. Scott is seeking compensation, claiming that AstraZeneca’s vaccine is “faulty” and less safe than expected. AstraZeneca has denied these allegations.
AstraZeneca vaccine may cause thrombocytopenic thrombotic syndrome.
In May 2023, AstraZeneca asserted that “we do not accept that Thrombosis with Thrombocytopenia Syndrome (TTS) is caused by the vaccine at a general level.”, according to a quote from The Daily Telegraph.
TTS is a rare condition in which an individual develops blood clots that can reduce blood flow, combined with low platelet counts, complicating the ability to stop bleeding. Symptoms of TTS include severe headaches and abdominal pain.
Despite earlier denials, AstraZeneca noted in documents submitted to the UK Supreme Court in February that it “acknowledges that in very rare cases, the AstraZeneca vaccine may cause TTS. The causal mechanism has not been clearly established.”
According to the Telegraph, the pharmaceutical company further stated: “Moreover, TTS can also occur in cases where the AstraZeneca vaccine (or any other vaccine) is not administered.”
AstraZeneca maintains that existing data shows this vaccine has an “acceptable safety profile” and that “regulatory authorities worldwide have consistently stated that the benefits of vaccination outweigh the risks of extremely rare potential side effects.”
Dozens of Western countries suspended the use of AstraZeneca’s vaccine in the spring of 2021 due to concerns that it might cause some patients to develop blood clots. At that time, Marco Cavaleri, head of vaccine strategy at the European Medicines Agency (EMA), stated that there was a clear link between the AstraZeneca vaccine and blood clots in the brain but consistently asserted that the benefits of vaccination still outweigh the risks.
According to data from the World Health Organization, AstraZeneca’s vaccine against the SARS-CoV-2 virus has an efficacy rate of 72%. As of April 2021, the company reported that over 17 million people had received this vaccine in the EU and the UK, with just under 40 cases of thrombotic events reported.
