AstraZeneca has temporarily stopped it’s Covid-19 vaccine trials after a participant became ill. A spokesman for the pharmaceutical company told the media that they have decided to interrupt clinical trial to find a vaccine against COVID-19, because one of the participants is suffering from “a potentially unexplained illness.”
“This is a routine action that happens whenever there is a potentially unexplained ailment in one of the trials while it is being investigated, ensuring that the integrity of the studies is maintained,” the spokesperson told the press.
He described it as a “routine” pause in the case of “an unexplained illness”.
The AstraZeneca-Oxford University vaccine is seen as a strong contender among dozens of trials being developed globally with the outcome being closely watched around the world.
This is the second time the Oxford coronavirus vaccine trial has been put on hold. Such events are routine in major trials, and happen any time a volunteer is admitted to hospital when the cause of their illness is not immediately apparent.
It is thought the trials will resume in a matter of days.
