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AstraZeneca's landmark decision to withdraw its Covid jab worldwide was hailed by victims of an extremely rare but fatal side effect, who said it 'means no one else will suffer from this awful adverse reaction'.
The pharmaceutical titan's vaccine, once heralded as a 'triumph for British science', has come under intense scrutiny in recent months for a very rare complication that causes blood clots and low blood platelet counts. It has been linked to 81 deaths in the UK as well as hundreds of serious injuries.
The jab, developed with Oxford University, can no longer be used in the European Union after the company voluntarily withdrew its 'marketing authorisation', coming into effect today.
Similar applications to withdraw the vaccine will be made in other countries which had previously approved it, including the UK. Around 50million doses were given in Britain.
AstraZeneca's withdrawal comes months after it admitted in legal documents that its jab can cause the thrombosis with thrombocytopenia syndrome (TTS) reaction.
One of those seeking compensation is for injuries linked to AstraZeneca's vaccine is father-of-two and IT engineer Jamie Scott. He was left with a permanent brain injury following a blood clot and the bleed on the brain after getting the vaccine in April 2021. The 47-year-old has been unable to work since.
One of those seeking compensation for injuries linked to the AstraZeneca Covid vaccine is father-of-two and IT engineer Jamie Scott (right), His wife Kate (left) said she hoped the new AstraZeneca submission was sign the legal case could be resolved soon
His wife Kate said: 'AstraZeneca’s Covid vaccine no longer being used in the UK or Europe, and soon the rest of the world, means no one else will suffer from this awful adverse reaction.
'They say it's for commercial reasons but maybe it’s because it can no longer be seen as being within the acceptable safety parameters.'
Mr Scott, 47, told the Daily Telegraph: 'This is good news, but I will always wish they had, like they did in other countries, paused it in the UK after just one case.
'More lives could have been saved and I would not be suffering the way I am.'
Fifty-one families are currently pursuing legal action against the pharmaceutical titan, arguing its 'defective' jab was to blame for their injuries and deaths of loved ones.
However, lawyers argue we may never know the true number of people laid low by the rare but devastating TTS complication.
Sarah Moore, a partner at law firm Leigh Day, told MailOnline: 'The criteria for what constituted TTS was really only published and made available to the clinical community from the beginning of March (2021).'
She added that as the complication was only spotted when the jab started being dished out to younger people, cases in older individuals could potentially have slipped under the radar mistaken for problems linked to Covid or other health issues.
'We may never know if there were other injuries that could have been related to the vaccine before March 2021,' she said.
Ms Moore added that the firm had been ‘inundated’ with people coming forward claiming that they or family member had been affected by the AstraZeneca's jab, but some have had to be turned away.
The AstraZeneca jab was the most widely used in the UK during the initial rollout of the vaccination programme - before it was linked to a risk in blood clots
'Unfortunately, for a number of reasons, it isn’t feasible for us to take on every case we have been approached with,' she said.
She added that for some potential victims time to seek compensation had run out.
‘For the claims we are bringing, those injured or bereaved have three years from the date of their injury or the death in which to bring a claim so unfortunately in many cases that cut off has now been reached,' she said.
AstraZeneca denies that the decision to withdraw the vaccine is related to the court case, insisting that the vaccine is instead being removed from markets for commercial reasons.
The company said in court documents that the vaccine is reportedly no longer being manufactured or supplied, having been superseded by updated vaccines that tackle newer variants.
A spokesperson said: 'We are incredibly proud of the role Vaxzevria played in ending the global pandemic.
'According to independent estimates, over 6.5million lives were saved in the first year of use alone and over three billion doses were supplied globally.
'Our efforts have been recognised by governments around the world and are widely regarded as being a critical component of ending the global pandemic.
'As multiple, variant Covid vaccines have since been developed, there is a surplus of available updated vaccines.
Researchers believe the rare side effect occurs due to the modified cold virus lurking in the jab having an adverse effect on platelets in the blood, triggering clotting
'This has led to a decline in demand for Vaxzevria, which is no longer being manufactured or supplied. AstraZeneca has therefore taken the decision to initiate withdrawal of the marketing authorisations for Vaxzevria within Europe.
'We will now work with regulators and our partners to align on a clear path forward to conclude this chapter and significant contribution to the Covid pandemic.'
TTS, or vaccine-induced immune thrombotic thrombocytopenia (VITT), is thought to be linked to at least 81 deaths in the UK, according to figures collated by UK drug watchdog, the MHRA.
Not all are proven, however. And not every family is seeking legal action.
TTS is where a person suffers blood clots along with a low platelet count. Platelets typically help the blood to clot.
The complication – listed as a potential side effect of the jab – has previously been called vaccine-induced immune thrombotic thrombocytopenia (VITT).
The complication is exceedingly rare, given the millions of doses dished out during the roll-out. The risk is thought to be in the region of one in 50,000.
AstraZeneca's admission in court documents earlier this year could lead to pay-outs on a case-by-case basis.
Taxpayers will foot the bill of any potential settlement because of an indemnity deal AstraZeneca struck with the Government in the darkest days of Covid to get the jabs produced as quickly as possible while the country was paralysed by lockdowns.
The graph shows the cumulative number of Covid jabs dished out in the UK since the pandemic began, the percentage of each age group which has had a jab (bottom left) and the number of each Covid vaccine brand dished out
Similar action to that being taken by British families is understood to be underway in other countries where the AstraZeneca jab was deployed, including in Germany and Italy.
Health officials first identified cases of VITT linked to AstraZeneca's jab in Europe as early as March 2021, just over two months after the vaccine was first deployed in the UK.
However, it wasn't until April that year that evidence became clear enough that the jab started to be restricted.
Spooked officials first restricted the jab to only people over 30. They then narrowed this to only over-40s in May 2021.
As the vaccine still worked against Covid, it was still deemed worth giving to older Brits who were at greater risk of death or injury from falling ill with the virus.
Further Covid vaccine rollouts have either minimised use of the AstraZeneca jab and/or phased it out entirely in favour of mRNA alternatives like those made by rival pharma giants Pfizer and Moderna.
