Oxford vaccine trial halted as volunteer falls ill

TRIALS of the world’s best hope for a coronavirus vaccine have been paused after a volunteer fell ill.

The jab developed at Oxford University is part of a trial involving around 17,000 participants in the UK, Brazil and South Africa so far.

But it is now on hold after a British volunteer was understood to have been diagnosed with transverse myelitis – a rare condition causing inflammation of the spinal cord, which can be sparked by a viral infection.

The news is a blow to the UK, which has a deal with drugs manufacturer AstraZeneca for 100million doses of the vaccine, and hopes to have 30million doses ready for the start of next year. It will also disappoint the

US, where the Trump administration is reportedly considering speeding up regulatory approval to have the vaccine ready for use ahead of the presidential election.

The Oxford vaccine trial is understood to have previously been halted for 24 hours in July, after a British volunteer suffered a sudden loss of feeling down one side, although it is unclear whether this was caused by the vaccine.

But experts point out that people are bound to fall ill among the tens of thousands involved in vaccine trials and can do so completely coincidentally. It is hoped the

Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Authority (MHRA), which regulates vaccines, could quickly restart the trial following an investigation.

In a joint statement Oxford University and AstraZeneca said vaccination had been paused so that safety data could be reviewed, adding: ‘This is a routine action which has to happen whenever there is a potentially unexplained illness in one of the studies, while it is investigated, ensuring we maintain the integrity of the trials.’

The first person to have fallen ill in July is understood to have made a full recovery.

Transverse myelitis affects approximately 1,900 adults a year in the UK and can cause numbness, pain and weakness in the arms and legs. The individual concerned is believed to have been part of the trial which includes some older people aged over 55 and 70. Professor Sir Jeremy Farrar, one of the Government’s Sage group of scientific advisers, told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme that vaccine trials often have ‘pauses’.

He said: ‘They do happen quite commonly in vaccine trials when you’re offering a vaccine to tens of thousands of individuals, but each one must be taken seriously.’

The Oxford vaccine is one of only six vaccines in the final stage of testing and will enrol up to 50,000 people worldwide, including in India, Russia and Japan. Its first trial results, published in July, reported only mild side effects such as headaches and fatigue.