AstraZeneca-Oxford Resume COVID-19 Vaccine Clinical Trials in the UK

18,000 People Vaccinated... Efficacy to Be Proven by Year-End

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Jeong Hyunjin] The multinational pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca and the University of Oxford in the UK will resume clinical trials of their jointly developed novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) vaccine in the UK.

According to CNBC and other sources on the 12th (local time), AstraZeneca and Oxford University announced in a statement that they received approval from the UK's Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) confirming the vaccine's safety, allowing the clinical trials to resume. The trials had been temporarily halted after an unexplained illness was detected in one of the UK participants on the 8th.

AstraZeneca explained, "We voluntarily paused the global trials to allow an independent committee and international regulatory agencies to review the safety data," adding, "The UK committee completed its investigation and recommended to the MHRA that it is safe to resume the clinical trials." However, specific medical information was not disclosed.

AstraZeneca stated, "We will continue to cooperate with health authorities worldwide and will receive guidance on when other clinical trials can resume to provide the vaccine widely, equitably, and without profit during this pandemic."

Oxford University, co-developing the COVID-19 vaccine with AstraZeneca, said that approximately 18,000 participants have received the vaccine, noting, "It is expected that some participants may experience illness in such large-scale trials," and emphasized the need to ensure all trials undergo meticulous safety evaluations.

The vaccine developed by AstraZeneca and Oxford University is currently undergoing Phase 2 clinical trials in the UK and India, and Phase 3 clinical trials in over 60 cities including the United States and Brazil. However, the trials were temporarily suspended after a suspected adverse reaction was observed in a female participant in the UK.

Pascal Soriot, CEO of AstraZeneca, stated in an online meeting on the 10th that if the clinical trials resume, the vaccine's efficacy will be demonstrated by the end of the year.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.