Trials have stopped for the vaccine that was touted to be the frontrunner in the global race to combat coronavirus. In spite of being at the front of the race, trials for the vaccine being developed by AstraZeneca with Oxford University were put on hold.

The decision was taken after one of the participants showed serious and adverse reactions during the trials. When the trails were put on hold, they were being held in the US and UK. The participant suffering from the unexplained illness is expected to recover.

The story was first reported by health news website – Stat News

“Standard review process triggered a pause to vaccination to allow review of safety data,” Stat News quoted AstraZeneca spokesperson as saying.

In May, the US had ordered 300 million doses of the potential vaccine. Earlier this week, Australia announced that it had placed an order for 3.8 million doses with AstraZeneca. 

The vaccine race has become highly political. Russian President Vladimir Putin had tested the Sputnik-V on his daughter. It is the vaccine for which there is no trial data available. Then there is China, where Sinovac is injecting its employees and their families with a potential vaccine. Again, it is a vaccine the world knows very little about.

Amidst all these covert trials, the transparency of one vaccine maker comes as a pleasant surprise.

There are still some companies that are not succumbing to political pressure to win the vaccine race. There are still some firms upholding the safety protocols even when political leaders advocate bypassing the critical stages of the trial.

Just yesterday, nine vaccine makers vowed not to cut corners on testing. AstraZeneca was one of the signatories

Others include Bio-N-Tech, Pfizer, Novovax, Sanofi, Glaxo-Smithkline, Johnson & Johnson and Merck

Reacting to paused trials, Australia’s Deputy Chief Medical Officer Nick Coatsworth said that the news was a testimony to safety and transparency.

“The fact that we’re hearing about it and I’m talking about it, is testimony to the safety and the transparency. Both of which are such critical principles as we continue the race towards an effective COVID-19 vaccine,” he said.

British Health Minister Matt Hancock echoed the sentiment.

“Well obviously I’d rather this went completely smoothly. However, we’re absolutely clear that safety comes first with the vaccine so there’s been a pause while they investigate an incident,” he said.

These reactions are not surprising as Australia and UK both have stakes in a potential vaccine. The paused trial is a setback, no matter what British authorities tell you.

The world is in a dire need of a vaccine. The Wuhan virus has already taken 9,00,000 lives but the world needs a vaccine that can save lives, not take more.