• The deceased volunteer was reportedly subjected to a placebo and not the actual COVID-19 vaccine.
• The Brazilian government plans on purchasing the patent COVID-19 vaccine if approved.

According to reliable sources, the demise of a volunteer occurred during AstraZeneca’s and Oxford’s COVID-19 trials, currently being conducted in Brazil. Following the review of the of the unfortunate event, health surveillance authority Anvisa (Agência Nacional de Vigilância Sanitária) has reportedly authorized the study to proceed without any disruptions.

The deceased volunteer was subjected to a placebo and not the actual COVID-19 vaccine, sources confirmed. In fact, the effectuality of the potential vaccine was evaluated on only half of the volunteers participating in the trial.

In this context, AstraZeneca issued a statement claiming that all the medical events are carefully monitored by trial investigators along with an independent safety monitoring committee. Providing assurance regarding the authenticity of the trials, the company further stated that it had followed all the prerequisite review processes.

According to the University of Oxford, all significant medical incidents, including those concerning the participants in the control group or the COVID-19 vaccine group, are reviewed independently.

It is to be noted that AstraZeneca conducted its phase 1 and 2 trials for the potential vaccine candidate, while the phase 3 trial is currently being carried out in India, Brazil, and in the United Kingdom.

Reportedly, the Brazilian regulator has suggested that the companies to continue their trial round. Moreover, the Brazilian government plans on purchasing the patent COVID-19 vaccine if it is approved by the regulatory bodies.

Meanwhile, Brazil’s President Jair Bolsonaro has reportedly declared that the federal government will not buy a COVID-19 vaccine from China-based biopharmaceutical company Sinovac Biotech Ltd.

Source credits: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-54634518