An 82-year-old British man became the first person in the world on Monday to get the controversial COVID-19 vaccine from AstraZeneca and Oxford University.
Brian Pinker, a dialysis patient who was born and raised in Oxford, was stabbed at 7.30am while the UK launched the latest vaccine, one that the United States has not yet approved amid questions about errors made during testing.
“I am very happy to receive the COVID vaccine today and I am very proud that it was invented in Oxford,” Pinker said, according to the UK National Health Service.
“Now I can wish to celebrate my 48th wedding anniversary with my wife Shirley later this year.”
The head of nursing at Oxford University Hospital, Sam Foster, administered the shot and considered it a “real privilege” to give it “a few hundred meters from where it was developed”.
The head of the vaccine trial, Professor Andrew Pollard, was one of the first groups to receive the shot on Monday and described it as a “very proud moment”.
The AstraZeneca / Oxford jab has been acclaimed for several key advantages over other vaccines. It is cheaper and can be stored and transported more easily because it does not need to be stored at extremely cold temperatures.
However, you are unlikely to get approval in the U.S. until April at the earliest, as regulators await further studies, according to Chief Warp Speed Operation Scientist.
The jab research team admitted an accidental underdose during the trials, which produced the best results, but raised more questions about the relatively small size and young age of those receiving this dose.