AstraZeneca, the Anglo-Swedish pharmaceutical giant, On Wednesday, announced the withdrawal of its Covid-19 vaccine, Vaxzevria, citing "commercial reasons"
A spokesperson for AstraZeneca stated, "This has led to a decline in demand for Vaxzevria, which is no longer being manufactured or supplied."
AstraZeneca, in collaboration with Oxford University, swiftly developed the Vaxzevria vaccine in response to the Covid-19 pandemic that began in early 2020. Initially, the vaccine was offered at cost, but the company shifted to selling it for profit in late 2021.
However, concerns about rare blood-clotting issues associated with AstraZeneca's vaccine led to public hesitancy, prompting a shift towards mRNA vaccines, particularly those developed by Pfizer and BioNTech.
As global Covid restrictions eased and the world transitioned out of the pandemic, sales of Vaxzevria further declined.
In response, AstraZeneca has initiated the process of withdrawing the vaccine from the market in the Europe, Middle East, and Africa (EMA) region.
The company intends to collaborate with regulators worldwide to commence market authorization withdrawals for Vaxzevria in regions where future commercial demand is not anticipated.
Despite the decline in demand, AstraZeneca highlighted the significant impact of Vaxzevria in combating the pandemic.
The spokesperson noted that independent estimates suggest the vaccine saved over 6.5 million lives in its first year of use and supplied more than three billion doses globally.
"We are incredibly proud of the role Vaxzevria played in ending the global pandemic," the spokesperson emphasized. "Our efforts have been recognized by governments around the world and are widely regarded as being a critical component of ending the global pandemic."