INDIANAPOLIS — Medical professionals worldwide are debating the safety of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine. The IU School of Medicine is part of the U.S. clinical trial. The project's principal investigator and two Hoosiers who signed up to help test the vaccine are sharing their personal experiences.
Joe Morris, 79, and Mia McLendon, 44, are two of 532 volunteers participating in the trial. Since they signed on, some countries already using the vaccine have suspended or restricted its use because of possible serious side effects.
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McLendon, a mother of two, doesn't know yet whether she received the vaccine or a placebo.
"I'm not worried," she said. "I am not having any issues — health care issues or anything like that."
Morris said he received the vaccine and experienced no side effects.
The IU School of Medicine is one of 88 sites, participating in an AstraZeneca drug trial that involves 32,000 volunteers.
"We are exhausted," said Dr. Cynthia Brown, the trial's principal investigator.
According to Brown, the testing revealed no significant side effects and no unusual blood clotting, which other countries reported could have been a result of the AstraZeneca vaccine.
"The safety data in the United States, not just at Indiana University, shows no evidence of any form of clotting disorder across the clinical trials around the United States," Brown said.
The vaccine is not yet approved for use in the U.S.
Morris and McLendon said they have no regrets about participating in the study. Morris is planning a birthday and his next cruise. McLendon is looking forward to family gatherings and getting back to normal.
"We all did what we needed to do," McLendon said. "Just to help our neighbors, our family, the whole country, the world."
The test is ongoing. Morris, McLendon and the hundreds of other local volunteers will be watched for potential side effects for at least another year.