'My son Adam, 41, had everything to live for. But he died after the AstraZeneca vaccine gave him a blood clot.' Mail readers share stories of the deaths or health problems they fear were caused by the jab... and their battles for compensation
In April, 43-year-old Gareth Eve told the Mail about life after the shocking death of his wife Lisa Shaw, a BBC journalist. Lisa died in May 2021, aged just 44, after complications following the AstraZeneca vaccine led to blood clots on her brain.
Your response to Gareth’s article surprised us. We received dozens of letters and emails recounting experiences of ill health, or even bereavement, after having the jab developed by AstraZeneca.
The vaccine was credited with saving millions of lives. In 2022, Professor Sarah Gilbert, the scientist who co-created the vaccine, was presented with a damehood, while the pharmaceutical giant’s chief executive officer was knighted.
In April, Gareth Eve told the Mail about the shocking death of his wife Lisa Shaw. Complications following the AstraZeneca vaccine led to blood clots on her brain
Yet, in April this year, the company admitted for the first time that the jab wasn’t entirely safe; that ‘in very rare cases’ it can cause a type of blood clotting called thrombosis with thrombocytopenia syndrome (TTS) — the condition that killed Lisa.
Figures from the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) show 81 deaths now appear to have been linked to the adverse reaction from the vaccine. Hundreds of people have been left with lasting disabilities.
An AstraZeneca spokesperson said: ‘Our sympathy goes out to anyone who has lost loved ones or reported health problems. Patient safety is our highest priority and regulatory authorities have clear and stringent standards to ensure the safe use of all medicines, including vaccines.
‘From the body of evidence in clinical trials and real-world data, the AstraZeneca-Oxford vaccine has continuously been shown to have an acceptable safety profile, and regulators around the world consistently state that the benefits of vaccination outweigh the risks of extremely rare potential side effects.
‘We are incredibly proud of the role the AstraZeneca-Oxford vaccine played in ending the global pandemic. According to independent estimates, more than six million lives were saved in the first year of use alone and more than three billion doses were supplied globally.’
Because of a loophole, Gareth — and many others — are unable to join legal action against AstraZeneca for compensation beyond the £120,000 already awarded by the Government.
Lawyers are reluctant to represent those given the vaccine after April 7, 2021 — the date the company added a warning about the risk of thrombotic complications to the literature sent out to healthcare professionals.
Meanwhile, those who suffered complications before that date are waiting many months for claims to be assessed.
Here we share some harrowing stories from our readers who fear the vaccine caused deaths or lifelong serious health problems...
Leslie Bounds, 73, from Axminster, Devon, says:
My lovely son, Adam Bounds, died from vaccine-induced immune thrombotic thrombocytopenia (VITT) 11 days after receiving the AstraZeneca jab.
He was 41, fit and healthy, with everything to live for — a great job in finance, a lovely home in Bristol and a teenage son. He would still be with us if he had not done what he saw as his public duty — to protect those who were more vulnerable to the virus than him — and had the Covid vaccine.
He was visiting me at home in Devon when he became very unwell, with a severe headache and vomiting, before losing consciousness — a terrifying thing for me, his father, to witness.
He was ‘blue lighted’ by ambulance to Royal Devon and Exeter Hospital on May 30, 2021. Due to Covid restrictions, I couldn’t go with him, and those hours waiting for news were some of the most stressful of my 73 years.
When a CT scan showed an acute right frontal-lobe haemorrhage that was causing compression of Adam’s brain stem he was transferred to Derriford Hospital, in Plymouth, for neurosurgery.
Sadly, the draining of the blood didn’t have a significant impact on the swelling in his brain and, given what the neurosurgeon described as ‘a negligible chance of survival and recovery’, a decision was made to let my son go.
A post-mortem showed Adam had blood clots in his abdomen and kidney, which the coroner ruled were indicative of VITT.
It is three years since we lost Adam. He was the life and soul of every event and brought so much joy to our lives. As any parent who has had to bury a child will know, the pain doesn’t get any easier.
Leslie Bounds says her son Adam, who died 11 days after receiving the AstraZeneca jab, 'would still be with us if he had not done what he saw as his public duty... and had the Covid vaccine'
I’ve spent much of that time fighting for compensation for his son, Owen, who was just 16 when his father died.
A few months ago, he was finally awarded £120,000, which may sound a significant sum, but can’t compensate him for the love and support I know Adam would have given Owen for years to come.
I was widowed 12 years ago, when Adam’s mum died from breast cancer and, hard though it is going through this bereavement without her, I take solace knowing that she was spared the pain of grieving our son.
Pam Fryer, 62, from Saltash, Cornwall, says:
Within days of having the AstraZeneca vaccine, on January 31, 2021, my husband had bleeds on his brain, which have left him a shadow of his former self.
Before the jab — his first — Mike was fit. He played golf and volunteered for a charity and, aged 79, had no underlying health conditions.
However, just hours after the vaccine, he had a nasty stomach upset and, within days, his co-ordination was so impaired he would trip over his own feet when he walked. He also developed a severe headache, coupled with pressure on the left side of his skull.
I was alarmed by his deterioration but, initially, Mike insisted it was just a mild reaction to the vaccine, which would wear off.
I contacted our GP, who didn’t seem to take my concerns seriously. However, in June 2021, Mike was referred for an MRI scan, which showed bleeds on his brain were the cause of his symptoms.
It was then several months, possibly because of the backlog caused by the pandemic, before my husband saw a neurologist.
I told the consultant I believed the vaccine was to blame for the bleeds on Mike’s brain and he agreed that was ‘possible’.
In April this year, the company admitted that the jab wasn’t entirely safe and that ‘in very rare cases’ it can cause a type of blood clotting
This he later confirmed in his letter to our GP, in which he wrote: ‘His symptoms are likely due to stroke (cerebral haemorrhage). As their onset was soon after his AstraZeneca vaccination, a causal relation is possible.’
I am in no doubt the vaccine was the cause. Mike’s life has been wrecked — his memory is so impaired he can no longer drive or be trusted to cook, for fear he’ll cause a fire.
The emotional impact on a man who ran his own business for decades and was still as sharp as a tack before the vaccine is even more upsetting to witness.
He’s been so down and frustrated about his situation that he now takes the natural serotonin booster, 5HTP, to lift his mood. It has impacted my life, too. Instead of enjoying old age together, I’m now my husband’s registered carer.
Two years later, I filled out a Yellow Card online — where information about side-effects of drugs are recorded — and applied for compensation. But we received a letter saying Mike didn’t qualify. We’ve appealed, but he’s now 82 and his reassessment could take years. I believe the Government and the medical profession want us to put up and shut up.
They don’t want to acknowledge, or take responsibility for, people like Mike, whose lives have been blighted by this vaccine.
Annie Bennett, 62, from Farnham, Surrey, says:
I was living near Alicante in Spain, where I had a second home, when I had the AstraZeneca vaccine, my first, in May 2021.
That night I felt feverish, which didn’t concern me. However, three days later, I started getting terrible headaches, which weren’t eased by the paracetamol my GP recommended.
I went to see another doctor who prescribed steroids which provided temporary relief. Yet, 23 days after having the jab, I still felt so wretched — headache, sickness, weakness in my body — that I couldn’t get out of bed.
A concerned neighbour drove me to A&E at the local hospital where they kept me in, running all sorts of scans and tests.
The following day, a trauma doctor came to see me and said: ‘The good news is you don’t have a tumour, but you do have a clot in your brain.’
I was so shocked and alarmed. I explained that my symptoms had started soon after my AstraZeneca vaccine, which didn’t seem to surprise him at all.
He prescribed blood thinners to dissolve the clot and they kept me in for monitoring for another five days. The discharge letter from the trauma doctor stated that I developed a clot in my brain following the AstraZeneca vaccine.
Although I kept taking the blood thinners, it took a long time for the clot to dissolve and I was very unwell for months afterwards. I felt dizzy, with constant headaches, and my vision and balance were too impaired for me to look at a screen, drive or even walk my dog. Perpetual diarrhoea meant I also lost more than three stone.
I came back to the UK in late 2022 — I was struggling so much I needed to be close to my family — and a scan showed that the clot had finally gone.
However, I still have chronic fatigue symptoms — my legs are so weak that sometimes I struggle to climb stairs.
I made an appointment with my GP recently, who ran blood tests. I’m still awaiting the results, but she suggested it might be the result of anxiety and wondered if I’d considered counselling.
Insulted, I explained that I’m a psychotherapist and know that what I’m experiencing is physical. I’ve consulted a lawyer who says I won’t be able to claim compensation through the scheme here as I was living in Spain when I had the jab.
I’ll explore other avenues, while living in hope that, at the age of 62, I can finally get back to my pre-vaccine health.
Tracy Ashdown, 58, from Welling, Kent, says:
Within a week of having his second AstraZeneca vaccine, in June 2021, my previously healthy son, Tyler, was treated for serious heart problems, aged 21.
Doctors told us he was ‘too young’ to have received the AstraZeneca jabs. He was vaccinated earlier than others his age, most of whom were given Pfizer or Moderna vaccines, because he was caring for an elderly relative.
He had a very sore throat which left him unable to swallow in the days after the second vaccine.
A week later, he developed severe pains in his chest and arms and, when he collapsed, his girlfriend called an ambulance and the crew rushed him to Medway Maritime Hospital, believing he was having a heart attack.
I’ll never forget my husband and I being woken in the middle of the night by a call from a medic telling us that Tyler was being ‘blue lighted’ to St Thomas’ Hospital in London, where a cardiac team was waiting.
He was diagnosed with acute myocarditis — inflammation of the heart muscle, which weakens the organ, meaning the rest of his body was deprived of blood.
We were told causes can include viral infections — he was tested for Covid and didn’t have it — as well as reactions to ‘medication’.
The doctors wanted to know why Tyler, as he was so young, had received the AstraZeneca vaccine. They mentioned in his discharge letter that he’d had a Covid jab a few days before, leading us to think this was the likely cause. He was in hospital for a week, wired up to machines, and given anti-inflammatories and beta blockers, to slow down the heart rate and lower blood pressure.
Three years on, Tyler, who works in a managerial position at my husband’s drainage company, is nervous of too much exertion, living in fear of another attack.
What we believe was a reaction to his second AstraZeneca vaccine — he had no adverse effects from the first — has taken a significant toll on his life and we are now considering an application for compensation.
Within a week of having his second AstraZeneca vaccine in June 2021, Tyler was treated for serious heart problems, aged 21
Carolyn Ash, 62, from Knaresborough, North Yorkshire, says:
In 2021 I developed a rare and debilitating immune disease — dermatomyositis — which, having ruled out all other causes, my rheumatologist said may be linked to the AstraZeneca vaccine.
It started with a rash on my back, chest and neck, followed by weakness in my arms and thighs. It then spread to the inside of my throat, making eating impossible.
On New Year’s Day in 2022, I was so debilitated — unable to swallow — that my terrified daughter called 999 and I was rushed to hospital.
The most distressing and scary period of my life followed as I spent 11 weeks on steroids, being fed via a nasogastric tube, as doctors tried to figure out what was wrong with me.
I was on steroids for a year, lost my hair and developed more deep lesions on my chest and scalp, as well as shingles and pneumonia due to my low immunity.
Dermatomyositis — a long-term inflammatory disorder which affects the skin and muscles — was eventually diagnosed via a punch biopsy, where a small amount of skin tissue is taken and examined under a microscope.
I was told this disease is usually the result of an underlying condition, including cancer or a viral infection, so every part of my body was scanned and tested and none was found.
My rheumatologist later told me that she would expect to see no more than two people with dermatomyositis throughout her career, but I was one of eight people she was treating at the time, two of whom were on the ward with me at Harrogate District Hospital.
She said colleagues in other hospitals had also reported a dramatic hike in cases during the pandemic. I never contracted Covid, but had two AstraZeneca vaccines in 2021.
Carolyn Ash developed a rare and debilitating immune disease which her rheumatologist said may be linked to the AstraZeneca vaccine
In her letter to my GP, the rheumatologist said of me: ‘She was wondering if this could be related to her Covid-19 vaccine. I have explained that this is not impossible via activation of the immune system.’
I am in no doubt that’s what caused it. I was a fit and healthy 60-year-old, who, when this disease developed, had only ever been to hospital to deliver my two children.
The damage it has wrought has left me with such lowered immunity that a common cold lasts for weeks.
I can’t go in the sun, because of the risk to my highly sensitive skin, and I have constant nerve pain (neuralgia) in my legs.
I take daily medication —naproxen and pregabalin — for the neuralgia. Without it I’m in excruciating pain and cannot walk very far.
I am registered disabled due to the dermatomyositis, though I am determined to stay independent.
I work in sales, mostly from home, because the commute would be too much every day.
I reported my reaction via the Yellow Card scheme, and noticed the number of people with dermatomyositis registering their details there has increased significantly over the past three years.
My claim for compensation was rejected on the grounds that the medical assessor found ‘no direct causation between the vaccination and my condition’.
I firmly believe otherwise and plan to appeal this decision.
Patricia Williams, 86, from Swansea, says:
I followed my doctor’s advice and got my second dose of the AstraZeneca Covid vaccine — having been fine after the first — back in March 2021.
Within hours I had a terrible headache which I couldn’t shift and, two nights later, woke at 3am feeling very confused. My speech was slurred and my vision was affected, meaning I was unable to read the telephone number for my neighbour, Mike, who, as I have no children, is a huge support. I stumbled to his door and collapsed in his arms.
Mike immediately called an ambulance. I was terrified of going to hospital because I didn’t want to catch Covid, but the paramedics insisted, telling me my blood pressure was so high — 200 over 45 — I’d die without urgent medical care.
A scan at Morriston Hospital showed I’d had a transient ischaemic attack (TIA), or mini stroke, where a blockage, usually a blood clot, leads to a lack of oxygen in the brain.
Patricia Williams had a mini stroke two days after receiving her second dose of the AstraZeneca Covid vaccine
A few weeks later, AstraZeneca added a warning that its Covid vaccine could, in rare cases, lead to blood clots.
I have no doubt that’s what triggered my TIA. I’ve suffered headaches ever since and had to have a pacemaker fitted.
Earlier this year I was told I have also developed atrial fibrillation (AF), a condition that causes an irregular and abnormally fast heart rate.
Prior to the vaccines, my life was great. At the ripe old age of 83 I went ballroom dancing three times a week, headed on cruise holidays and saw West End shows.
Now I struggle to get around or even look after myself properly, as my body is weak and I have little stamina.
I reported my reaction, via the Yellow Card scheme, and my application for compensation has been passed to an independent medical assessor.
I hope they find in my favour as I may soon need the money to pay for extra support at home.
