British theater star remains paralyzed after vaccine and seeks damages from Astra Zeneca
An Australian theater star and vaccination advocate is suing pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca, claiming the vaccine caused her to suffer a massive stroke that left her paralyzed.
Melle Stewart, 42, is known for her work as an actress in both the UK and Australia, including playing the lead in the musical Mamma Mia! and Channel 7's Home and Away.
Ms. Stewart received her first dose of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine on May 24, 2021.
Two weeks later, he started having seizures, then lost the ability to speak and all movement on the right side of his body.
Neurosurgeons diagnosed her with vaccine-induced thrombocytopenic thrombosis (VITT), a blood clotting condition that the manufacturer and regulators now recognize as a “very rare side effect” of this particular vaccine.
She underwent multiple rigorous procedures and therapies, including a craniectomy, a three-hour operation to remove part of her skull to reduce pressure in her brain and keep her alive.
Surgeons have since replaced that part of his skull with a titanium plate the size of his hand.
A case linked to the vaccine
From the beginning, doctors “speculated that this was related to the vaccine,” said Ms. Stewart's husband, Ben Lewis.
“It was a relatively new diagnosis. But Melle had no medical history. She was so healthy. He took care of his body like a temple. That was his job, after all. She had never been to hospital before,” he said.
Despite this, blood tests conducted by a hematologist revealed specific markers to confirm the cause of the vaccine.
Ms Stewart had low blood platelet levels and clotting problems, requiring five blood transfusions in four days.
Mrs. Stewart in rehab
As far as they knew, the couple had never had COVID-19, but the theater industry had been shut down during the pandemic, so they believed mass vaccination was a crucial step in bringing audiences back.
“It's incredibly frustrating. Words are my life and now they are gone. I say the words but getting them out is a problem,” Ms Stewart told The Telegraph of the dim prospect of being able to resume
“I am saddened by this. It's difficult."
Although she has received £120,000 from the government in recognition of the vaccine's harm, this is not enough to make up for the substantial earnings lost by her and her husband, who has stopped work to nurse his wife back to health.
Ms Stewart has accepted a second vaccination and wants people to know that she remains an advocate for vaccination.
“Despite the problems I have had with the Astra Zeneca vaccine, I have continued to receive multiple doses of the Pfizer vaccine and remain a firm believer in vaccination,” Stewart said. However, the actress is suing the pharmaceutical company, which makes her position curious to say the least.
“We expected this vaccine to be safe to use, but in this case AstraZeneca was not,” Lewis said.
“And even if the number of people injured or worse is relatively small, it is up to the government to take care of the very few people who have done the right thing for the country and society.”
The British payment for vaccine injury
Ms Stewart's tax-free payment from the government is part of a compensation program established in 1979 to maintain public confidence in all vaccinations.
For people who have suffered life-changing injuries from COVID-19 vaccination and the resulting consequences on their loved ones, critics say this is woefully inadequate. The current payment amount has not been increased since 2007.
The program requires victims to prove they are 60% disabled by the vaccine. Those who do not reach this threshold do not receive financial assistance, with no sliding scale for those who have suffered minor harm.
In response to the landmark legal case against the company, of which Ms. Stewart is a part, an AstraZeneca spokesperson told The Epoch Times that “patient safety is our top priority and regulators have clear and rigorous standards to ensure the safe use of all medicines." medicines, including vaccines.” “Our solidarity goes to anyone who has lost loved ones or reported health problems”
The spokesperson added that the Government's Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Authority (MHRA) had granted full marketing approval for Vaxzevria for the UK based on the vaccine's “safety profile and efficacy”.
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The article British theater star remains paralyzed after the vaccine and asks for damages from Astra Zeneca comes from Economic Scenarios .
This is a machine translation of a post published on Scenari Economici at the URL https://scenarieconomici.it/star-teatrale-britannica-resta-paralizzata-dopo-il-vaccino-e-chiede-i-danni-ad-astra-zeneca/ on Thu, 16 Nov 2023 11:21:03 +0000.