Cause of anthrax vaccine worker's death debated

Pentagon won't stop military vaccinations

In this story: 'Inflammatory response' to the vaccine Company critical of medical examiner Troubled company RELATED STORIES, SITES

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The Pentagon said Thursday it would not suspend anthrax inoculations of military personnel despite the death of a worker at BioPort, the troubled company that is the nation's sole producer of the vaccine against anthrax, a deadly biological weapon.

A Michigan medical examiner says the vaccine may have contributed to the July death of BioPort employee Richard Dunn, who cared for and monitored test animals and was required to take the same vaccine given to hundreds of thousands of U.S. military personnel.

But both the Pentagon and BioPort say there is no evidence of a connection between the death and the vaccine.

VIDEO CNN's Ed Garsten reports that the anthrax vaccine could have played a role in a suspicious death Play video (QuickTime, Real or Windows Media)    Anthrax: A naturally occurring bacterium found in domesticated animals, anthrax can be produced as dry spores that, when inhaled, bring coma and death within a few days. Spores of anthrax are colorless, odorless and tasteless. They can be released into the air in clouds that infect the lungs. Once contracted, anthrax is about 99 percent fatal.

"Those of us who work here are confident that there is no connection between his death and the anthrax vaccine," BioPort CEO Bob Kramer said in a statement.

Pentagon officials met Thursday to consider whether to suspend the military vaccination program until questions surrounding Dunn's death could be answered. Deciding there was insufficient evidence of a link between the death and the vaccine, the military said it would reconsider that stand if further investigation established a connection.

'Inflammatory response' to the vaccine

At the time of his death, Dunn was suffering from heart disease. In Kramer's statement, he noted that, according to the death certificate, the immediate cause of death was ventricular arrhythmia -- a heart condition -- and said there is no reference to any underlying cause.

An August autopsy showed Dunn, 61, had an "inflammatory response" to the vaccine throughout his body, Ionia County Chief Medical Examiner Robert Joyce said. Joyce did not perform the autopsy, but as the county's medical examiner he is responsible for recording results.

Dunn had worked for BioPort and its state-owned predecessor since 1992. Over the years he received 11 doses of the anthrax vaccine, the last one in April.

A month later, he complained of fatigue and swelling, BioPort personnel director Mike Tanner said.

The company's doctors determined his symptoms had no connection to the vaccine, Tanner said.

Dunn died July 7.

"Even though they didn't find any anthrax in the man's system, his body's reaction to the vaccine contributed to his death," Joyce said in an interview with the Lansing State Journal.

Companier critical of medical examiner

BioPort said Dunn's death will be investigated. "This is information we absolutely need to look into and don't take lightly," said BioPort spokeswoman Kelly Rossman McKinney. "We're puzzled and stunned. We're going to do everything we can to find out what's going on here."

BioPort, which says it was denied a copy of the autopsy, was critical of the medical examiner for not alerting the company to the possible link until two months after Dunn's death.

"If, in fact, the Ionia County medical examiner had any information that led him to believe that the anthrax vaccine was involved in Dick's death, he had a moral and ethical obligation and responsibility to report his concerns immediately," Kramer said.

After BioPort received the information from Joyce, the company said it contacted the Pentagon, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and vaccine experts.

Company officials expect tissue samples taken from Dunn to be turned over to national medical authorities for further review.

Troubled company

BioPort bought the former state-owned Michigan Biologic Products Institute in 1998. Because it has yet to win federal approval of its renovated labs, the company has been unable to make new vaccine. Instead, BioPort has relied on vaccine made when the state owned the lab.

Earlier this month, it recalled three of its products -- including some doses of the military's anthrax vaccine -- because of labeling and contamination concerns.

BioPort already is struggling to survive financially. Despite an $18 million advance in 1999 from the U.S. military -- its largest customer -- the company told the Pentagon early this year that it faced a possible cash shortfall of up to $18 million for 2000.

Since then, BioPort has received additional Pentagon money to stay afloat.

Anthrax, an infectious hemorrhagic disease, is one of the most feared biological agents because it is nearly always fatal without treatment.

Experts say an aerosol version released in a populated area could spread quickly and kill possibly millions in a matter of days unless antibiotics were given shortly after exposure.

So far, about 19 percent of the U.S. military's 2.4 million active duty and reserve troops have been given at least one of the series of vaccine shots that must be administered to achieve full protection against anthrax.

CNN Military Affairs Correspondent Jamie McIntyre and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Anthrax as Bio-War Agent; Treatment
Centers for Disease Control: Anthrax- General Information
Department of Defense - Anthrax Information
Tricare - The Military Immunization Information Source
Navy Environmental Health Care - Anthrax Vaccine
U.S. Marine Corps - Anthrax Immunization Program
U.S. Coast Guard - Anthrax Vaccine Program
World Anthrax Data Site

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