This article is part of The Globe’s initiative to cover dis- and misinformation. E-mail us to share tips or feedback at disinfodesk@globeandmail.com.
Boxes of AZT in Honduras in 2002.Daniel Leclair/Reuters
The debunked claim that the AIDS drug AZT was responsible for deaths was amplified by X owner Elon Musk on the social-media platform when he reposted another user’s message on Tuesday. By Thursday morning, the amplified post, which also called for the arrest of Dr. Anthony Fauci for his apparent promotion of AZT, had been seen more than 30 million times.
Claims of deaths from AZT therapy were researched and debunked in 2023 when an Instagram video falsely said it was responsible for thousands of people dying while also linking Dr. Fauci with COVID-19 conspiracies. The former director of the U.S.’s National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases has advised several presidents on health issues such as HIV/AIDS and COVID-19.
AZT, or azidothymidine, was the first drug approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to treat AIDS in 1987. AZT is manufactured by GlaxoSmithKline under the name Retrovir with generic versions available.
“There is no room for the claim linking AZT to the cause for AIDS or deaths. It became a building block for controlling the spread of HIV/AIDS,” said Dr. Julio Montaner, executive director of the B.C. Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS, in a phone interview.
Screenshot of a post on X amplified by Elon Musk on Nov. 19 making the debunked claim that AIDS drug AZT was responsible for deaths.X
No evidence to support claims of mass deaths due to AZT
“This is a conspiracy theory that has been around since the 1980s and resurfaces again from time to time,” Marco Salemi, an experimental pathology professor at the University of Florida College of Medicine, told PolitiFact in 2023. “There is absolutely no evidence or any scientific basis for it.”
A spokesperson for the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases told The Associated Press in 2023 the AZT claim has “long been trotted out by AIDS ‘denialists’ and debunked repeatedly over the years.”
Public health agencies as well as prominent AIDS organizations and researchers told the AP that AZT remains in use as it has been shown to be effective at keeping HIV in check when used in combination with other medications.
The drug has side effects including nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, headaches, insomnia and bone marrow suppression. Dr. Montaner said that there was no other treatment for HIV when AZT was introduced, making its use worthwhile despite the side effects.
AZT is among some 40 drugs approved for HIV treatment, though it’s generally reserved for patients for whom new medications fail. The drug is also used to prevent disease transmission in some situations, such as from an HIV-positive mother to a developing fetus.
USA Today reported that Dr. Fauci wasn’t responsible for the drug’s approval but did voice his support for AZT.
With a report from The Associated Press.
