I was sent images of coffins and hanged Nazi war criminals after finding medical fraud in clinical trials
![How my ivermectin research led to Twitter death threats | Dr Andrew Hill](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/afeb289db5fed7b7059b30e05ef53cca60ea0323/0_0_4388_2634/master/4388.jpg?width=1200&height=630&quality=85&auto=format&fit=crop&overlay-align=bottom%2Cleft&overlay-width=100p&overlay-base64=L2ltZy9zdGF0aWMvb3ZlcmxheXMvdGctb3BpbmlvbnMucG5n&enable=upscale&s=312e243675e2c592d7c7324916f94b7a)
The story of online threats and abuse is very dark. In early 2021, my research team was analysing a new drug called ivermectin. In the first clinical trials, this drug seemed to prevent new infections and improve survival. When I first wrote about this, I started getting regular threats on Twitter, demanding that ivermectin should be approved worldwide and questioning the safety of vaccines.
In March 2021, I received my first vaccine dose and posted a photo on
Twitter from the clinic. Within minutes I was receiving strange messages: “Why would you do that?”, “not safe”, “why not use ivermectin instead”, “you are paid by the Gates Foundation”. One person even sent a link to a suction device to remove the vaccine fluid from my arm. Any message I sent promoting the benefits of vaccines led to threats and abuse.