Modern vaccine is 94.5% effective against coronavirus, the most effective vaccine against the deadly virus in the world, according to initial data released Monday. This is of course a very exciting result, “says Dr. David L. Dyer, chief medical officer of Moderna, the company behind the vaccine. That is simply good, 94% (5%) are really outstanding and it is a huge step forward in the area of vaccine development.
Moderna heard its findings from an independent panel that analyzed data from its clinical trials. This is one of the greatest moments of my life and career, “said Dr David Dyer, the Moderna’s chief medical officer.
Last week, Pfizer announced that early data showed its vaccine was more than 90% effective against the disease. It is absolutely amazing that we can develop a vaccine that prevents symptomatic diseases with such great efficacy, “said Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The vaccine could begin in the second half of December for a high-risk group of about 1,000 people with the virus, Fauci said. The vaccine starts in a higher-risk group and is expected to be available to the rest of the population next spring.
Moderna’s Study
In the Moderna study, 15,000 study participants received either the vaccine or a placebo, which is a shot of saline that has no effect.
Of the 15,000 participants who received the vaccine, 90% developed Covid 19 within several months and 11 developed a severe form of the disease. Of these, only five developed such a disease, but none of the five developed serious illness, and another eleven did not.
A small percentage of recipients had symptoms such as body aches and headaches, the company said, but its vaccine had no serious side effects.
Moderna plans to apply to the US Food and Drug Administration for approval of its vaccine after it has gathered further safety data by the end of this month.
For starters, there won’t be enough vaccine for everyone, and Fauci said he expects the first Covid 19 vaccinations to begin in late December, not early December. High priority groups, including those with underlying diseases, will receive the vaccine first. I think everyone else will start getting vaccinated by the end of April, “Faucci said. Also he said “I expect that we will have to wait, but I am confident that it will be ready by the beginning of April”.
“It will take a few months, but it will continue in May, June and July and then in August, September, October, November and December”.
Pizer’s and Moderna’s vaccine had similar results, using the same technique to activate the body’s immune system. The vaccine delivers the messenger RNA (mRNA) that produces the coronavirus and the spines that sit on it.
Once injected, the body’s immune system produces antibodies to the spine, and when the vaccinated person is later exposed to the coronavirus, these antibodies should be ready to attack the virus. If the vaccinated were later exposed to a coronavirus, they would not be able to defend themselves. All vaccines currently on the market use mRNA, but this is brand new and there has always been skepticism about it.
“What I have seen from the studies is that the efficacy is quite impressive and there are no real safety concerns, which is a good sign of the long-term safety of the vaccine and its use.” said Dr. Fauci.
“I’ve seen almost identical results from Pfizer and Moderna, and that almost really validates the mRNA platform. Research on mRNA began many years before the current pandemic, and research on it began in the early 1990s with the help of the National Institutes of Health.” said Dr. Fauci.
“I have worked with Moderna on the development of their vaccine and although it appears that the two vaccines have very similar safety and efficacy profiles, Moderna’s vaccine has a significant practical advantage over Pfizer’s. The vaccine is administered in two doses at intervals of several weeks, so it is much more effective.”said Dr. Fauci.
Advantages and Disadvantages
Pfizer vaccine must stay in the minus 75 degrees Celsius, and doctors “offices and pharmacies don’t have freezers as low. No other vaccine in the US needs to be kept so cold, but that of Moderna does.
Moderna’s vaccine can be stored at minus 20 degrees Celsius, but must be kept at least three times as low as other vaccines.
The advantage of Moderna’s vaccine is that it can be kept in the refrigerator for up to 30 days, the company said Monday. That means the vaccine can be stored in an easily available freezer that is available in most doctors’ offices and pharmacies, said Dr. Zack Hirsch, director of the Center for Infectious Diseases. Disease research at the University of California, San Francisco. Pfizer’s vaccines only keep in the fridge for five days, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
