Anthony Fauci announces the United States was on their way to a vaccine against coronavirus! A week after Pfizer, American laboratory Moderna announces their vaccine against covid is 94.5% effective (against 90% effective for the Pfizer vaccine).
A statement placing Moderna Therapeutics as the leader of the world's race for the development of a vaccine.
Launched in July, the third and last clinical phase of the vaccine includes 30,000 people in the US, including 15,000 that have been given a 100microgram dose of the vaccine, and the 15,000 others have been given a placebo. The first results unveil on Monday November 16 are promising.
See for yourself: 90 participants given the placebo have caught the disease, against 5 in the vaccinated group. And another interesting fact: no one in the 5 sick has had a severe form of coronavirus. Naming a 94.5% decrease in the risk to catch coronavirus once vaccinated.
As for Moderna's vaccine side-effects, they are mostly fatigue, sore muscles, or rashes in the area of injection. These effects have been noticed in about 10% of people vaccinated.
According to the French boss of the American Moderna group, Stéphane Bancel, interviewed by the Huffington Post: "This is a key moment in the development of our candidate vaccine against Covid-19. This positive interim analysis from our phase 3 clinical trial gives the first clinical indications our vaccine can stop Covid-19, including a severe form".
As a matter of fact, these results are yet to be assessed and validated by independent experts. Furthermore, these are interim assessments since the 3rd phase of the clinical trial is to take two years to determine if there is a genuine protection against coronavirus and if the vaccine can "stop the spread of symptoms", preventing cases to deteriorate and die.
But as for the race to vaccine, Moderna is on the good way to be in pool position. The laboratory is said to apply to issuance in the US in the next few weeks. Faced with their rival, Pfizer, they have a certain advantage: it can be kept in the fridge and does not required to be kept at -80°C (-112°F) in the freezer.
