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The coronavirus vaccine is up and running, as the head of the European Pharmaceutical Association Natalie Mol said in an exclusive interview with MEGA that we cannot have a definitive prediction of when there will be a pandemic vaccine.
The subject was commented on in the “Society Hour MEGA” program by the specialist in infectious diseases, professor at the University of Athens, member of the Coronavirus Committee Mr. Nikolaos Sypsas.
The formalities until the vaccine reaches Greece
“There is uncertainty about when the vaccine will be ready in the sense of vaccinating 70% of the population. We currently know that there is at least one vaccine in phase 3, which will be completed in October. Then we will see the results of these studies.
“If this vaccine is effective, then it will go to the European Commission to obtain a marketing authorization. This is the schedule. At the same time, however, the company that will produce the vaccine has already started producing it, without waiting for the results, to save time. These vaccines were ordered by the EU, and a part will also come to Greece. This is how the date was set for the start of the year, ”explained Mr. Sypsas.
Mass vaccination is not planned until summer.
He continued: “So actually we have to wait for the results of the phase 3 studies, then get approval from the EMA (European Medicines Agency) and then we will see the vaccine.” In any case, mass vaccination of the Greek population is not foreseen before the summer. “
As he said, “batches of the vaccine can arrive earlier, as the government said, which will cover health and vulnerable groups first, but not the general Greek population.” In the best case, “we will have some doses of the vaccine in early 2021.”
Phase 3 of the vaccine, Sypsas said, will be completed in October, where it will be administered to 30,000 people and will address the issue of vaccine safety. Your effectiveness rate will also be displayed. “We have to be very cautious with the company’s announcements, first we have to wait for clear results in terms of efficacy and safety, and then we can discuss vaccination. Therefore, we still have a long way to go and citizens should not be complacent. ”Mr. Sypsas clarified that all these developments concern the Oxford vaccine.
The EU is right to reserve the vaccine
He also noted that the EU did the right thing and pre-ordered the vaccine. “This is a strange and unprecedented situation, but I think the EU was right to pre-order it.”
He put an end to conspiracy theories, stressing that “we are in an epidemic of disinformation.” The state must fulfill its duty to those who spread lies that are dangerous to public health.
Mr. Sypsas was also asked if there is a case to see a nurse in all schools like in Spain. As he said, in some schools there is already a nurse, but in the rest of the schools there is the so-called Covid chief, who is fully informed on the subject.
Finally, only in the event of extreme measures can schools be closed again. “Schools will be the last to close,” he said.
European pharmaceutical industry: impossible to predict when the vaccine will be launched
At the same time, a reversal in the production and administration of the coronavirus vaccine brings the European pharmaceutical industry as it says it is impossible to predict when an effective vaccine will be released.
The director of the European Pharmaceutical Industries Association, Natalie Mol, in an exclusive interview with MEGA, said that we cannot have a definitive prediction of when there will be a vaccine against the pandemic.
“We understand everyone’s desire for a vaccine quickly, but it can never be done at the expense of safety.” It is difficult and impossible to predict exactly when the Covid-19 vaccine will be available. “
Sources in Brussels point out that the European Medicines Agency, which will approve the vaccine, expects it to be ready in August 2021.
Regarding the Russian vaccine, Natalie Mol said that “our companies will feel comfortable to sell a vaccine only if it has been approved by the European Medicines Agency, but it is also generally and universally accepted.”
Russian vaccine divides scientists: what Gogos and Mosialos say
The publication of the prestigious magazine The Lancet that the Russian vaccine is valid and without side effects caused complaints but also celebrations.
On the one hand, Russia has shown those who question it that its vaccine remains one of the first in the race, and on the other hand, critics who had expressed doubts about the vaccine could not hide their pessimism.
According to the authoritative medical journal, the results of the two tests, which were conducted in June and July, with the participation of 76 volunteers, showed that 100% of the participants developed antibodies, without serious side effects. The vaccine, which has already been licensed in Russia, is administered in two doses. Vladimir Putin had announced in August that his daughter had done the same. Russia becomes the first country to issue a license before the data is released or a full-scale test is launched.
“The two 42-day trials, which included 38 healthy adults each, found no significant adverse effects among participants and confirmed that the vaccinated candidates elicited an antibody response,” The Lancet reported.
However, the journal clarifies that “large long-term trials, including a placebo comparison and additional follow-up, are needed to determine the long-term safety and efficacy of the vaccine in preventing coronavirus infection,” the journal added.
The announcement of the vaccine has caused skepticism among most Western scientists, who caution against its use until internationally approved testing measures and regulations are adopted.
Russia talks about an attempt to “tarnish” the vaccine
The medical journal’s findings, along with a vaccine trial in 40,000 people that began last week, led Moscow to fight back.
“We are answering all the questions that the West has asked during the last three weeks, with the clear aim of tarnishing the Russian vaccine,” said Kirill Dmitriev, director of the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF), the Russian state entity has supported the vaccine.
The official told Reuters that the vaccine met all specifications, noting: “We will now start asking questions about some of the Western vaccines.”
Gogos is also optimistic about the Russian vaccine
Regarding the results for the Russian vaccine, which were published in the Lancet medical journal, Charalambos Gogos commented that “we have a very good immune response, almost 100% in fact, then the Russian is a very good vaccine and we are waiting for the phase 3.
“We now have data on the Russian vaccine. The Lancet is an excellent journal of the world’s first, so we have a very, almost 100% immune response in fact, so it is a very good vaccine and we are waiting for the phase 3 where approved.
“The platform you use is similar to what other companies use,” he said.
Mosialos: “Encouraging results, but …”
The preliminary positive results of the tests of the Russian vaccine Sputnik V, which were published in the medical journal Lancet, commented in a post on Facebook, Elias Mosialos.
The LSE Professor of Health Policy states that the Russian vaccine actually consists of two components: both are based on the common cold virus, adenovirus 5 and adenovirus 26.
“The Russian researchers used this approach because after vaccination, the body can develop antibodies against the vaccine vector (adenovirus),” he said.
Mr. Mosialos described the results as encouraging, but stressed that there was no guarantee that they would be verified in phase III.
“No vaccine had been approved – before the Russian one – with such a small sample of voluntary I / II clinical trials, and without the results of Phase III, a large number of volunteers and a general analysis of the results,” he concludes in a significative way.
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