Miss Bingham said: “I think we have a shot this year to get a vaccine. There are two potential candidates. One would be the Oxford candidate and one would be the German vaccine from BioNTech. Those are the two ones “If everything works out, this year could potentially be produced and delivered. It’s probably early next year.”
German company BioNTech’s jab, developed in collaboration with Pfizer, elicited a strong immune response in volunteers, who developed antibody levels up to four times higher than those found in patients recovering from COVID-19.
The UK has made deals for 340 million doses of six Promise faxes from around the world, developed using four different scientific approaches.
A handful of vaccines, including the Oxford one, are in phase three trials – the final stage needed to prove if a medicine is effective.
Miss Bingham said it is likely that the first approved vaccines may not completely prevent people from catching COVID-19, but they can stop them from becoming seriously ill.
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She said: “What I think we will get is a vaccine that reduces the severity of symptoms so that people stop dying and it will turn into something like flu.”
A further 713 cases of coronavirus were confirmed in the UK yesterday, along with three deaths of people who died within 28 days from a positive test result.
More than 100,000 people have registered with the NHS COVID-19 Vaccine Research Registry, but the government wants more of those from vulnerable groups to come forward.
Meanwhile, doctors today are urging the government and NHS to ensure that people who were protected during the peak of the epidemic are not forced to return to work if they are still considered at high risk.
Representatives of 12 health organizations, including the Royal College of GPs, issued a joint statement expressing “extreme concern” for patients.
Professor Donal O’Donoghue said: “Official advice on shields may end, but we can not assume that patients who were previously protected no longer need protection against COVID-19.”
