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Now, when Romanian society is more divided than ever, the voices that come out against immunization are increasingly vocal, 93-year-old Dr. Sylvia Hoişie, who was part of the team that invented the famous Polidin, but also the cholera vaccine, gave an interview to the newspaper “Adevărul” in which he talks about the importance of the vaccine.
The truth: Doctor, why don’t Romanians trust the new vaccine that could end the pandemic as soon as possible?
Dr. Sylvia Hoişie: People’s confidence in various vaccines has always been a variable, depending on the culture, the willingness to accept or not the effects of the progress of science in human society, the individual experience of each one. Furthermore, this trust is put to the test today, when the unknowns of the coronavirus have invaded our daily existence. We are witnessing, in fact, the effort to find at least one effective treatment for the sick, an effort that has not failed, precisely because the world of medical research has had to adapt on the fly, and very quickly, to cause disease , with the demonstrations. are violent or asymptomatic. If a treatment could not be established, how could the vaccine be prepared to prevent a disease that has not yet been cured, many people rightly wonder?
Do you think that the short time that this vaccine was made questioned people’s souls?
Any vaccine must pass the public trust test, but let’s not forget that we have been fighting the disease caused by COVID for less than a year, while other vaccines have taken years to become accepted components of disease prevention. Medical research discovered the existence of the virus only in January 2020, that is, less than eleven months. Establishing the causality of the disease, corroborating what is known and commonly practiced in the production of vaccines with these causes, experimenting in the laboratory, in animals, then in humans, lasted, on the contrary, in comparison with what happened with other vaccines, , because we are informed that the authorization of at least three vaccines is coming to an end. Proving the efficacy of such a vaccine is a matter of duration, and the speed with which it has now been developed can raise many doubts. But the advancement of medical science can guarantee the success of a vaccine prepared even so quickly, by ordinary standards.
Not one, but three companies have applied to the US medical authority for authorization, after which the vaccines must also be cleared by the European medical authority to reach us. The responsibility of these authorities is enormous, because it is a matter of public health, the safety of millions of people of the presumed users of vaccines. Add here the vaccines, which are also in a very advanced stage of development or even already in use, in China, Russia and India.
Sylvia Hoişie (left), with colleagues from the Cantacuzino Institute in Iaşi PHOTO Personal archive
What do you think of the Russian vaccine?
Compared to what is known about the vaccines offered by American and British companies, in an authorization step, the information on the Russian vaccine is more discreet. But the institute he worked for is one of great prestige in medical research. I cannot believe that its authors could have circulated an ineffective vaccine, much less one that is harmful to human health. Of course, in this case too we work unusually fast, but time will tell us better if its effects are beneficial or not.
How long have you been making the famous Polidin?
After six years of work we managed to obtain the preparation we call Polidin. The idea came to us after we saw that immunostimulatory preparations were used outside to boost immunity so that the body could fight bacterial infections. We got the preparation in 1962-1963 and then we started the research work on laboratory animals: white mice, guinea pigs, rabbits and then we tested them. We inject two milliliters six days in a row Polidin and all the reactions were good. And so I received the right to produce it, in the spring of 1966. The production work was hard at first, because I had no equipment and only touched the product by hand. In the 70’s I got modern equipment for that period. We were all very young, the average age was around 25-26 and we were full of work.
“I will definitely get vaccinated with the COVID vaccine”
Do you recommend vaccination in general?
The entire known history of vaccines urges me to answer yes to this question. This is how humanity was able to get rid of many diseases that were previously considered incurable: smallpox, polio. Vaccines against rabies or tetanus against non-epidemic diseases, or against childhood diseases, the vaccine against diphtheria or measles, have had the same effects. The pneumococcal vaccine did a lot of good for children too. Think of the flu vaccine, which was not widely approved in its childhood, and today we are looking for it in pharmacies and we cannot find it. I will definitely get vaccinated with the COVID vaccine, but I don’t know if or how I will be able to receive it.
Dr. Sylvia Hoişie in the Cantacuzino Iaşi laboratory Personal archive
What can we learn from humanity’s experience with vaccines so far? Were there situations where the vaccines got better over time?
Experience to date shows that vaccines, even effective ones, have improved over time. For example, the polio vaccine, which was injected initially, was then administered orally.
What can you tell us about the side effects that can occur with immunization?
Of course, side effects can occur after a vaccine. However, they are usually minor in relation to the basic effect of the vaccine and depend on the body of each vaccinated individual. For example, the flu vaccine can cause lethargy or redness in the area where the vaccine is given. We still don’t know much about the proposed COVID vaccines, although the manufacturers assure us that they stay within absolutely acceptable limits. Adverse reactions are not excluded even after one, two, five and even more years of administration. It depends on the constitution of each one.
Can we expect the pandemic to end after the vaccine is released?
The pandemic cycle must be consumed and will have fewer adverse effects if the measures recommended by medical authorities are followed, even after the start of a mass vaccination. Only when the majority of the population is vaccinated can we speak of true hope.
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