Investor.id – Phase three trials for the AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine have resumed in the United Kingdom after being suspended earlier this week due to safety concerns.
This raises hopes that one of the leading candidates in the global race to develop a coronavirus (Covid-19) vaccine, which can stem the pandemic, is back on track.
AstraZeneca said it had received confirmation from the UK’s Medicines Health Regulatory Authority that it was safe to continue clinical trials. The company declined to disclose medical information about the trial break, but indicated earlier this week that a potentially unexplained illness was being investigated.
The company said its “standard review process triggered a voluntary pause” for all global trials on Sept. 6 so that independent committees and internal regulators can review safety data. Although trials can now continue in the UK, the status of trials elsewhere remains unclear.
“Companies will continue to work closely with health authorities around the world and be guided on when other clinical trials can proceed to provide a broad, fair and profitless vaccine during this pandemic,” AstraZeneca said in a statement. ).
The University of Oxford, which is developing the vaccine in partnership with AstraZeneca, said Saturday that some 18,000 people have so far received vaccinations in trials.
“In a large trial like this one, it is expected that some participants will become unwell and each case must be carefully evaluated to ensure a careful safety assessment,” Oxford said in a statement.
STAT News reported earlier this week that AstraZeneca CEO Pascal Soriot said a “potentially unexplained disease” occurred in a woman in the UK who displayed neurological symptoms consistent with a spinal inflammatory disorder called transverse myelitis. The call was made by investment bank JP Morgan, reports STAT.
Soriot also confirmed that AstraZeneca’s clinical trial had been stopped once earlier in July after a participant developed neurological symptoms, but the disease was apparently not related to the experimental vaccine.
AstraZeneca’s potential coronavirus vaccine, called AZD1222, is one of the pioneers in the race towards a safe and effective vaccine that can reduce the global pandemic. The company launched its final stage trials in late August.
It is one of at least three vaccine candidates, along with Pfizer and Moderna, in the final stage of trials.
Officials from the World Health Organization (WHO) have previously hailed the AstraZeneca vaccine candidate as one of the most promising vaccines currently in development.
On Thursday, WHO Chief Scientist Dr. Soumya Swaminathan said there was no need to be “too discouraged” by the news about the trial break. He added that “these things are common.”
“I think this is great… it’s a lesson for everyone to be aware of the fact that there are ups and downs in research, there are ups and downs in clinical development and we have to be prepared for that. , “he said.
The United States has invested more than $ 10 billion in six efforts to bring a coronavirus vaccine to market. On May 21, the US announced it would invest $ 1.2 billion in AstraZeneca’s efforts in exchange for at least 300 million doses if the candidate proved safe and sufficiently effective.
Editor : Listyorini ([email protected])
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