We are closer to providing much-needed breakthrough, say Pfizer and BioNTech
A vaccine jointly developed by Pfizer and BioNTech was 90 per cent effective in preventing Covid-19 infections in ongoing Phase 3 trials, the companies announced on Monday.
The protection in patients was achieved seven days after the second of two doses, and 28 days after the first, according to preliminary findings.
“We are a significant step closer to providing people around the world with a much-needed breakthrough to help bring an end to this global health crisis,” Pfizer chairman and CEO Albert Bourla said in a statement.
Pfizer and its German partner BioNTech SE are the first drugmakers to show successful data from a large-scale clinical trial of a coronavirus vaccine. The companies said they have so far found no serious safety concerns and expect to seek the US emergency use authorisation later this month.
If authorised, the number of vaccine doses will initially be limited. Many questions including how long the vaccine will provide protection, remain unanswered. However, the news provides hope that other vaccines in development against the novel coronavirus may also prove effective. BioNTech hopes immunisation effect of Covid-19 vaccine will last at least a year.
BioNTech in a statement said, “It was optimistic that the protective effect of its experimental Covid-19 vaccine, co-developed with Pfizer, would last for at least a year.” While it was not yet known how long the protection would last, research on recovered patients and earlier findings on their vaccine led it to believe protection would not be short-lived,” it said.
Tuesday, 10 November 2020 | PNS | New Delhi
