10/11/2020
Covid-19 vaccine is shown to be more than 90% effective
10 November 2020--Pfizer, world's leading drugmaker company, stated on Monday that an early look at data from its coronavirus vaccine shows it is more than 90% effective.
The vaccine, made with German partner BioNTech, had an efficacy rate higher than 90% at seven days after the second dose, which means protection is achieved 28 days after a person begins vaccination. The vaccine requires two doses. The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has said it would expect at least 50% efficacy from any coronavirus vaccine. They plan to seek emergency use authorisation from the FDA soon after volunteers have been monitored for two months after getting their second dose of vaccine, as requested by the FDA.
The Pfizer vaccine uses a never-before-approved technology called messenger RNA, or mRNA, to produce an immune response in people who are vaccinated. The mRNA vaccine approach uses genetic material called mRNA to trick cells into producing bits of protein that look like pieces of the virus. The immune system learns to recognize and attack those bits and, in theory, would react fast to any actual infection.
Pfizer CEO, Albert Bourla, stated that Pfizer expects to have 50 million vaccine doses globally this year, and 1.3 billion next year. "Who will get this vaccine? We have two separate manufacturing lines. One is in the US," he said. "Those we prefer using mainly for Americans. The vaccine will be free to all American citizens."
Bourla added that a second line in Europe will be used to produce vaccines for the rest of the world. "We have already signed contracts with multiple governments in the world and they have placed orders," Bourla said.
So Malaysians, in the meantime, we just got to hang in there and wait for our turns. So keep your masks on and continue to socially distance yourself. Hope is (hopefully) coming soon.
Source and image credit: CNN Health