Published 08:30 IST, November 10th 2020
WHO chief Tedros welcomes 'encouraging' news on COVID-19 vaccine from Pfizer, BioNTech
WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus hailed Pfizer and BioNTech's announcement that the vaccine they jointly developed is 90% effective in preventing COVID-19
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The World Health Organization (WHO) chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus hailed Pfizer and BioNTech's announcement on Monday that the vaccine they have jointly developed is 90% effective in preventing the COVID-19 infection in ongoing Phase 3 trials.
Taking to Twitter, Dr Tedros welcomed the ‘encouraging’ news and commended all scientists and partners engaged in developing the vaccine to beat the Coronavirus.
We welcome the encouraging vaccine news from @pfizer & @BioNTech_Group & salute all scientists & partners around the 🌍 who are developing new safe, efficacious tools to beat #COVID19. The 🌍 is experiencing unprecedented scientific innovation & collaboration to end the pandemic!
— Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus (@DrTedros) November 9, 2020
A coronavirus vaccine may be rolled out by March 2021 to the most vulnerable, which could fundamentally change the course of the pandemic, a senior World Health Organization (WHO) official said on Monday. Addressing WHO's annual ministerial assembly, Bruce Aylward said that the interim results from Pfizer Inc's phase-three vaccine trials were "very positive".
Fauci hails ‘extraordinary’ Pfizer results
Anthony Fauci, the top infectious-disease expert of US, said the vaccine, being developed by Pfizer will have a “major impact" on the battle against the deadly virus. Speaking to reporters, Fauci said, the efficacy of the Pfizer drug candidate being over 90% “is just extraordinary.” He asserted that Moderna may have similar results to the Pfizer vaccine because it is also based on mRNA technology.
UPDATE: We are proud to announce, along with @BioNTech_Group, that our mRNA-based #vaccine candidate has, at an interim analysis, demonstrated initial evidence of efficacy against #COVID19 in participants without prior evidence of SARS-CoV-2 infection.
— Pfizer Inc. (@pfizer) November 9, 2020
Pfizer early trials show vaccine 90% effective
Earlier in the day, American pharmaceutical Pfizer and its German partner BioNTech announced their Covid-19 vaccine candidate, BNT162b2, has prevented more than 90% of infections in a study involving thousands of volunteers in Phase 3 trials. This has been the most encouraging scientific advancement so far in the battle against Coronavirus.
Pfizer and BioNTech SE became the first drugmakers to show promising results from a large-scale clinical trial of a Covid-19 vaccine. The shots developed by the two companies are among the 10 possible vaccine candidates in late-stage testing around the world. As per reports, Pfizer has indicated that it will file an emergency use application with US regulators later this month.
08:30 IST, November 10th 2020