Head of Oxford vaccine group on latest trial details

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(8 Dec 2020) The Head of the Oxford Vaccine Group said Tuesday that new results on a possible COVID-19 vaccine suggest it is safe and around 70% effective. • “We have no safety concerns about the vaccine,” with no hospitalizations or severe disease among those who received it, and results from all study locations consistently showing benefit, said Andrew Pollard. • It is yet to be determined how effectively the vaccine, developed by Oxford University and AstraZeneca, might help protect those over 55, which remains a key concern. • • The medical journal Lancet on Tuesday published partial results from tests of the vaccine in the United Kingdom, Brazil and South Africa - safety results on 23,745 participants and protection levels on 11,636. • • They’re hard to interpret because a mistake led some participants to get a half dose followed by a full one rather than two full doses as intended. • • Researchers claim the vaccine protected against disease in 62% of those given two full doses and in 90% of those initially given the half dose. • However, independent experts have said the second group was too small - 2,741 people - to judge the possible value of that approach and that more testing is needed. • • The half-dose group also didn’t include anyone over 55, and among others in the study, only about 20% were in that age group. • • It’s unclear if the results will be enough to lead regulators in the United Kingdom and elsewhere to approve its use right away. • Our data are all published, we're very confident in the results, Pollard said. We'll have that stamp of approval, I hope, before too long. • On Tuesday, the UK became the first Western country to start a mass vaccination program after British regulators authorized the use of a COVID-19 shot developed by US drugmaker Pfizer and Germany’s BioNTech. • US and European Union regulators may approve the vaccine in the coming days or weeks, fueling a global immunization effort. • • Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork • Twitter: / ap_archive • Facebook: / aparchives • Instagram: / apnews • • • You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/you...

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