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Another week started with good COVID-19 news: Moderna reports 94.5% efficacy in their interim data analysis from their phase 3 trial. https://investors.modernatx.com/news-releases/news-release-details/modernas-covid-19-vaccine-candidate-meets-its-primary-efficacy
While press release remains my least favorite way of disseminating scientific data, this one at least had more information about the breakdown of the data. This efficacy measurement was based on 95 cases, 90 of which were in the placebo group and 5 were in the vaccinated group.
That means that the vaccine doesn't protect against symptomatic disease in all the people who receive it, but it did for most. They also looked at disease severity. 11 of the 95 cases were severe, and all of them were in the placebo group.
That's also good news. It may mean the vaccine protects against severe COVID-19.
In addition, these 95 cases included 15 people > 65 years old and 20 people who identified as "being from diverse communities." This allows us to assess vaccine efficacy in higher-risk groups.
In addition, these 95 cases included 15 people > 65 years old and 20 people who identified as "being from diverse communities." This allows us to assess vaccine efficacy in higher-risk groups.
As icing on the cake, and possibly to throw some shade at Pfizer, Moderna also announced that their vaccine is stable for up to 30 days in a conventional refrigerator and 6 months in conventional freezers. https://investors.modernatx.com/news-releases/news-release-details/moderna-announces-longer-shelf-life-its-covid-19-vaccine
The Pfizer vaccine needs to be stored at -80 C, which means substantial challenges for distribution. Storage in conventional freezers (-20 C) or refrigerators (2-8 C) will make the Moderna vaccine easier to roll out throughout the US and around the world.
But there's still cause for cautious optimism: these interim results are preliminary, and Moderna needs to submit data from 151 cases to the FDA for emergency use authorization. That means those cases have to occur and it's not clear they have.
Only 20 million doses are expected to be available in the US by the end of the year. Since this is a 2-shot vaccine regimen, that means that there's only enough for 10 million to be vaccinated. That won't even cover all of America's frontline health care workers.
So my take home message is we still have many months to go. Vaccines are a powerful tool in ending the pandemic, but they are not the only tool. We must remain vigilant about other measures to reduce transmission risk.
These other measures include:
-Masks
-Distancing
-Avoid crowds
-Avoid enclosed spaces
-Ventilate/humidify if possible
-Stay home when possible
-Wash your hands
-Disinfect high-touch surfaces
Stay the course. The end is on the horizon, but we still have a ways to go.
-Masks
-Distancing
-Avoid crowds
-Avoid enclosed spaces
-Ventilate/humidify if possible
-Stay home when possible
-Wash your hands
-Disinfect high-touch surfaces
Stay the course. The end is on the horizon, but we still have a ways to go.
And for a deeper dive into the Moderna trial, I highly recommend this excellent thread from Dr. @nataliexdean: https://twitter.com/nataliexdean/status/1328356802380124160
