The world’s biggest COVID-19 vaccine study got underway in the US with the first of 30,000 planned volunteers helping to test shots created by the U.S. government.
Study for experimental vaccine, developed by the National Institutes of Health and Moderna Inc started on Monday.
This is one of several candidates in the final stretch of the global vaccine race.
In the trial none of the 30,000 volunteers will be able to know if they’re getting the real shot or a dummy version.
After two doses, scientists will closely track which group experiences more infections as they go about their daily routines, especially in areas where the virus still is spreading unchecked.
Vaccine trial in the US started after similar trials started by many other countries including China and Britain. Britain’s Oxford University earlier this month began smaller final-stage tests in Brazil and other hard-hit countries.
The US Sets a Higher Bar
However, the US requires its own tests of any vaccine that might be used in the country and has set a high bar:
- Every month through fall, the government-funded COVID-19 Prevention Network will roll out a new study of a leading candidate — each one with 30,000 newly recruited volunteers.
- The massive studies aren’t just to test if the shots work — they’re needed to check each potential vaccine’s safety.
- And following the same study rules will let scientists eventually compare all the shots.
Next up in August, the final study of the Oxford shot begins, followed by plans to test a candidate from Johnson & Johnson in September and Novavax in October — if all goes according to schedule. Pfizer Inc. plans its own 30,000-person study this summer.
That’s a stunning number of people needed to roll up their sleeves for science.
It normally takes years to create a new vaccine from scratch, but scientists are setting speed records this time around. In March, the NIH-made vaccine was tested in people. The first recipient is encouraging others to volunteer now.
