Oxford COVID-19 vaccine phase 3 trial results likely by end of November-December

New Delhi, 14-Oct-2020

Health experts are hoping that at least one or a handful of vaccines for the SARS-CoV-2, the novel coronavirus that causes COVID-19, will be ready by the end of this year or early 2021 as the global pandemic persists. Nearly 200 vaccines for COVID-19 are under study and at least 10 candidates have moved to the phase 3 human trials. In India, three experimental vaccines against COVID-19 are in different stages of clinical testing and the Centre is optimistic that the phase 3 results of the Oxford-AstraZeneca�s vaccine candidate, called Covishield in India, will be available by November-end or early December this year. The Serum Institute of India (SII) is conducting phase 3 trials of the Oxford COVID-19 vaccine as part of international trials in India. The Pune-based firm has already begun manufacturing the vaccine. SII, which had teamed up with Gavi, The Vaccine Alliance, and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, said it plans to produce and deliver up to 100 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines for India and low- and middle-income countries.

Phase 2 COVID-19 vaccine trial results by early November
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Besides the Oxford vaccine, two local candidates being tested across the country, ICMR-Bharat Biotech�s COVAXIN and Cadila Health�s ZyCovD, are in advanced phase 2 trials. On Tuesday, Dr Vinod K Paul, chairman of the COVID-19 empowered group looking after vaccines, said that results of the phase 2 trials of these indigenously developed candidates are expected by early November. �Early November, we can have the results. The other vaccine is the Serum-Oxford vaccine-- undergoing phase 3 trial. Progress is good and by the end of November, we may have results. Vaccine preparedness is parallelly being done to reach masses,� Dr Vinod K Paul said during the Health Ministry�s weekly briefing on COVID-19. Health Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan had said that the Centre is expecting to have a COVID-19 vaccine from more than one source by early next year. On Monday, WHO chief scientist Soumya Swaminathan had said the UN health agency believes that a coronavirus vaccine will be ready for registration by the end of 2020 or early next year at the earliest. Meanwhile, Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan informed on Tuesday that the government has sufficient financial resources available to procure at least 400-500 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines.