Come on Sarah

[Van wink 2,994]

9 hours ago, Tetteys Jig said:

So Ireland now suspending the use of AZ vaccine based on a normal amount of people getting blood clots... what in gods name are all these EU countries doing?! It's completely absurd behaviour really unless I'm missing something?

This is a mystery to me, from all I have seen we are dealing with post vaccine incidence of thrombosis which is on a par with data for an unvaccinated population. I really can’t believe this is being done at this time, we are looking at a surge of cases in many parts of Europe. 
I keep expecting to see some concerning new data being released which supports these actions, maybe we will, but as things look at the moment I agree, this is absurd and dangerous behaviour.

[Indy 3,283]

22 minutes ago, Van wink said:

This is a mystery to me, from all I have seen we are dealing with post vaccine incidence of thrombosis which is on a par with data for an unvaccinated population. I really can’t believe this is being done at this time, we are looking at a surge of cases in many parts of Europe. 
I keep expecting to see some concerning new data being released which supports these actions, maybe we will, but as things look at the moment I agree, this is absurd and dangerous behaviour.

Yes if the link to clotting is in general then totally insane actions, but I had a conversation yesterday where someone suggested it might be in a certain group who might have the same type of underlying condition and until it’s checked out the suspension is to insure anyone else with similar is identified for a different vaccine.

I thought it was to do with a certain batch.

It does appear to be an overreaction, be interesting to find out.

Edited March 15, 2021 by Indy

[Van wink 2,994]

12 minutes ago, Indy said:

Yes if the link to clotting is in general then totally insane actions, but I had a conversation yesterday where someone suggested it might be in a certain group who might have the same type of underlying condition and until it’s checked out the suspension is to insure anyone else with similar is identified for a different vaccine.

I thought it was to do with a certain batch.

It does appear to be an overreaction, be interesting to find out.

Yeh my initial though was that there maybe a concern about a specific batch. I guess certain groups with underlying conditions are inevitably going to have greater risk of adverse effect, in my case I was originally going to have Pfizer but the medics change it to AZ because of my medical history.

Edited March 15, 2021 by Van wink

[It's Character Forming 1,160]

9 hours ago, Well b back said:

Are you in the Pfizer club ? Going by your 15 minute wait.

 

Hey @Well b back no mine was AZ.  They did say they recommended waiting 15 mins before driving off so I figured I'd check my emails and update the pinkun, the usual essential stuff.

 

As far as side effect go, I felt a little bit sub-par overnight Friday & for most of Saturday, absolutely fine since.  Very relieved to have had it and looking forward a couple of weeks to when the immunity kicks in.  Not that I'll be doing anything different, but it will be a weight off my mind 🙂 

[Well b back 3,190]

11 minutes ago, It's Character Forming said:

Hey @Well b back no mine was AZ.  They did say they recommended waiting 15 mins before driving off so I figured I'd check my emails and update the pinkun, the usual essential stuff.

 

As far as side effect go, I felt a little bit sub-par overnight Friday & for most of Saturday, absolutely fine since.  Very relieved to have had it and looking forward a couple of weeks to when the immunity kicks in.  Not that I'll be doing anything different, but it will be a weight off my mind 🙂 

Nice

The doctors I am with tell me it’s very good to get the mild side effects, it shows your immune system is good. 
Lots of people don’t realise they have already had COVID and the vaccine often attacks the dead COVID in cells, hence some people get the symptoms for a good day. AZ sometimes but a common one with Pfizer is a sore arm for a couple of days, no idea why.

Numbers are being upped big time next few days, then I guess we will continue, you may recall a lot of rich countries ( America aside ) saying that it would be immoral for countries to vaccinate below the 50’s groups until the world is at that stage, but that’s for other threads lol. 

[Barry Brockes 145]

My Mum is 93 and lives in a care home because she is infirm and very frail. She has a whole list of ailments she suffers from, none of which are serious or terminal, but she had no side effects whatsoever from the AZ vaccine. Is the inference that, despite the overall state of her health, her immune system is in good nick?

[Tetteys Jig 830]

4 hours ago, Well b back said:

Nice

The doctors I am with tell me it’s very good to get the mild side effects, it shows your immune system is good. 
Lots of people don’t realise they have already had COVID and the vaccine often attacks the dead COVID in cells, hence some people get the symptoms for a good day. AZ sometimes but a common one with Pfizer is a sore arm for a couple of days, no idea why.

Numbers are being upped big time next few days, then I guess we will continue, you may recall a lot of rich countries ( America aside ) saying that it would be immoral for countries to vaccinate below the 50’s groups until the world is at that stage, but that’s for other threads lol. 

I assumed the "sore arm" thing was common sense of having a needle in your arm until I had the pfizer jab. It was a slightly different kind of sore, more a heavy arm like if I'd been lifting weights or sleeping on it funny. Was particularly noticeable when reaching for things on high shelves but very mild

As you say, it started the day after my jab, lasted a couple of days and then went.

[Well b back 3,190]

40 minutes ago, Tetteys Jig said:

I assumed the "sore arm" thing was common sense of having a needle in your arm until I had the pfizer jab. It was a slightly different kind of sore, more a heavy arm like if I'd been lifting weights or sleeping on it funny. Was particularly noticeable when reaching for things on high shelves but very mild

As you say, it started the day after my jab, lasted a couple of days and then went.

I will check but I believe it’s because it goes into the muscle ( don’t quote me on that yet lol ). But yes indeed, it’s different to what you expect and not straight away.

[CANARYKING 634]

Three days this week at Reydon then no more for a week !

[Well b back 3,190]

At last the trial data for Oxford is in from America, safe and highly effective at 79 % with the doses 4 weeks apart. 100 % with servere COVID ( ie no hospitalisation ).
It will still be a month - 2 months before it is authorised, so unless they start making more or allow their stocks to be used it will still sit in fridges.

 

[Tetteys Jig 830]

1 hour ago, Well b back said:

At last the trial data for Oxford is in from America, safe and highly effective at 79 % with the doses 4 weeks apart. 100 % with servere COVID ( ie no hospitalisation ).
It will still be a month - 2 months before it is authorised, so unless they start making more or allow their stocks to be used it will still sit in fridges.

 

presumably they have enough Pfizer and Moderna to vaccinate as fast as they can anyway so they aren't in a rush to approve this one. I wonder if they can send some supplies of it our way and we can stick 2 fingers up at the EU (this coming from a remain voter as well... funny how things pan out 😆)

[Indy 3,283]

45 minutes ago, Tetteys Jig said:

presumably they have enough Pfizer and Moderna to vaccinate as fast as they can anyway so they aren't in a rush to approve this one. I wonder if they can send some supplies of it our way and we can stick 2 fingers up at the EU (this coming from a remain voter as well... funny how things pan out 😆)

Definitely great news, and agree, the saddest thing is the people of EU countries are getting fed up with the EU parliamentary leaders and the support to them by France & Germany. But the likes of Poland, Hungary and Slovakia are now looking at Russia and Sputnik V vaccines to speed up their roll out.

[Van wink 2,994]

https://www.astrazeneca.com/content/astraz/media-centre/press-releases/2021/azd1222-us-phase-iii-primary-analysis-confirms-safety-and-efficacy.html

Latest press release following the reaction from the US regulator this week, now saying 76% efficiancy rather than the 79% which I think prompted the reaction, hopefully this will put minds at ease over the water, but maybe there is a bigger picture playing out.It does seem seem as though AZ appear to shoot themselves in the foot, but equally I believe when a regulator asks for more data it is rarely done in such a public way which suggests a more sinister motivation. Anyway good news, esp for the over 65's

 

 

[It's Character Forming 1,160]

Production of Novavax now underway on Teeside, although they're not committing to a date when it will start to be given to patients, but very good news nonetheless :

 

https://www.gazettelive.co.uk/news/teesside-news/production-novavax-vaccine-gets-under-20237098

[Van wink 2,994]

First delivery of Moderna vaccine arriving next month, excellent.

[Tetteys Jig 830]

On 26/03/2021 at 13:17, It's Character Forming said:

Production of Novavax now underway on Teeside, although they're not committing to a date when it will start to be given to patients, but very good news nonetheless :

 

https://www.gazettelive.co.uk/news/teesside-news/production-novavax-vaccine-gets-under-20237098

presume this means that as soon as its approved we can start smashing this out at volume rather than dribs and drabs?

[It's Character Forming 1,160]

1 hour ago, Tetteys Jig said:

presume this means that as soon as its approved we can start smashing this out at volume rather than dribs and drabs?

The article didn't mention production volumes, but with the Moderna announcement  I think it means our vaccine supply will be seriously ramped up and will come from a broader mix of sources which has to be a good thing.

 

Not sure "dribs & drabs" is completely fair when we've been regularly doing daily doses in the 500k + range 🙂 

[Tetteys Jig 830]

1 hour ago, It's Character Forming said:

The article didn't mention production volumes, but with the Moderna announcement  I think it means our vaccine supply will be seriously ramped up and will come from a broader mix of sources which has to be a good thing.

 

Not sure "dribs & drabs" is completely fair when we've been regularly doing daily doses in the 500k + range 🙂 

wasn't meant as a criticism of our rollout at all, far from it.

I just know we've been warned about 1st dose supplies being compromised in April so hoping that we get enough moderna doses delivered to counteract that supply issue. If we can keep doing doses in the 500k a day range then we're all good

[sonyc 5,492]

Good news.....NYT source

 

 

LIVELatest Updates

 

Vaccine Rollout

The Pfizer-BioNTech Vaccine Is Said to Be Powerfully Protective in Adolescents

A clinical trial found no infections among vaccinated children ages 12 to 15, the companies said, and there were no serious side effects. The data have not yet been reviewed by independent experts.

 

 

Abhinav, 12, was a participant in the Pfizer vaccine trial at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital in October.

Abhinav, 12, was a participant in the Pfizer vaccine trial at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital in October.Credit...Cincinnati Children's Hospital

Apoorva Mandavilli

By Apoorva Mandavilli

March 31, 2021, 6:45 a.m. ET

The Pfizer-BioNTech coronavirus vaccine is extremely effective in adolescents 12 to 15 years old, perhaps even more so than in adults, the companies reported on Wednesday. No infections were found among children who received the vaccine in a recent clinical trial, the drug makers said; the children produced strong antibody responses and experienced no serious side effects.

 

The findings, if they hold up, may speed a return to normalcy for millions of American families. Depending on regulatory approval, vaccinations could begin before the start of the next academic year for middle school and high school students, and for elementary school children not long after.

 

The companies announced the results in a news release that did not include detailed data from the trial, which has not yet been peer-reviewed nor published in a scientific journal. Still, the news drew praise and excitement from experts.

 

“Oh my god, I’m so happy to see this — this is amazing,” said Akiko Iwasaki, an immunologist at Yale University. If the vaccines’s performance in adults was A-plus, the results in children were “A-plus-plus.”

 

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The good news arrives even as the country records another rise in infections and health officials renew calls for Americans to heed precautions and get vaccinated. On Monday, Dr. Rochelle Walensky, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said that rising cases had left her with sense of “impending doom,” while President Biden called on state and local officials to reinstate mask mandates.

 

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Vaccination efforts are accelerating throughout the nation. As of Tuesday, 29 percent of adults had received at least one dose of a coronavirus vaccine, and 16 percent had been fully inoculated, according to the C.D.C.

 

But the country cannot hope to reach herd immunity — the point at which immunity becomes so widespread that the coronavirus slows its crawl through the population — without also inoculating the youngest Americans, some experts say. Children under 18 account for about 23 percent of the population in the United States.

 

“The sooner that we can get vaccines into as many people as possible, regardless of their age, the sooner we will be able to really feel like we’re ending this pandemic for good,” said Angela Rasmussen, a virologist affiliated with Georgetown University in Washington.

 

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Data from Israel suggest that vaccinating adults alone can significantly decrease the number of cases, but “long term, to hit the herd immunity threshold, we will have to vaccinate children,” she said.

 

The trial included 2,260 adolescents ages 12 to 15. The children received two doses of the vaccine three weeks apart — the same amounts and schedule used for adults — or a placebo of saltwater.

 

The researchers recorded 18 cases of coronavirus infection in the placebo group, and none among the children who received the vaccine. Still, the low number of infections makes it difficult to be too specific about the vaccine’s efficacy in the population at large, Dr. Rasmussen said.

 

“But obviously, it looks good for the vaccine if there were zero Covid cases among the vaccinated people,” she added.

 

The adolescents who got the vaccine produced much higher levels of antibodies on average, compared with participants 16 to 25 years of age in an earlier trial. The children experienced the same minor side effects as older participants, although the companies declined to be more specific.

 

The Coronavirus Outbreak ›

Latest Updates

Updated 

March 31, 2021, 6:46 a.m. ET3 minutes ago

3 minutes ago

The Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine is highly effective in adolescents 12 to 15 years old, a clinical trial suggests.

With a record number of cases, Turkey forbids gatherings on the eve of Ramadan.

Scientists wonder if a mix-and-match approach to vaccines could be the way to go.

Dr. Iwasaki said she had expected antibody levels in adolescents to be comparable to those in young adults. “But they’re getting even better levels from the vaccines,” she said. “That’s really incredible.”

 

She and other experts cautioned that the vaccine might be less effective in children, and adults, against some of the variants that have begun circulating in the United States.

 

Pfizer and BioNTech have begun a clinical trial of the vaccine in children under 12 and started inoculations of children ages 5 to 11 just last week. Company scientists plan to start testing the vaccine next week in even younger children, ages 2 to 5, followed by trials in children ages 6 months to 2 years.

 

Results from that three-phase trial are expected in the second half of the year, and the companies hope to make the vaccine available for children under 12 early next year.

 

“We share the urgency to expand the use of our vaccine to additional populations and are encouraged by the clinical trial data from adolescents between the ages of 12 and 15,” Albert Bourla, Pfizer’s chairman and chief executive officer, said in a statement.

 

Moderna has also been testing its vaccine in children. Results from a trial in adolescents ages 12 to 17 are expected in the next few weeks and in children 6 months to 12 years old in the second half of this year.

 

AstraZeneca started testing its vaccine in children 6 months and older last month, and Johnson & Johnson has said it will wait for results from trials in older children before testing its vaccine in children under 12.

 

Some parents have said they are reluctant to immunize their children because the risk posed by the virus is low. Children make up fewer than 1 percent of deaths from Covid-19, but about 2 percent of children who get the illness require hospital care.

 

The new results may not sway all of those parents, but they may reassure parents who have been wary of the vaccines, said Jennifer Nuzzo, an epidemiologist at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security.

 

“While I don’t think we have to wait until children are vaccinated to fully reopen schools, being able to vaccinate children may help some families feel safer about returning to school,” she said.

 

Pfizer and BioNTech plan to request from the Food and Drug Administration an amendment to the emergency use authorization for their vaccine, in hopes of beginning immunizations of older children before the start of the next school year. The companies also are planning to submit their data for peer review and publication in a scientific journal.

 

They will monitor the participants for two years after the second dose to assess the vaccine’s long-term safety and efficacy. Side effects of vaccines are usually apparent within the first six weeks, said Dr. Kristin Oliver, a pediatrician and vaccine expert at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York. “Still, it’s good to know that safety monitoring is going to continue,” she said.

 

The C.D.C. recommends that people avoid getting other vaccines for two weeks before and after receiving the two doses of the coronavirus vaccine.

 

But children receive more vaccines in the few weeks before the school year than at any other time, Dr. Oliver noted, so pediatricians and parents should aim to get those other immunizations done earlier than usual.

 

The coronavirus vaccines should ideally be given by pediatricians who have deep experience in immunizing children, Dr. Oliver added. “Now is the time to start planning how that rollout is going to take place in this age group,” she said.

[Well b back 3,190]

This is great news @sonyc, I understand there are also trials using nasal sprays. I have also read ( but to much hear say at the moment to quote ) that Pfizer have already developed a next vaccine to fend off the current variants and will be trialled amongst EU lorry drivers.

[Van wink 2,994]

Still very very low number of blood clotting incidents in UK, no causal relationship as yet found, and the risks from  Covid massively outweigh any potential risk from vaccines. 22 total reports of cerebral thrombosis out of 18 million doses !

“British regulators on Thursday said they have identified 30 cases of rare blood clot events after the use of the AstraZeneca vaccine, 25 more than the agency previously reported.
The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency said it had received no such reports of clotting events following use of the vaccine made by BioNTech and Pfizer.
The health officials said they still believe the benefits of the vaccine in the prevention of Covid-19 far outweigh any possible risk of blood clots.
Some countries are restricting use of the AstraZeneca vaccine while others have resumed inoculations, as investigations into reports of rare, and sometimes severe, blood clots continue.
On March 18, the UK medicines regulator said that there had been five cases of a rare brain blood clot among 11 million administered shots.
On Thursday, it put the count at 22 reports of cerebral venous sinus thrombosis, an extremely rare brain clotting ailment, and 8 reports of other clotting events associated with low blood platelets out of a total of 18.1 million doses given@

Edited April 2, 2021 by Van wink

[sonyc 5,492]

A positive story to tell this one isn't it? We certainly spread our risk / or perhaps better, hedged well.

https://www.theguardian.com/society/2021/apr/13/uk-strategy-of-backing-several-covid-vaccines-seems-to-be-paying-off?

[CANARYKING 634]

Having my second on Sat, is it 12 days to take full effect ?

[sonyc 5,492]

55 minutes ago, CANARYKING said:

Having my second on Sat, is it 12 days to take full effect ?

Quite a few opinions about but your take won't be far off. Here is the best piece I've come across from a reputable source CK

How well do first and second vaccine doses work against Covid-19? | News | Wellcome @https://wellcome.org/news/what-happens-if-we-delay-second-doses-covid-19-vaccines-pfizer-oxford-moderna

 

[Tetteys Jig 830]

I got dose 2 of pfizer yesterday! 🎉

Got my text last week and then about 10 weeks after jab 1, in went jab 2. Same centre, same arm, not the same vaccinator. Absolutely fantastic process, something we should be proud of nationally.

Strangely enough (or maybe not) my dad's wife got pfizer on both the same days as me but in London not Yorkshire and her card showed the exact same batch number! Presumably batches are pretty massive so this isn't quite the crazy coincidence it first seems?

Anyway, I'm happy to have had either. It's quite galling to see people say "yay, you got the good one" or "I hope I get pfizer" but I'll take that they want to get jabbed at all tbh. My wife had AZ and I'm equally thankful for that.

Thankfully despite all the weird stories our country has amazing take up numbers so hopefully that continues through the under 40's. I don't think I can mentally abide with another lockdown knowing just how effective these vaccines are. Time to get jabbed and get on with life and hope the rest of the world catches up as quick as possible.

Thought I'd post here rather than the main coronavirus thread as it's been a real journey on here following the progress since we saw the stories of Sarah and the teams early work and believed in science producing miracles when many others didn't.

Hopefully I'll see a few of you at Leeds away next season and other places if I get my tickets sorted! I'll never be taking some of the simple pleasures like going to the football for granted again!

[Indy 3,283]

Great Tettey, I got y second Pfizer jab last week.

I’ve been trying to follow the new ideas of nasal spray and tablet form for Covid treatments being touted but not much info on them, I hope they can develop it in a tablet form would be a real game changer for global coverage.

[Well b back 3,190]

At last Sarah Gilbert and Andrew Pollard have been rewarded for their efforts in the Queens birthday honours.

Sarah Gilbert becomes Dame Sarah Gilbert

Andrew Pollard becomes Sir Andrew Pollard

Congratulations to both and of course well deserved.

[Tetteys Jig 830]

https://www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/cuba-says-abdala-vaccine-9228-effective-against-coronavirus-2021-06-21/

93% effective 3 doses taken 2 weeks apart... a very intriguing option from Cuba. Should really help things in South America for 2022

[sonyc 5,492]

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/jun/26/the-oxford-vaccine-the-trials-and-tribulations-of-a-world-saving-jab?

Very long piece but a decent account of the achievement and challenges with the AZ. For @Well b back especially who has followed this so dedicatedly (and apologies if seen already).

 

 

[Well b back 3,190]

Thanks @sonyc

That pretty much sums it up. 
I have always wondered wether Oxford would regret their tie up with AstraZeneca, but I didn’t realise some of the mistakes were already made before AstraZeneca came along. Didn’t realise they were stopped from using a German company as Gilbert’s and Pollards aim was to save the world not Great Britain.

As you will be aware I always felt Johnson bragging was a contributory factor in the problems.

One last thing I see Oxford are still working very closely with Russia, I wonder if that will finally be the thing that makes Sarah’s dreams to save the world possible.