Caution, not cynicism
“Would you trust the vaccine from Russia?” There has been a rash of text messages recently coming from friends. They wanted to know if I have inside information on Sputnik V – the vaccine against COVID-19 which the Russian government claims it has developed and which is not ready to be distributed and used.
“Would you trust that vaccine?” I asked my friends back.
“I would not trust anything Russian,” one of them replied.
Sputnik V must be the vaccine which President Duterte mentioned during his most recent State of the Nation Address (SONA). This was made in the context of his call on our countrymen “not to despair.” We presume this is one of the many bases for the President’s message of hope.
“As for me, I trust the system and process through which this vaccine – and every other vaccine that has been developed against COVID-19 – would be subjected to,” was my usual reply.
“I would be very cautious about vaccines, but I will not be cynical,” I added.
It felt strange that the announcement of the development of an antiCOVID-19 vaccine has not been met with excitement or a sigh of relief. Hasn’t the world been waiting for this vaccine for the past five months? Isn’t this the most important piece of good news we have heard in nearly half-a-year?
We surmise that the fact that the vaccine was developed by Russia is to blame for the apparent cynicism with which this supposed medical breakthrough has been met. The announcement has been the subject of memes and ridicule in social media. There are some habitués of the Internet world who said they would not touch this vaccine and would prefer to live with the danger of contamination by the deadly virus.
Is there a prevalent distrust of Russia in this part of the world?
If recent news items were correct, we understand that the Russian government is more than willing to put our country in the preferred/priority list of beneficiaries of Sputnik V.
The President has welcomed this announcement and has gone out of his way to sign in full public view his letter to the Russian leadership requesting for the preferential treatment for the Philippines in the distribution of the vaccine.
More than ever, we appreciate the President’s exercise of will and resolve.
He is determined to find a solution to the dilemma which our country – and the rest of the world – faces: That of reopening the economy while risking people’s lives, and keeping the economy closed and facing the risk of massive hunger.
If there is one person who could not afford to be cynical about this latest development, it would be the President.
The Chief Executive, however, would not be lacking in prudence and caution.
What waters down cynicism is the fact that the Russian vaccine will go through a rigorous process run by our Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
New vaccines undergo a seven-step process that usually takes over a year to complete.
Under normal circumstances, the process begins with the “discovery” of new molecular compounds which scientists believe would work against a certain prevalent disease. The “discovery” is first tested with animals and goes through strict laboratory testing for possible toxicity.
If it passes this stage, it can now proceed with the first step in the clinical trial phase.
Here, the potential vaccine is allowed to be tested with a few healthy individuals to determine the right dosage and to find out whether or not it will pass the test of safety to human beings.
In the next stage, the FDA allows the potential vaccine to be tested with larger numbers of individuals – this time, with those who have been potential exposed to the disease being addressed or who have shown symptoms. The objective is – again – to determine right dosage, efficacy, safety, and to test for possible short-term side effects.
The fifth step is to test it with an even larger number of volunteers. The number could run up to thousands and the testing period could be as long as four years. The goal is to further assess efficacy and safety and to probe the possibility of adverse reactions.
If the vaccine passes this stage, it may now be applied for product registration.
The last stage would be the issuance of the certificate of product registration.
This, however, is not the final step. Beyond product registration, health authorities will continue to do what is called “post-market surveillance.” They will continue to monitor the performance of the vaccine.
Our health officials say the FDA process can be shortened. Shortened but not compromised. That is what would guarantee that the public would trust this and other forthcoming vaccines.
We are not jumping up and down in ecstasy over this development. We are proceeding with caution and a healthy dose of guarded optimism.
Yet, we are grateful that the Russians have at very least proven that the development of a vaccine is more than just a figment of the imagination. It can be done. This may even be it.
God is good all the time.
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