Prof’s ‘punch in air’ as vaccine gets go-ahead
Latest Oxford jab is big step forward
A leading Perth scientist on the frontline in the fight against COVID has called the approval of the new Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine a “punch in the air” moment.
The British Lung Foundation professor of respiratory research at Dundee University James Chalmers also said it is a major breakthrough due to the ease in which it can be distributed to the population.
The Oxford vaccine was approved for use in the UK on Wednesday, with the first doses due to be given on Monday amid surging coronavirus cases.
Prof Chalmers has himself been working tirelessly both on the frontline with patients and in the laboratories in the battle against COVID.
He has also seen firsthand the effect the disease has on patients in his role as a respiratory consultant at Ninewells Hospital.
And now he feels the new vaccine is another huge step to stemming the tide of rising cases.
Speaking to BBC Radio Scotland on Wednesday, Professor Chalmers said: “This is fantastic news.
“It is a punch in the air moment for those of us that have been working on the frontline against COVID.
“This could make such a difference to reduce the rising cases that we have seen across the country.
“There is a huge difference here which is that the effectiveness of vaccines is not really just about how it works in clinical trials, it is how it is delivered to the population.
“And the Oxford vaccine has a major advantage that it can be stored at regular fridge temperatures, meaning that it can be delivered to every part of the UK very quickly like the flu vaccine is every year.
“In terms of rolling this out to the whole population to help achieve herd immunity, this is a major breakthrough because of how easy it is to deliver.
“We know every year the flu vaccine can be delivered very quickly over a period of two to three months.”
The UK has ordered 100 million doses of the Oxford vaccine - enough to vaccinate 50 million people.
“In January and February we should be aiming to vaccinate a significant proportion of the population the way we do every start of winter with the flu vaccine,” Prof Chalmers added.
“We can turn around these rising cases by getting the vast majority of the
The COVID PfizerbioNTech vaccine will be joined by the Oxford formula for the national roll-out population vaccinated in the coming months.”
He revealed that the effectiveness of the Oxford vaccine is at about 70 per cent effective - significantly more effective than the general flu vaccine which is between 40-60 per cent.
“This is going to make a huge difference to reduce rising COVID cases if we can roll this about the population,” he revealed.
“The other key bit about effectiveness is preventing severe disease and in the trials this was very effective at preventing severe infections.
“So people that were getting infections on the vaccine side of the trial were getting mild infections, and all the severe infections were on the placebo or control side of the trial.
“The government is going to prioritise giving everyone the first dose as quickly as possible with the second dose following three months later.
“That will provide sufficient protection in the short term to reduce the number of cases nationally.”