![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.amnewsworld.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/11\/skynews-vials-syringe-pfizer_5166962-300x169.jpg\")
<\/p>\nThe coronavirus vaccine being developed by Pfizer and BioNTech has been found to be 90% effective in preventing people from getting the virus.<\/p>\n
Phase 3 of Pfizer’s trial involved 43,538 participants from six countries. They received two doses of either the immunization or a placebo, with 90% protected from the virus within 28 days of having their jabs.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
“Today is a great day for science and humanity. The first set of results from our Phase 3\u00a0COVID-19<\/strong>\u00a0vaccine trial provides the initial evidence of our vaccine’s ability to prevent COVID-19,” said Pfizer chairman and chief executive Dr Albert Bourla.<\/p>\n \n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n “With today’s news, we are a significant step closer to providing people around the world with a much-needed breakthrough to help bring an end to this global health crisis.<\/p>\n The news saw\u00a0stock markets surge<\/strong>, with the FTSE 100 jumping by 5.5% – adding \u00a382bn to the value of its shares and resulting in its best trading day since March.<\/p>\n Pfizer and BioNTech’s vaccine is one of around 12 worldwide in the final stages of testing, but it is the first to produce any results.<\/p>\n The US and German companies say they can supply 50 million doses by the end of 2020 and 1.3 billion by the end of 2021.<\/p>\n The UK government has secured around 40 million doses – enough for 20 million people – and could roll out 10 million by the end of the year if they are approved for use in time.<\/p>\n Pfizer says that it will apply to the US healthcare regulator – the Food and Drug Administration – by the end of this month for emergency approval to use the vaccine.<\/p>\n A UK government spokesman said it is “optimistic about a breakthrough” but urged people to remember “there are no guarantees”.<\/p>\n When the NHS is ready to roll out the vaccine,\u00a0people who live and work in care homes will be top priority<\/strong>, followed by the elderly and the clinically vulnerable, they added.<\/p>\n Chief medical officer Professor Chris Whitty described it as “a reason for optimism for 2021”.<\/p>\n But Brendan Wren, a professor of microbial pathogenesis at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, suggested it may prove difficult for GPs to store the vaccines as they must be kept at -80C temperatures.<\/p>\n He told Sky News: “You can certainly make a lot of it but whether you could get it to everybody that needs it is another issue and that’s why it’s good that there are other vaccines available.”<\/p>\n :: Subscribe to the Daily podcast on\u00a0Apple Podcasts<\/a>,\u00a0Google Podcasts<\/a>,\u00a0Spotify<\/a>,\u00a0Spreaker<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n Sky News science correspondent Thomas Moore said the results “exceed the expectations of many scientists”.<\/p>\n Peter Horby, professor of emerging diseases and global health at the University of Oxford, described the development as a “watershed moment”.<\/p>\n He said: “This news made me smile from ear to ear. It is a relief to see such positive results on this vaccine and bodes well for COVID-19 vaccines in general.”<\/p>\n Michael Head, senior research fellow in global health at the University of Southampton, commented: “This cautiously sounds like an excellent result from the Phase 3, but we should remain a little cautious – the study is ongoing.<\/p>\n “However, if the final results show an effectiveness of anywhere near 90% with response in elderly and ethnic minority populations, that is an excellent result for a first generation vaccine.”<\/p>\n William Schaffner, infectious disease expert at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, Tennessee, added: “The efficacy data is really impressive.<\/p>\n This is better than most of us anticipated. I would have been delighted with efficacy of 70% or 75%, 90% is very impressive for any vaccine. The study isn’t completed yet, but nonetheless the data looks very solid.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Sky News.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The coronavirus vaccine being developed by Pfizer and BioNTech has been found to be 90% effective in preventing people from getting the virus. Phase 3 of Pfizer’s trial involved 43,538 participants from six countries. They received two doses of either the immunization or a placebo, with 90% protected from the virus within 28 days of<\/p>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":132,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rop_custom_images_group":[],"rop_custom_messages_group":[],"rop_publish_now":"initial","rop_publish_now_accounts":{"twitter_1160854738579181570_1160854738579181570":"","facebook_3558452337540614_100649324928663":""},"rop_publish_now_history":[],"rop_publish_now_status":"pending","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1,20],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-131","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-general-news","category-health"],"yoast_head":"\n\n![\"Tracking](\"https:\/\/e3.365dm.com\/20\/08\/512x512\/skynews-coronavirus-graphic_5065471.jpg\")
<\/div>\n\nTracking global effort to find a vaccine<\/h3>\n
\n\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n